Midnight Releasing's The Hounds Debuts Jan. 22

Midnight Releasing will open its 2013 DVD release campaign on Jan. 22 with the directing tandem of Roberto and Maurizio Del Picco’s debut film under their Moviedel Productions banner, The Hounds.

Four college friends have their share of drinks in a English pub and decide that a jaunt into the nearby forest for some hiking and camping is a spot-on idea.  As one might suspect from a genre flick titled The Hounds, their beverage-induced plan will be anything but, spot-on.   

If you’ve seen your share of horror flicks, then your knee-jerk is that these are just “victims” being led to the slaughter, but brothers Del Picco have thrown in a few clever twists that keep the proceeding both inventive and fresh.   

For example, there’s an adjunct storyline that they cut to from time to time involving a Brit detective (Andy Callaghan) investigating some sort of case that doesn’t seem connected … but wait.  When our happy campers discover a half-buried body in the woods, it quickly comes to mind that this has something to do with whatever crime our half-soused copper is onto.  

But when the “corpse” rips into the lovely Sarah (Maddie Moate — Hearts & Minds), the scent of that connection goes out the window as we quickly scurry back to the old horror standby of our happy campers being nothing more than “victims” in the woods.

Maddie Moate stars in The Hounds (Jan. 22 on DVD)

With The Hounds, you’d be wrong on all counts … there is something else going on in these creepy woods on what appears to be an otherwise bright and sunshiny day!

The only bonus goodie on the DVD is the “House of Noises” music video.

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: http://www.dvdreleasereport.com/