TOMB OF NOSTALGIA: PET SEMATARY TWO (1992)

PET SEMATARY TWO (1992)

Sequel to the 1989 Stephen King book-based movie opens with the accidental on-set death of actress Renee Matthews (Darlanne Fluegel) right in front of her teen son Jeff (Edward Furlong). His veterinarian father Chase (Anthony Edwards) decides to get him as far from L.A. as possible and moves them across country to remote Ludlow, Maine. Ludlow is still affected by the events involving the Creed family and frightening strikes twice as Jeff and his new friend Drew (Jason McGuire) bury Drew’s murdered dog Zowie in the infamous “Pet Sematary” …along with the dog’s killer, Drew’s a-hole of a stepfather Sheriff Gus Gilbert (Clancy Brown). Bad idea on both counts!

Spooky sequel is directed by Mary Lambert, who also directed the first, from a script by Richard Outten. It’s more of an over-the-top and fun movie with Clancy Brown’s diabolically evil reanimated sheriff stealing every scene and making for an entertaining and creepy villain. There are some legitimately spooky moments, some very bloody kills, too and it is thick with atmosphere, despite its somewhat off-the-wall tone. Though it is early 90s, it still feels like an 80s flick and wisely plays its carnage and more ludicrous story straight. Why no one, including his own wife, seems to realize the jerk of a sheriff is a reanimated corpse, complete with gaping neck wound from the revived and pissed off Zowie, is amusingly hilarious in itself. Even with some unintentional goofiness, it is still a dark and effective chiller all the more entertaining because it mixes the scares and more oddball moments very well. Technically it looks great with Russell Carpenter’s unsettling cinematography and is given extra atmosphere from Mark Governor’s spooky score. Flick was a box office disappointment in 1992 and was not received well critically either, but all these years later and with the proper nostalgia, it is actually a fun night on the couch with the appropriate beverages.

The cast here is good. Furlong makes a solid lead as the emotionally wounded Jeff and even he gets to play a little darkly over-the-top when Jeff decides to try to reanimate mom you know where. Anthony Edwards is good as his concerned father who is starting to realize something very weird is going on in town. Clancy Brown is an over-the-top blast as the douche sheriff reanimated as an even bigger dirtbag. He simply gives every scene all he’s got and takes the villainous ball and runs with it enthusiastically. Jason McGuire is also good and sympathetic as the bullied Drew. A boy picked on by classmates and his stepfather. Jared Rushton is also very effective as local bully Clyde Parker and Lisa Waltz is solid as well as Drew’s mom Amanda who is too afraid of Gus to defend her son against his harsh discipline. A good cast 

Whether you think this is a good movie or a worthy sequel to a film now regarded as a classic is up to you. It also depends on how serious you want to take it. If you just accept it as its own thing and just go with it, you can have a lot of fun with Pet Sematary Two. It has some very spooky and atmospheric moments, some good gore and a delightfully over-the-top and sinister bad guy, even before he returns from the grave. It has a good cast, and, with the addition of teen bully Clyde, not one but two villains who get to dial it up to 11 once they get buried in that place that Ludlow citizens should know enough to avoid…

…. but if they did, there wouldn’t be a movie and a sequel now would there?

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 3 (out of 4) drill bits!

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TOMB OF NOSTALGIA: BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS (1980)

BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS (1980)

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Never one to pass up an opportunity to make a buck on a trend, Roger Corman put this space opera into production with the hopes of capturing a little of the Star Wars lightening in New World Pictures’ bottle. The story finds the inhabitants of the peaceful planet of Akir, under siege from Sador of the Malmori (John Saxon), a ruthless warlord who conquers worlds and uses spare body parts to keep himself young and tyrannical. Not able to defend themselves, village elder Zed (Jeff Corey) sends the rebellious young Shad (Richard Thomas) out to hire mercenaries to defend their planet against the invading army. Can Shad find warriors bad and brave enough to take on Sador and his planet-destroying Hammerhead starship?

As you can tell by the story description, this is more a take on Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai than a retread of George Lucas’ box office titan, though Star Wars rip-off it shamelessly still is. No more obvious than the planet name Akir, which is a tribute to the legendary Japanese director, whose story is being appropriated here. The fun script is by John Sayles (Piranha, The Howling) and it’s directed with a comic book flare by Jimmy T. Murakami, who previously had experience in animation. The film never makes a joke out of the proceedings, but is loaded with humor and plenty of innovative SPFX on a small budget, as designed by James (Terminator, Aliens, Avatar) Cameron. The action is fast and furious, there is a variety of ships to go along with the motley group of mercenaries and it’s all a good time as intended. Sure it’s only got about a fifth of Star Wars’ budget, but the film has loads of heart and the hard work and imagination of everyone that worked on it shows through. The FX can be cheesy and there are a few spots where things slow down a bit, but otherwise it is a cult classic in it’s own right and how can you not like a movie that has a spaceship with a set of boobs…only in a Roger Corman flick, folks!

The cast really make this work especially well. All the actors get the tone and none of them treat the material like a joke, yet still have a good time with their roles. Richard Thomas makes a noble hero as Shad. A young man willing to risk all to save his world and people. Darlanne Fluegel is pretty and resilient as Nanelia, who joins Shad on his quest and becomes his first love interest. John Saxon is simply on target with his portrayal of Sador. He gives him a sense of malice and villainy, yet is careful to never carry him too far into over-the-top territory, so he stays threatening. As our warriors, we have George Peppard as “Space Cowboy” a space trucker caught up in the fight, Robert Vaughn as Gelt, an outlaw on the run, Sybil Danning as the beautiful but arrogant warrior woman Saint-Exmin, Morgan Woodward as the reptilian Cayman, who has a personal grudge against Sador, as well as, a heat communicating duo called The Kelvin and a group of five clones, who act and think as one, called The Nestor. And let’s not forget Sador’s army of patchwork mutants, too. A colorful and diverse group of characters if there ever was.

A cult classic in itself, this is a fun low budget space epic with loads of heart. Sure, the sets are cheesy, as are some of the SPFX, the dialogue corny and the pacing a little erratic, but this movie is a lot of fun. The cast all get the material and give it their all. The imagination of James Cameron and his FX crew is up on screen and it has one of James Horner’s best scores. A Roger Corman cult classic that may have been inspired by George Lucas’ surprise blockbuster, but has earned an identity and place in B-movie history all it’s own.

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 3 (out of 4) Sadors.

 

 

 

 

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