Creepshow 2 (1987)
Starring: George Kennedy, Dorothy Lamour, Jeremy Green, Daniel Beer, Lois Chiles, Tom Wright
Writers: Stephen King (Stories) and George Romero (Screenplay)
Director: Michael Gornick
Synopsis:
The rotting Creep himself is back with
three new gruesome tales of horror that will make your skin crawl.
Review:
While ultimately I'd say the first
Creepshow is a better film, I still have a lot of love for Creepshow
2. I dig all three of the stories, as well as the wraparound. On top of that, I have more history with the second film. It came out shortly after I
had finally braved up and took to the horror genre in a major way. I was scrapbooking movie adverts and watching USA
Saturday Nightmares like it was going out of style. A drive-in theater not
too terribly far from my house had a double bill of Witchboard and
Creepshow 2 during the latter's opening weekend, and I had a mother cool enough to
take me to that event. When it hit home video I recorded it and wore
that tape straight out. I didn't even see the first Creepshow until a
few years later. I actually owned the comic/graphic novel before watching
the movie. So, while I dig the hell out of the predecessor, I have
more fond memories of the sequel.
The wraparound story is something that
always brought a huge amount of love to my eyeballs. Billy gets to do
something I always wished I could, by ordering some wacky product
out of a comic or magazine. A bulb for a meat-eating Venus Flytrap; something that actually plays out as a form of vengeance for the kid,
unleashing horrors upon local bullies. It's short, sweet, and fun enough to keep you interested in between the
3 main stories, which we're going to get into now.
Old Chief Woodenhead
Synopsis:
A cigar store wooden indian comes to
life to avenge the store owner and his wife, after they murdered by
three local bad boys.
Review:
I feel like Old Chief Woodenhead is the
story that catches the most crap, and is noted for not being a very
good opener. I think it's a great little tale with a whole lot of
heart written into it. George Kennedy and Dorothy Lamour make their
characters -married couple Ray and Martha Spruce- so entirely
lovable. When they meet their demise, vengeance against their
perpetrators can't come soon enough. It's devastating. A lot can be
said about putting so much into your performance when you only have
maybe about 15 or so minutes of screen time, but Kennedy and Lamour
straight up kill it. Old Chief Woodenhead coming to life is an
absolutely fantastic moment, and that elongated howl he lets out is forever memorable. A great story with terrific
acting and a few good gore gags.
The Raft
Synopsis:
Four teenagers become the target of a
terrifying, man-eating oil slick-ish mess while out swimming in a
barren lake.
Review:
The Raft is not just my favorite tale
in Creepshow 2, but my favorite tale out of both of the first two
films. It's so simple and straight to the point. Right after the
two young couples get out of their car and into the freezing water, the
black blob makes its ghastly appearance, and you just know things won't end well. There's also a small subplot of one
of the guys having unfaithful temptations with his buddy's
girlfriend, which becomes a horrifying element in the last bit.
Also, the mostly instrumental hair metal soundtrack is fantastic. Keep
your ears open for a song that will be familiar, if you watched Lex
Luger during his 80s NWA wrestling days. I can watch The Raft over and over. Totally gruesome special effects, too.
The Hitchhiker
Synopsis:
A frightening tale of a woman who keeps
running into, and over, the same mutilated man on a lonely road.
Review:
I feel like at the time of Creepshow
2's release, The Hitchhiker story was the most popular. In newspaper adverts
for the film, “Thanks for the ride, lady!” was a heavily used
tagline. Even though The Raft hits my soft spot, The Hitchhiker is
one helluva fun ride (so lame, but I had to). The Annie Lansing
character is one of the most annoying, 'nose up in the air'
well-to-do snobs ever, but Lois Chiles really nails the part. You
want this woman gone well before she commits a hit-and-run. The Hitchhiker is an
awesome story and once it gets going it doesn't let up. Complete madness, both on the
road and off, and the final shot packs an awesomely satisfying punch.
It's probably the best in terms of gore FX, too... if I had to pick.
I already brought up the rock
soundtrack for The Raft segment, but the overall score for Creepshow 2, by Les Reed and Rick Wakeman (YES), is really fantastic. It's
thick with bouncy bass lines, simple, yet, awesome guitar solos,
freakish keyboards, and jamming drumbeats. The main theme is
spectacular, but the music that plays over Old Chief Woodenhead
coming to life is a favorite. The score accompanying Lansing's
frantic attempts to escape the Hitchhiker are great, too. Sporadic
and all over the place.
Final Word:
For me, Creepshow 2 is a great dose of
nostalgia that still hasn't worn out its welcome. I enjoy the film as
a whole, and I love showing it to new people. It's a perfect watch in October, even if it isn't a film centered around
Halloween. It works well for getting me into a ghoulish mood just in
time for my favorite day of the year.
Blu-ray:
Image/RLJ's Blu-ray release of Creepshow 2 comes at us in 1080p High Definition Widescreen (1.85:1) with a 5.1 DTS-HD Master audio track. To be honest, the image quality of the film is a mixed bag. Sometimes the picture looks pretty stunning (the driving scenes during The Raft), while in other areas it looks pretty washed out. This is most noticeable during the animated segments. The first shot of Billy is wonderfully clear and clean, but when it shows the Creep the picture is fuzzy. This happens several times during the film. The 5.1 audio isn't mind blowing, by any means, but the mix between music and dialogue is pretty on point. At the end of the day, the overall presentation is better than I've ever seen or heard it before, so I can't really complain. No Special Features at all, sadly. If you own the old Special Divimax Edition DVD I'd hang on to it for Nightmares In Foam Rubber, the commentary, stills gallery, and storyboard art. I look forward to the day Creepshow 2 gets a super special edition release, but in the meantime I have no problem wearing this Blu-ray disc thin.
Available HERE
- Eric (Brobocop)
