The first mistake the people behind Silent But Deadly make is to cast Jason Mewes, who is known mostly for being the crude motor-mouthed Jay in multiple Kevin Smith flicks, as a mute killer whose only dialogue consists of muttering the names of whatever weapon he's about to use (and one scene where he gets to bray like a goat). It's a strange decision and certainly doesn't help when you consider just how hard they're also trying to be funny - instead of having his co-stars throwing out multiple lame one-liners why not just have Mewes do what Mewes does best? Toss into the mix a smart-assed script that doesn't work and some weak CGI gore and you're set for an instantly forgettable time.

Poor Thomas (Mewes). When he's not getting abuse from his overzealous religious father (William Sadler, who is awesomely over-the-top in the few minutes he's in this even getting to spout the line "carpet munching commies") or spying on his dad's mail order Russian brides while they make out his only true love are his goats. After dad catches him being all pervy he shoots one of his pets to make a point only for Thomas to go psycho and off everyone. From here he gathers up his favourite goat Lisa and sets out on the open road. Soon he's picked up a hitchhiker who takes him to the set of a low-budget movie filming nearby where he gets hired to be an assistant after he makes the perfect latte for asshole-ish director Victor (Patrick McKenna).

Meanwhile, young reporter Sandra (Kim Poirier) is tagging along with the local sheriff and his deputy as they try to hunt down Thomas. They also end up at the set, after much lame comedy that mostly has to do with the fact our sheriff is a midget, where Thomas has started a killing spree after Lisa is killed by the set's cook.

Let me first off say that I have a hard time taking a horror movie with this title seriously. Being that I have an immature streak that runs through me upon seeing the DVD box, I instantly though "farts". Yes, I know. Another issue I had with this was the makers just aren't able to balance the comedy with the slashing. There are way too many wisecracks here and not nearly enough blood. And when the blood shows up most of it is CG. I take issue with this. How frigging hard is it to get some corn syrup and mix in some red food colouring? I had already accepted the fact the creature features I adored as a kid had mostly shuffled to shitty CG but now my beloved slashers, too? Granted, the kills do offer a few moments of amusement as various hardware implements are put to good use and there's a pretty good gore gag involving a wobbly saw but I was continually wishing this was an 80s flick and everything was done with practical effects.

It's truly a shame that Mewes' has no lines because his best characteristic has always been his voice. This is a guy who's not the best actor and he usually makes up for it with his mouth. It's like almost anyone could've played Thomas but they just wanted his name above the credits. However, he doesn't have the thankless task that Jordan Prentice does as our small statured sheriff. Not only is his first appearance him coming out of the toilet after a rank dump but he also has to deliver the worst jokes. At least McKenna gets to be a sarcastic prick and does well at it and Poirier gets naked to keep our attention.

When all is said and done Silent But Deadly is sort of a bore. None of the comedy is particularly amusing, the CG is distracting, and (as I've said multiple times already) Mewes is wasted. I'm getting a little tired of all these comedic slasher movies thinking they're wittier than they are, they should all take hints from Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. (Chris Hartley, 10/15/13)

Directed By: Stephen Scott.
Written By: Lori Bailey, Joel Plue, David Pluscauskas, Erin Berry.

Starring: Jason Mewes, Jordan Prentice, Kim Poirier, Marc Hickox.

Picture Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen.

Picture Quality: Obviously shot digitally this looks pretty nice on DVD. There's lots of bright colours on hand and they don't bleed and the picture is clean and clear to boot.

Extras: There's just a trailer here but I'd love some form of interviews just to see if they explained why the Hell they cast Mewes in such a role - I'm curious whose idea it was.

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