From the shores of the UK comes yet another hilariously gruesome horror comedy that more than takes the piss out of anything Hollywood could ever come up with. That being said, though, the old cliche does apply: you'll either love it or hate it. Personally, I thought The Cottage was bloody brilliant, especially in the way it kept the dark comedy coming even after it shifts from "bumbling criminal comedy" to "disfigured madman slasher" mode.

Andy Serkis is just fantastic as the heavy whose simple kidnapping plan goes horribly, horribly wrong thanks to his incompetent partners. Reece Shearsmith plays the whiny wanker to the hilt, Steven O'Donnell chips in mightily as a complete idiot, and Jennifer Ellison makes each of her scenes memorable, largely by way of her liberal use of adult language (some complain about her over-use of the "c-word," but it's not like this movie is being marketed to children, for Pete's sake). The legendary Doug Bradley also appears (all too briefly), and that's a pretty big deal to horror aficionados like myself. As for Paul Andrew Williams, let me just say that he is a great writer/director; this may only be his second feature-length film, but I would say he's already graduated from "up and coming" to the big time.

You would think the hardest part of any kidnapping would be the actual kidnapping itself, but that's already been done as The Cottage opens its doors to the audience. In this case, though, the actual kidnapping is the only thing the kidnappers manage to get done properly (or at all). Poor David (Serkis) finds his plans ruined time and time again by his partner -- and brother -- Peter (Shearsmith). Peter, unlike his brother, just isn't cut out for a life of crime, as he proves time and again. The man is deathly afraid of moths, for heaven's sake, so he's no match at all for Tracey (Ellison) once she wakes up. The daughter of some kind of local goon, she's spit-in-your-eye and cuss-you-out tough. Once she starts holding forth in that grating Cockney accent of hers, it soon becomes clear why the kidnappers are only asking one hundred thousand pounds for her return. She strikes me as a sort of Cockney Britney Spears.

I won't go in to the laundry list of stupid mistakes that doom the kidnapping plot, but each one of them makes for great comedy. The actors work really well together, showing great comedic timing throughout, thanks in no small part to Serkis's ability to play the heavy in such a convincing manner. Much of it may be predictable, but it's still funny. Then, about midway through the film, some viewers might be wont to say that they went to a dark comedy and a horror movie broke out. The Cottage may well lose some of its audience here, as it does take its mutilation and murder seriously (in other words, there will be blood and gore), but this horror fan really ate it up.

Even underneath all of the blood and body parts, the comedic elements are still there; heck, there's even a poignant little moment of brotherly bonding at one point. Of course, you've also got the proverbial dash of bitter irony thrown in for good measure, and a fairly successful attempt by Williams to "leave 'em laughin.'"

Some might say that The Cottage doesn't know whether it wants to be a comedy or a slasher. Why can't it be both? I would say this film knows very well what it wants to be and is very comfortable bridging the two very different genres, and that -- plus the witty dialogue, great acting and satisfying amounts of blood and gore -- is what allows it to pull the whole thing off with such great elan. I had a ball watching this movie.