Creeping Death Blu Ray Review (CineVerse)

Creeping Death is a 2023 slasher written, edited, produced, and directed by Matt Sampere (Haunted Upstate, EZ Ride, and The Stolen Ones). It’s based on the 2021 horror short with the same name. It was executive produced by Jason Scott Goldberg (Glorious, Botched, Pursuit of the Truth, Tenants, Subject, Greywood’s Plot, and Stay Out of the F**king Attic). While trying to enjoy a peaceful Halloween with his mother Linda Garner (played by: Monique Parent from That’s a Wrap, Body of Influence, Dragon Fire, Night Eyes Three, Mirror Mirror 3: The Voyeur, L.A. Confidential, The Profane Exhibit, and Watch Us Kill), Tim (played by: Matt Sampere from That’s a Wrap, Knifemare, Butchered, Malvolia: The Queen of Screams, and Eli Roth Presents: The Legion of Exorcists) is visited by his adventurous friends. After reluctantly letting them inside the house he becomes intertwined with the circumstances of their Halloween pranks. One that turns out has broken a sacred tradition kept between humans and otherworldly deities known as the Aos Si (played by: Alan Maxson from Amityville Apt., Monster Island, V/H/S Beyond, ThanksKilling 3, Evil Bong franchise, Killjoy’s Psycho Circus, Meathook Massacre franchise, The Gingerweed Man, and Isleen Pines). A call back to terrors birthed in the mythology, lore and atmospheric dread behind the Halloween traditions based in an ancient Celtic past. This leaves the group cursed for death. Will they survive the night from this unstoppable killing machine???? Creeping Death is a quality entry into Halloween related horror and slashers. Aos Si is a really cool villain and he has potential for a possible franchise or sequels if done right. It’s very rare these days for the genre to actually have an interesting killer or monster, that will make or break something like this. Creeping Death goes for a simple approach of a bad prank that’s gone wrong that sets the fatal situation in motion for an unlucky group. I say this all the time because it’s unfortunately usually true, I always get worried when I notice the director is also the lead actor. Luckily, Matt Sampere has spent more time in front of a camera instead of behind it so he’s actually solid in this. Tim has sacrificed his own life and enjoyment to take care of his sick mother. His friends keep pushing him to join him for Halloween and it quickly backfires. Softcore and B-Movie veteran Monique Parent is great as his mother Linda. I’ve seen her in all kinds of films over the years and this is probably her best performance in her career. She adds more heart to the story and it really helps the main Tim character development when he’s in a nightmare scenario. Alan Maxson as Aos Si is much better than expected here. He adds something different to this slasher and makes this brutal killer stand out more. He has an original look to him, I hope he comes back for another one. The rest of the supporting cast includes Delian Lincourt (Halloween Inferno franchise), Hunter Kohl (The Last Vigil), Ian Brown (EZ Ride), Elise St John (Hope of Escape), K Cody Hunt (Turn Up the Night), Scott Lea (Babylon), Scott Thomas Reynolds (Circus Kane), Jody Pucello (She Kills), and Andy Horowitz (Demon Messenger). The acting goes anywhere from good to over the top but it fits it’s style. Creeping Death has enough gruesome gore and creative kills to satisfy any horror fan. The special fx are the best thing about this independent production. It has a perfect Fall and Halloween atmosphere to it. Some of the characters are really unlikable, they try to sacrifice someone that’s been suffering just to save themselves so you really want them to get slaughtered. I appreciate the retro vibes it had, it’s a cool throwback. I’m a little surprised that Creeping Death didn’t get more love during it’s original release and it kinda flew under the radar especially being backed by CineVerse, Screambox, and Bloody Disgusting. Hopefully, this home video release gives it some much deserved attention because it delivers. It’s exactly what you want for this type of feature plus it’s always nice to add something to your annual October watch list and Creeping Death fits that like a glove. It was a pleasant surprise, I really enjoyed it and I feel like it has great replay value to it. It’s very fun and entertaining, RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Cineverse! This 1080p (2:39.1) unrated transfer looks fantastic on blu ray especially for what it was made for. They used their budget wisely for Creeping Death and it shows up on the end result. It has slick cinematography, production design, and special fx that pop out for this. It has a English: Dolby Digital 5.1 track. The audio is better than expected for this low budget slasher. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the killing is elevated, and the music has a nice boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with writer, producer, editor, lead actor, and director Matt Sampere that’s moderated by Diandra Lazor. He shows his appreciation of CineVerse, Screambox, and Bloody Disgusting. He brings up changing the opening after it’s first premiere. He says he had to play the monster every once in awhile when the actor who played the character wasn’t available. He chats about it being his directorial debut. He talks about how long it took to get it finished which was a few years. He is very specific on the time it was shot and it’s locations. He mentions some influences for Creeping Death. He wants to make a franchise from this which is good to know because I thought the same thing after seeing it because the potential is definitely there. He drops plenty of detailed information and personal stories about the slasher. He is very passionate about this project and it really shows for this track. It has the almost 15 minute “Carving the Aos Si: The Making of Creeping Death”. The director says after filming a music video, he wanted to try to do a full length feature. He chats about the project and how he wanted to do a Halloween themed movie franchise with this. He admits he didn’t know what he was doing at first. They filmed when everyone was available. Lots of the cast including himself changed so much after originally shooting. He breaks down the process how Creeping Deaths was created. He goes over putting together the short after a few days. They pushed the project with crowd funding. They went through hell putting together their own corn maze with a machete. Most of the cast had additional jobs on this independent production. It’s packed with some cool stories and information from the slasher. There’s a good amount of behind the scenes footage in this. It has the original 2021 little over 12 minute horror short “Creeping Death” directed by Matt Sampere. It has a few of the same actors from the full length in this. It shows the early concept and origins of it’s story here. It’s a nice companion piece to the main film. It has a little over a minute of “Deleted Scenes”. It has a little over 6 minute “Blooper Reel”. It has an “Trailer” and a “Teaser” for Creeping Death. This is a M.O.D (BD-R) home video release. It’s available everywhere right now including MovieZyng.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!