*I'm pretty sure there's no spoilers ahead, but just in case I'll give my SPOILER WARNING*
After renting the merely adequate "Darkness Falls," I was glad to see this solid, tension-filled horror flick that delivers the goods. The movie did surprisingly well at the box office, and critics and audiences have been raving about it, so I was wondering what all the fuss was about. This is definitely not your standard teen slasher.
First of all, I admire the choice of focusing on two characters. As the two characters are developed, we became quite attached to them, and when we finally see them in peril--we care!! Often in these types of movies, we're faced with an ensemble of characters, who are each one-dimensional. So instead of clenching onto the edge of our seats, hoping they don't die, we're actually waiting to see how they get killed. But in this case, the characters are well-developed and they're brother and sister. This way there's no cheap, gushy romantic moments. The two of them love and care for each other, but not in a romantic way.
The acting is good. Yes, I'm discussing a horror movie and admiring the acting. This is no misprint. The two lead actors each express great emotion, and we really feel their terror.
The movie has a unique approach, because it's intelligent and clever, yet it doesn't go for camp. This campy horror approach sometimes works, but there's so many of these types of films that the line between horror and comedy is beginning to get blurred. There are self-referential moments, like when Darry goes into the pipe and his sister says, "You know, this is one of those moments that they show in scary movies where the character does something stupid and everyone hates him for it!" and when she runs over the killer and Darry asks, "Is he dead?" She replies, "They never are," and continues to run him over a couple more times. For all this time, I've been waiting for characters to really give it to the villain, completely making sure he or she is dead, and that moment has finally come. So I thank Victor Salva for that. But these moments aren't done with a heavy hand. The film has spurts of comic relief, but all in all it treats the horror genre with seriousness and respect.
"Jeepers Creepers" isn't perfect. There is some annoying dialogue and I wanted to know more about the killer's motives, but other than that this is a solid horror-thriller. And I admire the ending, which also isn't standard in the horror genre. Salva, who directed the poignant drama "Powder," is truly a talented director and hopefully he'll be recognized for his talent and not for his past as a sex offender. I've said several times: if we only leaned towards artists who are "normal," we wouldn't watch movies or listen to music period.
My score: 7 (out of 10)
After renting the merely adequate "Darkness Falls," I was glad to see this solid, tension-filled horror flick that delivers the goods. The movie did surprisingly well at the box office, and critics and audiences have been raving about it, so I was wondering what all the fuss was about. This is definitely not your standard teen slasher.
First of all, I admire the choice of focusing on two characters. As the two characters are developed, we became quite attached to them, and when we finally see them in peril--we care!! Often in these types of movies, we're faced with an ensemble of characters, who are each one-dimensional. So instead of clenching onto the edge of our seats, hoping they don't die, we're actually waiting to see how they get killed. But in this case, the characters are well-developed and they're brother and sister. This way there's no cheap, gushy romantic moments. The two of them love and care for each other, but not in a romantic way.
The acting is good. Yes, I'm discussing a horror movie and admiring the acting. This is no misprint. The two lead actors each express great emotion, and we really feel their terror.
The movie has a unique approach, because it's intelligent and clever, yet it doesn't go for camp. This campy horror approach sometimes works, but there's so many of these types of films that the line between horror and comedy is beginning to get blurred. There are self-referential moments, like when Darry goes into the pipe and his sister says, "You know, this is one of those moments that they show in scary movies where the character does something stupid and everyone hates him for it!" and when she runs over the killer and Darry asks, "Is he dead?" She replies, "They never are," and continues to run him over a couple more times. For all this time, I've been waiting for characters to really give it to the villain, completely making sure he or she is dead, and that moment has finally come. So I thank Victor Salva for that. But these moments aren't done with a heavy hand. The film has spurts of comic relief, but all in all it treats the horror genre with seriousness and respect.
"Jeepers Creepers" isn't perfect. There is some annoying dialogue and I wanted to know more about the killer's motives, but other than that this is a solid horror-thriller. And I admire the ending, which also isn't standard in the horror genre. Salva, who directed the poignant drama "Powder," is truly a talented director and hopefully he'll be recognized for his talent and not for his past as a sex offender. I've said several times: if we only leaned towards artists who are "normal," we wouldn't watch movies or listen to music period.
My score: 7 (out of 10)