Blu-Ray Review: Odd Thomas

By Brad Henderson

I’ve always thought Odd Thomas was a fun book and when I heard it was being made into a film, I was both intrigued and scared. How in the hell were they going to pull something like this off? If you know anything about the story of Odd Thomas then you know where I’m coming from. It’s a good story but a little out there and hard to fathom seeing on the screen. Also, when I heard Stephen Sommers was directing it I admit that I did frown a little because I’m not a fan of his work aside from Deep Rising.

Upon viewing it I was pleasantly surprised and very happy with the direction it took. The CGI isn’t all that bad aside from a couple of scenes that look a little wonky, but everything is else is pretty solid. Anton Yelchin and Willem Dafoe both do a superb job and give everything they have to bring some of their best work to this kickass flick.

Now it might be that I went in with the lowest of expectations and was surprised with what I saw, or that Sommers put together a great Dean Koontz adaptation. I know that he gets a lot of hate but it felt like he wanted to do a smaller movie at this point instead of his huge CGI flicks. That’s what has turned me off in the past; his films are way too cartoonish looking with the wonky CGI that floods the screen. There is quite a bit of CGI in this film as well, but most of it looks pretty decent. There is also a nice blend of comedy, too, which is a little odd because the film is a bit dark, but it was nice to see some comedy thrown in there along with the chaos that our characters face.

For those who are not familiar with Odd Thomas, it’s about a man named Odd Thomas who can see dead people and communicate with them. The dead come to him if they need help and Odd Thomas helps them to the best of his ability. Odd Thomas can also see these ghastly ghouls called “bodachs” that feed on pain and love and stick around if something terrible is going to happen. One day a man comes around, and Odd Thomas sees countless bodachs surrounding him. To Odd, this can only mean one thing: something big and terrible is going to happen in their town and it is up to Odd to stop it.

Don’t judge the film on its terrible cover because it serves it no justice. Odd Thomas is a film that is for everyone, not just supernatural and horror fans. I wouldn’t say it was for the kiddies but this film could please a bigger audience that you think. It is a shame that it didn’t receive a wider release.

Odd Thomas will be released on Blu-Ray by Anchor Bay and Raven Banner on March 25.