Hey all, I suppose I’ve finally sold out.

I got an email about two weeks ago from a site called http://www.horrorpack.com asking if I’d be willing to review their product called the Horror Pack. I assume this is to get the word out about their monthly subscription service.

So the basics I can gather are this:

You get 4 DVDs or Blu-rays a month.

They do these indie exclusives every couple months or so.

They’ve been active for about a year.

That’s all.

So going into this, I was more curious than anything. Like, what do these people give out every month. It can’t possibly ALL be good stuff. As far as I know the selection is pretty random, so let me share what I got out of it.

1st Blu-ray: Saw 5.

Whoa. Bad start. Not only is it the fifth movie in a series completely at random (so if you hadn’t seen the previous installations, now you have an obligation) but it’s also quite possibly the worst Saw movie. Eek.

I saw another person’s unboxing that had Asylum movies in it as well. So that’s really bottom of the barrel stuff to be giving out. I know you can’t win em all with these random packs but I dunno, I just feel like the things contained should at least be interesting.

2nd Blu-ray: Motivational Growth.

The second entry in this pack is a welcome one, mostly because I have never heard of this movie. That’s sorta the best you can hope for in a pack like this. Matter of fact if it was all stuff I’d never heard of, I’d be more inclined to be excited about it. This, I believe, is the exclusive for October that they mentioned in their emails.

So considering I know nothing about it and have yet to watch it, I’ll say this: it looks crazy and weird and I might enjoy it. I hope the rest of the pack contains similar entries.

3rd Blu-ray: Re-animator.

This is interesting, considering Jeffrey Combs was top billed in Motivational Growth. I suppose if they were going to include an older movie in this pack (which based on other unboxings I’ve seen, they tend to include) this is welcome.

Someone like me, or anyone who’s really into the genre has more than likely already seen and loved this movie. So it’s not really doing anything here than being a reminder that I need to pop this back in and have fun with it all over again and that Scream Factory desperately needs to do an updated release.

Not to be that guy that wants too much out of a product, but it’s somewhat a missed opportunity to include something a little more unknown. Maybe that’s just where I’m at with this sorta subscription: give me the weird stuff I’m unfamiliar with. But how can one really complain about Re-Animator.

4th Blu-ray: Scar 3D.

Okay. Well, I think this does somewhat serve the indie purpose that I mentioned earlier, because I’ve never seen this movie. But I’ve seen this movie in clearance bins for years. It does have Angela Bettis in it though, which has to add a little credibility. As far as it’s inclusion in this set, I’m sort of on the fence with it. On one hand, gives me that Saw 5 vibe of probably not being an interesting movie thus being a missed opportunity but it is an indie.

My thoughts.

As a free promotional item, this is pretty great. Four movies, one being something I already love and own (Re-Animator) and something I’m really interested in checking out (Motivational Growth). Two movies that will ultimately sit around on my shelf and never really get a watch from me (Saw 5 and Scar 3D). So a mixed bag that, being free, is pretty cool.

However, if I was paying for it (cheapest subscription price being $22.74 per month) I’m not really sure. I mean the value is there, considering if you were to buy these movies on Amazon right now, it would total about $37. But would you buy these for $22 if you had the cash on hand? Well I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t pick up Saw 5 or Scar 3D in that haul. So we’re left with Motivational Growth which I know nothing about and Re-Animator which I already have.

The way I see it, what you’re actually paying for in a pack like this, isn’t necessarily quality as much as trust. You’re trusting someone to send you movies that you’ll be interested to watch. And on that merit, I feel like the Horror Pack is halfway there. Based on the selections I got today, I don’t think I would subscribe to this service, but maybe it’s not meant for me.

What do you think?