timgrimm

I was hesitant to watch Deadwax due to the plot similarities with John Carpenter's Cigarette Burns episode from Masters of Horror. Both are titled after obscure terms related to media (vinyl records and film, respectively), both feature a private investigator hunting down a little heard or viewed item for private collectors, and both objects of the search have... unhappy effects when "enjoyed." Ultimately, I felt these preconceptions justified and, whereas 2005's Cigarette Burns was Carpenter's best work in decades, Deadwax was a tad below just okay. Because the object of interest was a vinyl record, it would've been cool if they had at least asked Carpenter to create the eerie soundtrack, and credited him for the seeming inspiration.

Pros: original, genuinely creepy, strong supporting cast, good production values, a dramatic step up from normal SyFy fare.

Cons: pacing, continuity, logic, lead actor and actress are stilted and wooden, dialog is sophomoric, obvious gaps in dialog, poor performances from/direction for the child actors.