Ring of Darkness

Color, R (mature themes, violence, sexual situations), 85 min., DVD $24.98, VHS rental

DVD: no extras

Street: March 29, Prebook: March 8

First Run: Video premiere

Cast: Adrienne Barbeau (TV's Carnivale), Ryan Starr (TV's American Idol), Stephen Martines (TV's The Guiding Light), Jeremy Jackson (TV's Baywatch)

FIRST LOOK

A popular boy band is holding a national audition to replace its lead singer. They take three finalists on a retreat where it is discovered that the band is actually made up of the undead who are kept alive through voodoo practices and feasting on human blood. Director DeCoteau (The Brotherhood, Final Stab) is back to his old titillating horror tricks that often involve occult practices and young guys stripping down to their boxer briefs. The concept of a zombie boy band is a pretty clever one and this movie does a nice, campy job with the theme. As the girlfriend of a boy band finalist, Starr is quite pretty here, but she needs to amp up the screen energy to match her acting peers. Barbeau is wickedly fabulous and all the N'sync-esque players know how to deliver their lines with tongue planted firmly in cheek. Gay horror fans should enjoy the band members' underwear shots and the bloody tie-down ritual they perform on prospective new recruits. Plus, it's quite fun to watch these boys get their perfect faces scraped up to reveal their true undead non-beauty. In addition to DeCoteau's built-in fan base, this offering could draw in a curious American Idol crowd as well as those with a hankering for B-grade horror films.

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