Director: Michael Dougherty
Screenplay: Michael Dougherty
Starring: Dylan Baker, Rochelle Aytes, Anna Paquin and Brian Cox
Country: United States
Running Time: 82 min
Year: 2007
I’ve had an interesting relationship with the filmography of director Michael Dougherty. My first experience with his work was perhaps the worst, with his 2019 blockbuster Godzilla: King of the Monsters, which I consider to be one of the weakest entries in the entire Godzilla franchise. It’s an almost visually incomprehensible, poorly paced and written feature that almost made me write him off entirely. A couple of years later, I decided to check out his most acclaimed film, Trick ‘r Treat and thought it was fine. It didn’t blow me away like it seemed to for most people, but I had a decent time with it. I revisited the film last year and felt similarly, and when I heard that Arrow Video was releasing the film on 4K UHD for the first time, I was curious if the third time would be the charm and I’d finally fall in love with the film like most horror heads had done years prior.
One of the biggest problems I have with Trick ‘r Treat is something that almost feels silly to complain about but it’s how strong it opens. The first thirty minutes of the film are an absolute blast, having a fun cold open, introducing us to many of the endearingly goofy characters that we’re going to be following on this Halloween night and offering the best laughs that the film has to offer. Whether it’s our introduction to the iconic Sam, a demonic pumpkin monster that ties each of the anthology segments together, or Dylan Baker’s Steven, a psychopathic principle who has a tendency to harm children. Come to think of it, this is the second film I’ve reviewed this year for Blueprint: Review that made its 4K UHD debut, starring Dylan Baker as an individual who harms children. It’d be weird if it happened once, but twice is bizarre. Back on topic, each of these opening sequences have such a playful energy to them and the film’s never able to reach the highs of the opening act again, unfortunately.
Some of the later segments have a fun approach, such as the sequence involving the 20 year olds who dress up as princesses, or the fabled ‘Halloween School Bus Massacre’ but they never really captured my attention in the same way that the silly Dylan Baker segment does, with him going the full nine yards for his scenes. Dougherty’s clearly having a blast while making it, with the film being his directorial debut after writing some Bryan Singer features in the past such as X2 and Superman Returns. Singer ended up producing Trick ‘r Treat, giving Dougherty the vehicle he needed to put himself on the map and it clearly paid off.
Nowadays, the film’s regarded as a modern horror classic, with new merchandise being released on a yearly basis, getting the boutique Blu-ray treatment in the States from Shout Factory and now, the 4K UHD treatment from Arrow Video. While I enjoy the film for what it is, I still can’t fully consider it the classic that most people do, although I’m beyond stoked to see how dedicated and passionate the fanbase for the film is.
There’s even been talk of a sequel happening but unfortunately, there’s no signs of it happening anytime in the immediate future. Trick ‘r Treat may not be a personal favourite of mine, but if you’re a fan of silly Creepshow/Tales from the Crypt-esque horror anthologies, you’ll more than likely have a fun time with this one.
Film: 
Trick ‘r Treat released on October 28th via Arrow Video on Limited Edition 4K UHD. Surprisingly, there’s no Blu-ray release this time around (perhaps due to Shout! Studios having the licence in the States) but the UHD release is solid. Containing a Dolby Vision colour grade, the transfer makes the film look even more striking than prior home media releases, with Arrow’s typical stand-out bitrates and encoding. If you’re a fan of the film, you’ll be delighted by how well it transfers to (what appears to be) native 4K resolution. The DTS HD 5.1 audio track is great too, although this seems to be ported over from the old releases. A 2.0 LPCM track is also included. Optional English subtitles are present too. A great effort A/V wise from Arrow, as expected. The following extras are included:
The brand new audio commentary with Michael Dougherty, moderated by James A. Janisse & Chelsea Rebecca from Dead Meat Podcast is a dream commentary track for me. Being a big fan of the Dead Meat YouTube channel, it’s a delightful listen, with Janisse and Rebecca being excellent moderators and their passion for the project is obvious from the get-go. It’s an interesting mix of the fan commentary and the director commentary, that makes it one of the more fascinating commentary listens I’ve had in quite some time. Dougherty repeats some information from the archival track that’s also presented on the release, but I think I prefer this one overall. A great track!
The archival audio commentary by Michael Dougherty, conceptual artist Breehn Burns, storyboard artist Simeon Wilkins and composer Douglas Pipes is an alright listen, but it’s a bit too vanilla for my tastes. While it’s full of anecdotes about the shoot, pieces of trivia, etc, there’s a lot of dry spots which was disappointing to hear. This track has been included on every release of the film, so long-time fans will be familiar with this one.
Becoming Sam is a brand new nine minute interview with actor Quinn Lord, who plays Sam in the film. Lord is enthusiastic and his story about the audition process was delightful, as well as his love for the crew. Hearing how he’d mess around on set and jump-scare people was hilarious too. A great interview.
The Devil is in the Details is a brand new twelve minute interview with production designer Mark Freeborn who starts talking about his reputation for working on darker projects, which attracted director Michael Dougherty to him in the first place, before talking about the pre-production of the film. Freeborn has nothing but praise for Dougherty and his directorial debut. Another solid interview!
If Looks Could Kill is a brand new seventeen minute interview with director of photography Glen MacPherson who recalls an experience calling Sylvester Stallone for the upcoming Rambo and one day later, meeting Michael Dougherty to shoot Trick ‘r Treat. MacPherson ended up turning down Rambo to work on Trick ‘r Treat and didn’t regret it (which is great to hear as he ended up working on the far better project!) thankfully. One of the more in-depth interviews on the release and MacPherson is a joy to listen to.
Designs to Die For is a brand new fifteen minute interview with costume designer Trish Keating who, similarly to prior interviews on the disc, has great things to say about Michael Dougherty, the screenplay and his direction. She’s a fun interviewee and offers another solid exclusive interview for the release.
Bark at the Moon is a brand new nine minute interview with creature designer Patrick Tatopoulos who talks about his experiences working on Trick ‘r Treat and his excitement to create the werewolves in the film and more. It’s one of the shorter interviews on the disc, but Tatopoulos is a fun person to listen to reminisce about the production. Worth checking out!
Mark Freeborn Remembers Bill Terezakis is a touching three minute tribute to the make-up effects designer for Trick ‘r Treat. Freeborn’s kind and heartfelt words about Terezakis are absolutely worth your time.
Tales of Folklore & Fright is the first in a series of four archival featurettes that discusses the origins for Trick ‘r Treat, initially included on the Shout Factory Blu-ray. Season’s Greetings is mentioned, the short that’s included on the disc, as well as how the feature film came to be. Interviews with Michael Dougherty, Breehn Burns and Simeon Wilkins are included. It runs for sixteen minutes.
Tales of Mischief & Mayhem: Filming Trick ‘r Treat is the second archival featurette with Michael Dougherty on the making of the film that was initially included on the Shout Factory Blu-ray. Dougherty covers the production of Trick ‘r Treat and has a range of anecdotes about the experience. It’s another fun piece. It runs for twenty minutes.
Sounds of Shock & Superstition: Scoring Trick ‘r Treat is the third archival featurette with Michael Dougherty and Douglas Pipes that was initially included on the Shout Factory Blu-ray. This section, as the title suggests, dives into the iconic score for Trick ‘r Treat and how it came to be. It’s a decent featurette and it runs for 11 minutes.
Tales of Dread & Despair: Releasing Trick ‘r Treat is the final archival featurette with Michael Dougherty and Rob Galluzzo of the Shock Waves podcast, initially included on the Shout Factory Blu-ray. The pair discuss the legacy of the film, a decade on from its original release. Dougherty mentions how Harry Knowles is the reason why the film gained internet traction, thanks to it playing at his film festival, as well as the merchandise and original home media releases. It runs for seven minutes.
Season’s Greetings is a short animated film from 1996 directed by Michael Dougherty that was made when Dougherty was in college and contains the Sam character featured in the film. It’s presented with optional director commentary. It’s a charming, yet violent little film that’s perfect for the Halloween season with animation reminiscent of a Peanuts special. Highly worth a watch as it’s only four minutes long.
The Lore and Legends of Halloween is an archival featurette narrated by actor Brian Cox which talks about the origins of the Halloween holiday. Cox’s narration is charming and the interviews included are fun to watch too. It feels like the type of documentary you’d have seen on TV around the late 2000s, which adds a nostalgic feel to it. Overall, it’s a fun piece that runs for 27 minutes.
The school bus VFX comparison runs for a minute and is exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a neat watch!
Seventeen minutes of deleted and alternate scenes are included, with optional commentary by director Michael Dougherty. Curiously, these are all presented in open-matte, but they’re fun additions that are worth a watch.
A series of FEARnet promos are included, which are all tongue-in-cheek and full of fun gags. Fans of the film will be delighted with these. They’re short, to the point and a great time.
The ‘Sam O’Lantern’ is a curious extra, as it’s an hour long and consists of a Jack-o’-lantern with Sam’s face on. It’s similar to those log-burning videos that you can find online and it’s cute to see its inclusion here.
A trailer is included.
Four image galleries are included: Stills, Storyboard and conceptual artwork gallery, a behind the scenes stills gallery and the Monster Mash comic book (set in the universe of the film) and these are all great inclusions for fans.
I wasn’t provided with the physical release, the booklet, poster or artcards, so I’m unable to comment on those but they look to be as great as Arrow’s usual goodies.Trick ‘r Treat gets the deluxe treatment from Arrow Video with one of the most impressive releases of the entire year. While I’m not personally in love with the film, it’s hard to deny how much effort went into crafting the definitive Trick ‘r Treat release for fans around the world. Highly recommended!
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