Deadman's Barstool - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Deadman's Barstool



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:



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Movie
Oh boy. One of the best parts of this job is checking out hidden gems and looked over indie films that just don’t reach into the normal Hollywood blockbuster market. It’s not that I dislike big-budget films, but it's still a treat to reach into the recesses of filmmaking and look at what others are doing with a much smaller budget. Studios like A24 got their start doing off-the-beaten-path filmmaking, and film festivals to this day cater to that demographic. So naturally I’m a bit intrigued by films I haven’t seen before, let along grungy “hillbilly” themed sleaze flicks that reek of 1960s and 70s exploitation films. And then there’s Deadman’s Barstool.

After Candy Apple (another film that Dean Dempsey wrote and directed, dealing with addiction), Dempsey turns to making a cheeky action/comedy/mystery/heist film that tries so very hard to land on all 4 genres, but ends up missing the landing in pretty much all of the listed genres.

Mary (Leticia Castillo) is the conniving wife of a well-known televangelist who goes by the name “John the Preacher” (Brad Calcaterra), only to be served divorce papers and a sickening realization that she’s going to be left penniless with the meager financial settlement she’s going to get from her marriage dissolution. However, never underestimate a bad woman’s desire for money, as she and John’s mistress Ginny (Jasmine Poulton) hatch a scheme to rob the preacher of his ill-gotten gains. But when they attempt to rob their ex lover/husband, the two women find John dead with a bullet in his chest, turning their entire plan into a gigantic game of “whodunnit?” as they watch their scheme go up in smoke.

Now I’m going to separate this remaining portion into the “good” parts and the “bad” parts of Deadman’s Barstool. On the positive end of the spectrum, Director Dean Dempsey does a great job of making every character in the film morally ambiguous, and leaving out key details along the way that make it so the audience is left guessing until the very end. He also does a wonderful job at showing just how badly guilt and deception eat at a person, turning their entire plan into a cesspool of backstabbing and “over-the-shoulder looking” even after the deed is done. The dive bar itself becomes a major focal point of the story, almost taking on a life of its own as it keeps, binds, and acts as an intersection for all points of the film.

As for the bad parts? Well, that’s the rest of the film. Acting-wise wise this is even lower than your average Well Go USA indie release, complete with lines that feel like they were written after a drunken bender, and characters that simply make zero sense at times. Lines are delivered with the gravitas and weight of a Facebook political argument, and set pieces are nearly nonexistent. The best I can say for the structure of the entire film is that it's “mostly competent”, as the film meanders and wanders despite being barely 74 minutes including credits. All in all, this is one of those indie films that just doesn’t work. The humor is badly timed, the action is pretty poor, and the mystery is about the only thing that actually works. Especially keeping you guessing till the very end, which is something that we don’t see too often these days.




Rating:

Not Rated by the MPAA





Video:

Out of all the things that I thought might be the worst, the video quality of the production turned out to be the best. I could find literally ZERO information on the shooting of the film, or the resolution of the master, but judging by the near nonexistent budget, I’m going to hazard a guess that this was a digital shoot of some sort with a 2K digital intermediate for the master. Honestly, the transfer looks really good. It’s crisp and clean, with a lightly sepia and yellow tinge to the whole thing, giving the overall ambiance a moody and sickly feel. Fine details are pretty dark, good though, due to the digital nature of the production, though I noticed the obligatory crush and digital noise spikes in the darker scenes. But overall, this is actually not bad at all.









Audio:

Sadly, Anchor Bay/MVD didn’t give the film a lossless audio mix, instead giving us 5.1 and 2.0 Stereo lossy Dolby Digital mixes. That being said, the 5.1 mix sounds fine, all things considered. It’s a low-budget indie film, and not a lot of effort was put into making it a sonic delight. The film is distinctly talk-heavy, with a majority of the activity in the front of the room, and some minor explosive bits where the surrrounds and LFE kick in. It’s not great, but it’s not bad either. Simply a competent enough mix.









Extras:

• Theatrical Trailer
• The Plank Podcast With Dean Dempsey

Final Score:

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So while I wanted to like Deadman’s Barstool as much as I liked Candy Apple, I just couldn’t get into this one. The hillbilly sleaze rock feel of the film doesn’t hold a candle to someone like Rob Zombie, who’s mastered it, and the story itself is pretty mediocre. Blu-ray technical features are on the low side (low-budget film on Blu-ray with lossy audio and only a few extras). One thing I will say, though, the long commentary/podcast special feature on the disc is actually really good and features some solid insight. I was just left scratching my head that a good chunk of that commentary was Dean talking about his father and how it led to the creation of Candy Apple. Which has me wondering why it was put on THIS disc instead of on the Blu-ray of Candy Apple (which is being released by Anchor Bay on the 28th as well). As much as I’d like to give this a thumbs up, I can’t. This feels very much like a missed opportunity.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Jasmine Poulton, Victoria Beltran, Becca Blackwell, Brad Calcaterra
Directed by: Dean Dempsey
Written by: Dean Dempsey, Greg Mania
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 AVC
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, English DD 2.0
Subtitles: English, Spanish
Studio: Anchor Bay
Rated: NR
Runtime: 74 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: October 28th, 2025

Recommendation: Skip It.

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