See No Evil 2

Many people have asked me about my thoughts on Women in the Film industry. To which I have often replied that I have no issue with women directors. Women do in fact bring much to the table as Filmmakers. I have to admit that I was trained by a woman Filmmaker and I have to admit that I am surprised that there aren’t more of them in the industry working in the mainstream. This goes for both narrative and documentary filmmakers alike.

I had the pleasure of meeting and shooting a QnA with Jen & Sylvia Soska this past May at Texas Frightmare Weekend and I had to admit that I wasn’t a fan of theirs going into the QnA but I definitely became a fan afterwards especially when I found out that they were the directors of See No Evil 2.

I am also familiar with some of their other works with the films Dead Hooker in a Trunk and American Mary, as well as their contributions to the Drafthouse’s ABCs of Death.

Glen Jacobs aka Kane is one of my favorite wrestlers and that is not a new revelation. Naturally I am a fan of his “Brother” so naturally I would become a fan of the other half of The Brothers of Destruction.

The truth is that Kane has come into his own especially in the past few years.  As for the man behind Kane, Glen Jacobs has become his own man away from the WWE, which would explain the direction that his character has taken in recent years.

Glen Jacobs is 7 feet tall and a monster of a man and I have stood next to him on a few occasions and I can tell you that he is intimidating. Add in the fact that he has been playing the character of the Demonic Sadist Kane and you have the perfect antagonist for a horror film.

Kane debuted the character of Jacob Goodnight in 2006’s See No Evil which was the first film to be produced solely by WWE Films and released by Lionsgate.

Needless to say as a Fan and Shareholder in WWE I was there on the highly pushed date of May 19^th where in order to keep fans knowing the date the WWE did a storyline where Kane would savagely attack anyone who would say the date as it reminded him of the Fire that was his origin.

Well I was there and even I as a filmmaker, Movie critic and fan had to admit that this flick wasn’t one for the books. Not that it wasn’t bad because it wasn’t it just didn’t make an impact like I would have liked it to.

The plot of the film follows Jacob Goodnight (Kane), a powerhouse of a serial killer who after his childhood being abused by his religious crazed mother becomes God’s interment of Death wielding an Axe and a Hook on a Chain while ripping out his victim’s eyes.

Officer Frank Williams finds Goodnight and after shooting him in the head when Goodnight kills his partner, Williams while on leave of absence assembles a small group of troubled teens to help restore a hotel on a work release program.

Needless to say this Hotel happens to be where Goodnight has been hiding and seeking his revenge against Williams and the sinners that have come with him. All of this leads to the twist in this flick is that the community helper that is involved in the restoration is revealed to be Goodnight’s mother who is the one using her son for her own agenda.

After Goodnight comes to terms with his abuse and what he really is he turns on his mother before being stopped by the lone trio of survivors and the loss of his eye.

I felt that despite having a good story the other characters weren’t too likable…As a matter of fact the only likable character was Kane. Now this is an issue for me when it comes to Horror and you find yourself rooting for the killer.

I will give credit in the fact that the kills were amazing! With kills like the girl being dropped outside of the building where she is soon consumed by a pack of starving dogs and my personal favorite where Goodnight shoves a cellphone down a woman’s throat.  

While making constant references to the film on WWE as well as the film’s frequent appearances on the On Demand services it was announced in 2013 that the film would receive a sequel where Kane would reprise his role as Jacob Goodnight and would be joined by Genre veterans Danielle Harris, and Katherine Isabell as well as upcoming directorial talent of Jen & Sylvia Soska.

The first film was directed by a former porn director with his own agenda The Twisted Twins are not just Genre Fans but wrestling fans as well.

I knew that this film was in good hands when I was filming the QnA and the Twins and the crowd broke out into chants of “YES! YES! YES!”

Now the reason that this is relevant is because there is that respect for not just the genre but the built in fanbase from both Horror and the WWE.

With the film Picking up basically where See No Evil left off follows Amy (Danielle Harris) a young Medical School Dropout working as a Coroner on her birthday when the bodies of the victims of the first film arrive at the morgue. to which Amy decides to pass on her birthday plans and stay with her love interest to aid with the large order. 

Amy’s friends decide to arrive at the morgue to celebrate her birthday along with her brother who disapproves of her life choices. This leads to a great deal of drama for our characters. 

Amy’s friend Tamara and her boyfriend leave the party and with Tamara being turned on by the Macabre choose to have sex near Jacob’s corpse and soon Jacob awakens and for those of us that remember the original film will know that this is a trigger for Jacob’s homicidal rages due to his upbringing and …Well the film becomes a Cat and Mouse story of survival as Jacob pursues the partygoers around the morgue leading to a final showdown.

While this flick is a basic Slice and Dice there are a few areas to take into consideration that make the film unique for genre fans.

 Let us begin. 

One area that I really like about this film is that while the original film featured many quite unlikable characters that you honestly could not wait to see Kane take out in this film the characters are very likable and you care for them and don’t want to see them die.

Looking at the characters we as the viewer are given glimpses into their lives and their characterizations as well as their relationships that make us identify with them and want to see them survive the ordeal that they are about to encounter. 

If we want to see them get killed that takes away much of the horror of the film and well there are few scares and suspense to make the film worth watching.  

This brings me to the next area in many horror films when a character dies that is literally the end of the character and the other characters don’t react to the death with the exception of the fact that they are now in immediate danger at the hands of the villain. This film the other characters react to the death of their friends and family members and even take the time to grieve as well as try to attack the killer after he makes the kill despite the fact that they are clearly outmatched. I really liked this fact.

Again we are shown the more human areas of our protagonists and that is a bonus for the film. 

To sum up the film I have to say that it is a great step up from the original and well worth the look and I am looking forward to seeing more from the Twisted Twins in the near Future.

The film is definetly worth a look with it's talented and experienced cast and direction. 

The lighting and editing is great as well and there is little in the film not to like. 

Special Features include a Bio of the Twisted Twins and how they are to work with on set. Also includes a special effects feature on how the kills were created and finally a feature on Kane.

7 Dead Bodies

0 Breasts

1 Beast

1 Asshole Brother

1 Human Barricade

Neck Breaking

Throat Slashing

Gratuitous Flashbacks to first film

Saw to the chest

Impaling

Eye Gouging

Door Smashing

Yes Kiddies the Hook is Back.

3 Stars

Worth Checking out. 

The Town That Dreaded Sundown 2014

There are far too many times that the train is passing me by.

As many of you know I have been an avid defender of The Town that Dreaded Sundown and I have been hearing about this upcoming film for the past few years and last year it was finally Green-lit and I basically sat it out.

Now let’s face it I would not have worked on the film anyway so I am not going to be bitter about that fact and I have also been dealing with much in the past couple of years and…well I am not in the Union.

Some of the scenes were in fact filmed in Texarkana but most of the film was shot in Shreveport, LA where the film incentives are better and they will only hire local crew so that they can get the incentives and…well you have heard that rant from me before.

The truth is that here on the Video Creep is that even if I don’t work on a project that I want to work on and it is still a good project I will still give it a good review and that is what separates me from some of the other reviewers and Bloggers on the internet. 

As I stated I had been following the progress of this film and I have to admit that I am impressed.

Now when I first heard of the film I heard that it was a modern day remake and I had to say “Please, Don’t do that” and they Listened.

Now for those of you that are new here to The Video Creep have probably read my article on the Town that Dreaded Sundown 1976 Film.

Please Click Here for the Article

Now I could have attended the Premiere of the film at Fantastic Fest but again I am still recovering from the fire as well as bringing my production company back from the dead so I had to sit this one out.

I am fortunate that I was able to catch this flick and bring it to you here.

Now this is in fact an interesting direction for this flick similar to some flicks that I have seen the film takes a strange Found Footage esc direction where it does try to market itself as a real incident.

Now again the 1976 film is based on actual incidents that took place in 1946 that is best known as The Phantom Killer or the Moonlight Murders where a masked killer took the lives  5 people and injured 3 others  in Texarkana and despite being pursued by the Arkansas and Texas State police as well as the Texas Rangers was never apprehended and to this day’s identity remains unknown.

The 2014 documentary film Killer Legends also features this story and even a comparison to the film and the actual events while also pointing out its connection to the Hook-man Urban Legend.

Now American Horror Story’s Alfonso Gomez-Rejon has taken the reigns for a film of his own and he has done his research on the tale of the Phantom Killer. However like it’s 1976 Counterpart this film changes the name in the historical facts of the case. I’ll talk about this shortly but let us move on to the film.

Taking place 64 Years after the original Phantom’s reign of terror the town of Texarkana hosts screenings of the Town That Dreaded Sundown (Which Really Happens) and after Corey (Spencer Treat Clark) and Jami (Addison Timlin) choose to leave the screening and park at a lovers Lane where they are attacked by another masked assailant who kills Corey and leaves Jami for dead to tell all that the Phantom has returned.

Jami has her own tragic past with the death of her parents at a young age that is in fact loosely related to the legacy of the Phantom Killer is being sought out by both the town as well as stalked by the killer.

The Phantom Killer at first chooses his victims in similar fashion to the way that they are taken out in the film and the town both tries to cover up the murders while assuring that this is not a repeat of over half a century ago. Needless to say the town once again lives in fear of the masked villain while Jami and her new boyfriend researches not just the case but look to the original film to solve the mystery of not only the Phantom’s identity but why is he here now.

I should mention that unlike the original film in this flick The Phantom Speaks, and makes calls which definitely gives the film a Scream feel and Scream did reference the original film.

I really like the fact that this film takes place in a universe where the original film was in fact made but referenced and Charles B. Pierce’s son does have a character while he is played by an actor. The film is also edited into this film and inter-cut with the action to make the comparison.

Now there are some issues with the film.

When the murders start up again once again a Texas Ranger that is nicknamed “The Lone Wolf” arrives on the scene to find the killer as well as his assistant “Spark Plug”. Now this is where I have to ask the questions such as What are the chances of this happening. Not too good and they are trying to make good references to the original film while trying to establish this flick as a remake but the characters are in the film only briefly and as the authorities are shown to be only supporting characters as well as comic relief.

Now that is probably my only issue with the film despite the fact that it was primarily shot in Louisiana instead of Texas but if that is my only issue that has to be a good thing.

Visually the film was outstanding especially with the earlier mentioned use of the original film but also the use of locations in the town as well and the opening credits have to also be mentioned.

The Cast is also amazing with Veronica Cartwright as Jami's Grandmother, Gary Cole as one of the Sheriffs and Anthony Anderson joining the cast as Lome Wolf and Danielle Harris has a cameo role in the film as well. 

Sadly this is among the final films for two of it’s actors as Ed Lauter who played one of the Sheriffs in the film passed away in 2013 as well as Edward Herrmann who passed away on New Year’s Eve in 2014.

13 Dead Bodies

2 Breasts

2 Beasts

1 Compound Fracture

1 Bullet to the eye

3 Stabbings

The Trombone kill Remains

1 Human Scarecrow

Hands Roll

Heads Roll

3 ½ Stars

Check it out.