Jeepers Creepers 2 Review:

Continuing on from the first movie, Creepers 2 follows the last couple of days of the monsters 23 day feeding pattern. This time he has his sights on a busload of jocks and cheerleaders but didn’t count on dogged revenge from the father of one of his previous victims.

Talked into a sequel by producer Francis Ford Coppola director Victor Salva pretty much follows the template of every tired horror movie follow-up meaning more deaths, more gore and more effects. Gone is the suspense of the first and instead Salva jumps from one set-piece to the next seemingly without knowing how to wrap it up and he just doesn’t match up to the downbeat finale of its predecessor. After the beautifully golden and impressive opening it’s all CG flying and one screaming teen too many.

You’d think it’d be a joy to watch a wooden bunch of dumb jocks and cheerleaders get their limbs torn off but Salva fails to decide whether they are laughable cannon fodder or meaningful characters. He tries to cram in some racial tension and while the acting is good, they haven’t got enough to go on. Plus they all seem to go off in various directions never to be seen again and it may be me but why do they all seem to be called Dante?! Matters worsen when there aren’t enough jolts or scares to loosen the bladder of even the most whimpering viewer and the movie seems to be more interested in constantly reminding us that every 23 years for 23 days it gets to eat, enough already, it was on the poster. This is reinforced by tension halting ‘dreams’ that one cheerleader suddenly gets the ability to do and allows Justin Long to return from the first movie in an ill-advised cameo.

The emotional core of the movie is left to Ray Wise as the grieving Dad but little screen time means he looks as if he carries on his grieving Dad look from TV series Twin Peaks. Like all dire horror franchises the filmmakers seem more interested in the creature and here is no exception. Be prepared for the Creeper to be mugging and winking like Freddy Kruger crossed with the Predator and as with Nightmare On Elm Street part 199 it completely kills of any fear you ever had of the character. Surely now money has been made and a lesson learned so please, not another one.

Picture & Audio

The widescreen image is sharp, crisp and rich meaning the opening cornfield scene looks baked and sumptuous. Unfortunately the high quality lets down most of the night time effect shots revealing terrible scenery and the completely CG Creeper wings.

High quality audio is maintained throughout and the surround sound really pays off during the dream sequences when the voices echo around you. The score however will soon have you reaching for the volume button, a mess of noise and pummeling strings to beat you into tired submission.

Extras

Director commentary:
Here Victor Salva is joined by many members of the cast which may be a bit disorientating for some when they are all talking. Salva is as always eager to talk movies and the rest are just along for the ride pitching in with some helpful anecdotes. Nothing ground breaking and your enjoyment will really hinge on whether you can still stand to be in the company of whiney US teens after barely making it through the actual film.

Effects commentary:
This is a little drier and more techie with the Creeper himself Jonathan Breck and two of the effects boffs. Lets you in on how they did some of the special effects plus Breck talks about the costume itself and the physical stunt work.

Deleted and Extended Scenes:
A few extra lines thrown in here and there plus an extended dream sequence that will give fans more of a background into the Creepers history and possibly hint at an Evil Dead medieval style sequel. Last about 15 minutes but some of it is let down by uncompleted sound mixing.

Making Jeepers Creepers 2 Featurette:
Your usual slice from every aspect of the production with plenty of interviews from director Salva and members of the cast although it’s a shame Ray Wise seems absent from all these documentaries. This looks at the conception of the sequel and how it made it to the big screen.

A Day in Hell:
This is probably the best extra on the disc and it gives those of us intrigued as to how films are shot a very good glimpse into the world of movie making. As you’d expect it’s a tiring, repetitive experience and our host throughout the day is an exhausted Victor Salva. It gives you a great insight into how they shot scenes in the interior of the bus with special importance given to lighting and shows take after take of some key moments. Meanwhile round the corner, the Creeper is being pulled around on wires in front of a green screen by the effects department.

3 Featurettes:
There are also 3 more short looks at other aspects of production, music composition, Creeper creation and digital effects. Pretty obvious what these entail and they expand on some of the previous interviews.

Creepers Lair Storyboard:
An animated storyboard of a deleted scene complete with booming music. The scene itself involves some of the teens discovering the Creepers stash of bodies and you can see why it was cut, it had none of the suspense the first movie had when they venture down that pipe.

Also on the disc is a photo gallery, trailers and TV Spots.

Rich Badley

Site Contents Copyright© The Z Review, unless used with permission.This site has no intention to infringe on the rights of the film owners of Jeepers Creepers 2 and intellectual copyright holders of the movies mentioned herein & hold copyright over the movie, characters, merchandise & storyline.