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In 2003, Rob Zombie jumped from heavy metal into filmmaking with his debut, House of 1000 Corpses, introducing the Firefly family and splattering everybody with its excess of blood and guts. Some would say it was an "achievement in horror filmmaking", some would say he's doing the "devil's work". Either way, anybody that sees it, or any of his films, will know he's not one for a "sanitized" point of view.
The Devil's Rejects came out 2 years later, following up on the Firefly family as their three main members: Baby, Otis, and Captain Spaulding (Sheri Moon Zombie, Bill Moseley, Sid Haig), are on the run from the law. Right on their heels is Sheriff John Wydell (William Forsythe) who is obsessed and determined to capture them since the family is responsible for his brother's death in the previous film.
So it's worth highlighting that what you're getting from this film is pretty much along the lines of what you got from the first film. I do think this film is somewhat tamer, but it still relishes in the gore and the torturing of its characters in both sides of the law. The fact that it pretty much follows the antagonists' point of view is an interesting twist, and is clear that the three main actors are having fun with it, especially Haig and Mosely who are wicked good in it.
On that note, those performances are probably the film's best assets, paired with Forsythe's scenery-chewing performance. But the truth is that I just wasn't caught up in the film in any way. As violent as it was, I don't think it was as gory as it could've, the film's not scary in the sense of making you jump, and the story is thin to say the least. So it's just a matter of following the beats of the film go to the places you already expect it to go, and that's it. There are pretty much no surprises in it.
Still, something that I said after I watched the first film is that as unsubtle as Zombie might be, he is not a hack. He has a talented eye and his penchant for homaging other horror or fugitive films is evident and done with a certain style. So if all, or some of that is for you, then maybe you'll see this as an "achievement in horror filmmaking". If it's not, then you might see it as "the devil's work".
Grade:
THE DEVIL'S REJECTS
(2005, Zombie)
(2005, Zombie)
"I am the devil, and I am here to do the devil's work."
In 2003, Rob Zombie jumped from heavy metal into filmmaking with his debut, House of 1000 Corpses, introducing the Firefly family and splattering everybody with its excess of blood and guts. Some would say it was an "achievement in horror filmmaking", some would say he's doing the "devil's work". Either way, anybody that sees it, or any of his films, will know he's not one for a "sanitized" point of view.
The Devil's Rejects came out 2 years later, following up on the Firefly family as their three main members: Baby, Otis, and Captain Spaulding (Sheri Moon Zombie, Bill Moseley, Sid Haig), are on the run from the law. Right on their heels is Sheriff John Wydell (William Forsythe) who is obsessed and determined to capture them since the family is responsible for his brother's death in the previous film.
So it's worth highlighting that what you're getting from this film is pretty much along the lines of what you got from the first film. I do think this film is somewhat tamer, but it still relishes in the gore and the torturing of its characters in both sides of the law. The fact that it pretty much follows the antagonists' point of view is an interesting twist, and is clear that the three main actors are having fun with it, especially Haig and Mosely who are wicked good in it.
On that note, those performances are probably the film's best assets, paired with Forsythe's scenery-chewing performance. But the truth is that I just wasn't caught up in the film in any way. As violent as it was, I don't think it was as gory as it could've, the film's not scary in the sense of making you jump, and the story is thin to say the least. So it's just a matter of following the beats of the film go to the places you already expect it to go, and that's it. There are pretty much no surprises in it.
Still, something that I said after I watched the first film is that as unsubtle as Zombie might be, he is not a hack. He has a talented eye and his penchant for homaging other horror or fugitive films is evident and done with a certain style. So if all, or some of that is for you, then maybe you'll see this as an "achievement in horror filmmaking". If it's not, then you might see it as "the devil's work".
Grade: