Synopsis
Writer/director Michael Kallio stars as Eric Seaver, autopsy report transcriber and serialkiller. In the present, he drives through the night, a terrified woman trussed up in the back of hiscar. As he talks to her, we see his life unfold in flashback. He was twisted by the relentless abusedished out by his stepfather (erstwhile Leatherface Gunnar Hansen), and the rage he held withinfinally explodes at his mother’s funeral. So begins his spiral into madness. Made on a shoestri…g($350,000 according to the commentary), Hatred of a Minute does have the rough edgesof a just-this-side-of-amateur production, particularly at the level of script and performances. Onthe other hand, there are all kinds of interesting editing and cinematographic techniques at workhere, and this is a little horror film that certainly aims high.
Audio
The sound is in 2.0, and it was, I think, a mistake to have the menu in 5.1, as the difference insound quality is quite noticeable. Still, the surround work is pretty good for such a cheap picture,with the sounds of rain being particularly effective. The music sounds good as well (though doessuffer in comparison to the menu). There is some buzz on the dialogue.
Video
The picture is presented in anamorphic 1.66:1. The transfer itself is good, but the picturequality is unavoidably limited by the fact that the movie was shot in 16mm. Thus, the picture isquite grainy and soft. The colours, blacks and contrasts are all okay within the limitations of theprint.
Special Features
Two commentaries here, both with auteur Kallio. On the first, he is joined by BruceCampbell, and while there is a lot of silly joking around, there is also a wealth of information andinsight into the indie scene. The second track features Kallio and sound designer Joel H.Newport, and the focus here, obviously, is on the sound. “Hating Every Minute: A Day in theLife of an Independent Film” is a 17-minute, non-narrated collection of behindi-the-scenesfootage. Other short extras are the trailer, deleted and extended scenes, alternate takes, outtakes,and the world premiere. There’s a still gallery, the screenplay in PDF form for those with DVD-ROM drives. Finally, there are bios of Kallio, Campbell and Hansen. The menu has a fullyanimated and scored main page, intro and transitions, and scored second-level pages. Very neat,but so top-notch that the film’s production values can’t possibly measure up.
Closing Thoughts
Pretty raw stuff, but there is some promise here. A nicely full package as well.
Special Features List
- Director and Producer Commentary
- Director and Sound Designer Commentary
- “Hating Every Minute” Featurette
- Trailer
- Deleted and Extended Scenes
- Alternate Takes
- Outtakes
- World Premiere
- Still Gallery
- Screenplay
- Bios
