Scarecrow Gone Wild does not belong to the "Scarecrow" horror franchise, which started with Emmanuel Itier's film and continued with "Scarecrow Slayer". That said, Scarecrow Gone Wild is very much in the same vein as those films and will appeal to "Scarecrow" fans.
The biggest difference between this film and the other scarecrow movies is in its approach to the genre. The original "Scarecrow" was a dark, supernatural revenge film, while the sequel blended in a broader spectrum of victims but still remained true to the revenge philosophy. Scarecrow Gone Wild, on the other hand, follows a standard slasher film framework and is much closer to mainstream horror, with the requisite jolts, comedic quips and surprise moments. I'm not a big fan of most comedy/horror films but Scarecrow Gone Wild is made with such Z-movie spirit that I found it difficult to resist.
This interpretation of the story involves Sam being tied to the scarecrow during a hazing ritual. Unfortunately, Sam has diabetes and goes into insulin shock. In his comatose state, Sam's spirit merges with the Scarecrow and he promptly begins to slice and dice everyone in sight. The action comes thick and fast, with a series of increasingly unrealistic murders. This film uses every cheesy horror cliché in the book and yet that somehow just adds to its appeal. The humour generally misses the mark, but there are sufficient vaguely amusing scenarios and unintentionally funny moments to make the interludes between killings bearable.
The film benefits greatly from an enthusiastic cameo performance from the 'world's most dangerous man' himself, UFC wrestler Ken Shamrock. His hammy performance as the coach was the bad acting highlight for me, particularly during his beach side duel with the scarecrow. The main actors were competent, particularly Matthew Linhardt as Jack and David Zelina, who impresses as Mike. The special effects are reasonable but less impressive than the other "Scarecrow" films. I don't expect much from such a low budget movie but Scarecrow Gone Wild often takes the easy way out by having the murders take place off screen.
Scarecrow Gone Wild is stupid fun. The film never pretends to be anything other than trashy, low budget horror and for that I am thankful. I have my fingers crossed that the dumbest character in horror history will grace video stores with yet another ridiculous adventure in the not too distant future.
