Or something along those lines ... the German title for the movie is also quite funny - well not funny ha ha, but weird funny I reckon. It's called "Dark Legends" ... which makes this sound a lot cooler than Shortcut ... at least my impression of it or what it represents.
A decent enough story with interesting characters and a few twists along the way that are intriguing as well. Acting is ok for the genre and the budget ... even having some recognizable names ... at least for me.
The Shortcut
2009
Action / Horror / Mystery / Thriller
The Shortcut
2009
Action / Horror / Mystery / Thriller
Plot summary
When Derek moves to a new town and discovers a shortcut through the woods to his high school, he learns about a crazy old man who lives near its path: Legend has it that he abducted a group of teenagers years ago. Ignoring the warning, Derek and his friends set out to uncover the dark secret that's buried deep in the woods. But will they survive to tell it?
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
December 11, 2015 at 02:27 PM
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
The past is the present
SCOOPIE DOO
There is an area of woods occupied by an "old man" through which lies "the shortcut". When high school students suspect their their dog was killed in the woods by the old man, they play Scooby-Doo investigators.
The movie has a few flashbacks to the time of the "old man" growing up. The "twist" is exactly as expected. This might be a film for teens that liked Scooby-Doo. The characters were good, the plot might put you to sleep.
Parental Guide: 1 F-bomb (WTF near end) attempted rape/grope, sex talk. No sex or nudity.
Quite enjoyable for what it is
After a series of strange incidents, a teen and his friends decide to investigate the supposedly-haunted shortcut through the woods that is the base of an urban legend around town, and find that someone is intent on proving the legend true.
This was an enjoyable if slightly flawed effort that could've been even better. One of the better elements within this one is that it manages to be pretty creepy and suspenseful despite being pretty tame and soft. There's some really enjoyable and creepy moments in here which get this one going rather nicely, from the first time the kids wander through the house to the big confrontation in the woods where the darkness of the surrounding sand the two different encounters with the chained-up farmer makes for a couple of enjoyable entertaining scenes that work well without betraying the incredible tame feeling throughout this. Other big set-pieces include a second house-investigation sequence which features the spectacular sequence of the kids in the classroom which is illuminated only by their flashlights and shows row after row of mannequins set-up as if they're students and then stumbling upon all the writing on the wall which makes for a wholly impressive sequence, mixing together rather impressive suspense alongside the frantic action set-up which is highly enjoyable while keeping this one still quite kid-friendly. This is a rather big feature within the film here as none of these scenes and confrontations really highlights that issue and it's only upon reflection that it's really noticeable. This one does have a few small problems with it, the first being the really lame motivation for the killer. There's very little about it that would appear too logical and realistic as for why they would feel this way. That holds it down as well as the film's rather dull mid-section which doesn't offer much of anything interesting. This comes off as a lame teen-drama which isn't all too interesting and makes for a rather dull time as the family struggles and burgeoning romance aren't in the slightest bit exciting and really take away from the exploration of the easily as this tends to get glossed over easily. Lastly, while this one does manages to get in some good here with the tameness being quite nice, at times this one can be quite apparent of its roots and really highlight the tamer aspect especially in the beginning. It's all enough to bring this down slightly.
Rated PG-13: Violence, Mild Language and children-in-jeopardy.