THE DEVIL'S REJECTS

Starring:
Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie, Leslie Easterbrook, William Forsythe, Matthew McGrory, Ken Foree, Danny Trejo, Priscilla Barnes and Geoffrey Lewis

Writer/director:
Rob Zombie

Running Time:

Out to buy on DVD 28/12/05

"What's wrong? Don't you like Clowns"

As the police close in, Baby (Moon Zombie), Captain Spaulding (Haig) and Otis (Moseley) escape and are on the run. Discovering their house full of bodies and other human remains, Sheriff Wydell (Forsythe) learns that his brother was also one of the victims. When he interviews the captured Mother Firefly (Easterbrook), he swears to her that he will have his revenge but the trio that escaped continue their killing spree, as the media label them 'The Devil's Rejects'.

Musician turned writer/director Rob Zombie continues the story of 'House of 1000 Corpses' but can he improve on his last homage to all things horror?

'House of 1000 Corpses' was an amalgamation of many different horror movies and styles but lacked any real narrative or substance. The first film was missing any resemblance of a story and was simply a collection of macabre and bloody scenes joined together by the flimsiest of plots. This didn't stop it from becoming a cult hit however.

Much of this was due to the man behind the film, writer/director Rob Zombie. The heavy metal star made a film that he wanted to see and suited his persona and style he projects to the fans but he simply doesn't know how to write a cohesive story. What he can do however is create some cult horror characters. The first movie was a success because of Baby, Otis and Captain Spaulding and taking this into account, Zombie has abandoned the usual 'from the victims point of view' approach to horror and made the sequel all about the villains.

Now we follow Baby, Otis and Captain Spaulding as they try and escape from the police and the revenge of Sheriff Wydell. This makes a refreshing change to your usual horror premise and makes the sequel much more watchable than the first. While in 'House of 1000 Corpses' you were guessing which one of the young stars would die first, this one is takes the approach of which one is going to kill somebody first. Bloody and brutal, the trio take not prisoners as they do anything and kill anyone who gets in their way or has something they want. While the three are true representations of evil and insanity, there are moments were you laugh, when, if you think about it, you really shouldn't and you end up hoping that these satanic killers actually get away.

The reason for these characters been such cult horror figures are the performances of Sid Haig, Bill Moseley and Sheri Moon Zombie. Bill Moseley brings a satanic devilry to the role of Otis. He is truly a frightening piece of work and probably the most gruesome of the trio of main characters. Sheri Moon Zombie brings even more craziness to Baby. She may look innocent but she would stab you as much as she'd look at you. Stealing the show is the brilliant Sid Haig as Captain Spaulding. Again he has all the best lines and thankfully this time, has twice as many scenes.

The support is also good, with Leslie Easterbrook completely manic as Mother Firefly, Ken Foree suitably sleazy as brothel owner Charlie and William Forsythe rightfully vengeful as Sheriff Wydell. There are also some good performances in smaller roles from Danny Trejo, Geoffrey Lewis and Priscilla Barnes.

While the movie obviously pays homage to the 70s serial killer movies and is filled with some great music from the decade, the slightness of the story really lets the film down. Rob Zombie has concentrated too much on character and not enough on plot, as the whole film is devoid of any kind of structure, reasoning or motivations for the characters to act in this way. Again we have no real back-story, with just insanity and pure evil used as reasoning for the way these characters act. It is however a visual treat, with Zombie and his cinematographer and editor really having fun with the look of the film.

'The Devil's Rejects' is a much better film than 'House of 1000 Corpses' but suffers from many of the same flaws. Brutal, uncompromising but surprisingly enjoyable, this is a popcorn horror flick that you watch with your brain switched off, which is a shame as the characters have the potential to deliver so much more.

Disc 1:
Audio commentary from director Rob Zombie
Audio commentary by cast members Sid Haig, Bill Mosley, Sheri Moon Zombie

Disc 2:
30 Days In Hell - 'The Making Of Devil's' Rejects (2 hours 30 minutes)
Deleted scenes (14 minutes)
Blooper Reel (6 minutes)
Make-up test reel (13 minutes)
The Morris Green Show (8 minutes)
'Satan's Got To Get Along With Me' video from Buck Owens
Captain Spaulding's Christmas commercial
Tribute to Matthew McGrory
'Bloody Stand-Up' video
Stills gallery
Trailers

House of 1000 Corpses


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2005