Pumpkinhead II is the belated sequel to effects maestro Stan Winstons’ directorial debut. Once again, a bunch of fairly unlikeable characters will be stalked by the revenge demon himself, Pumpkinhead. And once again, they will be killed. But will this film live up to it’s illustrious predecessor? Or do we have a prime slice of direct to video crap? Well, read on to find out….
Synopsis:
In a small Kansas town in 1958, a group of teenagers torture and kill a disfigured orphan named Tommy. 35 years later, another gang of teenagers rob the cabin of an old witch. Using some blood and a spell that they take from her house, the teens inadvertently resurrect Tommy’s soul in the form of the demon Pumpkinhead. Enraged, Pumpkinhead goes after the teens who summoned him and the men who killed Tommy.
And that’s the story in a nice, simple nutshell. As in the original film, Pumpkinhead is brought into the world to seek revenge for the death of an innocent. And, much as in the original film, anyone who gets in his way will wind up very, very dead. Yes, the story isn’t drastically different form the original, but truth be told, there is only so much you can do with a revenge demon being summoned.
Analysis:
Whilst the plot is wafer thin, the film actually holds together quite well. The main reason for this is the fact that the cast is generally quite strong for a film of this calibre. Andrew Robinson (Dirty Harry, Hellraiser, Deep Space Nine) heads up the main cast as our hero Sheriff Braddock, and familiar genre faces Linnea Quigley, Kane Hodder, and R.A. Mihialoff pop up in supporting roles. As does one Roger Clinton Jr. Yes, that’s right, the brother of then US president Bill Clinton rocks up as a small town politician. You may also recognise the films juvenile lead, J. Trevor Edmond from his appearances in Return of The Living Dead 3 and Lord Of Illusions.
Visually, the film holds together well, thanks to some solid direction from genre veteran Jeff Burr (Stepfather II, Leatherface: TCM III, Puppet Master 4+5) and some solid cinematography from Bill Dill. Yes, the films obvious low budget nature is readily apparent at times, but it doesn’t distract for the most part. Light and shadow are used well to help hide the limitations of the still quite impressive creature suit provided by KNB Effects. Indeed, for an early 90s straight to video film, the production has a sheen of gloss absent from many of it’s peers. This Blu Ray looks far, far better than the dreadful pan & scan VHS I would guess most folks are familiar with. The sound is also suitably punchy, but nothing spectacular.
Now, don’t go into this expecting a masterpiece. It most certainly isn’t that. What it is, however, is a solidly made little chiller for a undiscerning evenings viewing.
The Disc:
My copy of Pumpkinhead II is the German Blu Ray from NSM Records. The extra features are as follows:
- Audio commentary with director Jeff Burr (English)
- “Earning your Blood Wings” – Making of (with German subtitles)
- Trailer
- Filmographies – Jeff Burr – Andrew Robinson – Soleil Moon Frye – Hill Harper – J.P. Manoux
- picture gallery
- trailer show
So, not a bad selection overall. I do have to note that the German subtitles on the “Making Of” documentary are hard coded, so you can’t switch them off.
Pumpkinhead II: The Verdict:
Overall, Pumpkinhead II is not a brilliant film. It is, however an undemanding watch that will fill some time quite nicely for most horror fans.
3/5 Fiends. Silly, schlocky fun.
Amazon link: Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings
Gallery:
(Click To Enlarge)
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