A very entertaining horror comedy

Rating: 8/10 (26 December 2011)

I have already complained in other occasions about the various bad horror films which are exhibited in cinemas, while many very good or excellent films of the genre languish in the darkness of the straight-to-DVD market, due to a poor distribution system which is incapable of recognizing genuine quality when it is in front of it. Unfortunately, Tucker and Dale vs. Evil is another recent victim of that phenomenon...shelved for a long time and without a defined distribution contract, but with a big number of followers thanks to its presence in multiple film festivals. Anyway...I am not going to spend more time explaining that sad situation. I will better focus on the movie itself, which despite not being something great by my point of view, is a very satisfactory and entertaining horror comedy.
To start with, the screenplay from Tucker and Dale vs. Evil includes very interesting twists, as well as ingenious changes of points of view employed by co-screenwriters Eli Craig (who was also the director) and Morgan Jurgenson in order to create two parallel and to some point contradictory stories, but which also both feel consistent and complementary. So, I have to say I found the screenplay simultaneously hilarious, interesting and emotive, specially when it plays with our perception of the "rural horror" in order to explore new narrative possibilities which are not common to find in a horror comedy.
Another important pro from Tucker and Dale vs. Evil comes from its two main actors. Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk make a perfect couple as Tucker and Dale, and their performances are so good that the friendship between their characters feels absolutely honest from the beginning to the end. Besides, the spontaneous attitude they both bring to their works makes their characters to feel human, even when their actions border on the caricature. Katrina Bowden is a genuine revelation in this movie. Having seen her for various years as the vacuous and naive Cerie in 30 Rock, I expected her performance in Tucker and Dale vs. Evil to be the one of a typical "final girl" with a pretty face but few histrionic talent; however, she ended up destroying that expectation with an absolutely credible and likable performance in here.
The complains I have against Tucker and Dale vs. Evil are that the romantic component feels occasionally a bit weakly written, and that a few scenes break the flow from the film (such as the one of an improvised session of group therapy). For the rest, I enjoyed Tucker and Dale vs. Evil pretty much, and I consider it worthy of a safe recommendation. Pity that this film was condemned to the darkness by the distributors, because it really does not deserve it.