52 reviews
Firstly the box art is completely misleading, everything there is basically wrong as neither Trejo or Jones end up being the Reaper and the old cabin just isn't in the film so it's probably just a stock photo. Probably not the actresses fault but the main female character was cringie and awkward, CONSTANTLY pretending to be sexual towards creepy old men for some reason. You'd think the scene is over and then she'd get real close, whisper something in the sleazy guys ear move back and then do it again... And again... And again. Supporting cast Danny Trejo and Vinnie Jones do their best to try make something of the movie but in the end its an extremely disappointing 84 minutes of boredom.
- stiffdraws
- Aug 31, 2018
- Permalink
Seems to be a lot of people associated with this pile of trash film are offering GREAT but completely UNTRUE reviews. I rarely write any myself, but in cases where it's obvious people are trying to push trash upon unsuspecting viewers, I'm alerting those to be on the lookout.
Don't waste time or money on this. It's not so bad it's good, it's just trash straight through. My 3 stars are for the female lead and viewing her, but her acting leaves a lot to be desired as does the rest of the cast who appears to be phoning in the horribly written dialogue.
This story starts somewhere and ends up nowhere. Multiple story lines that have zero to do with any reaper. We're given a quick spiel on the reaper, but it doesn't have anything to do with his focus on people in this hotel. Unless you want to see a cute girl, avoid at all costs.
Don't waste time or money on this. It's not so bad it's good, it's just trash straight through. My 3 stars are for the female lead and viewing her, but her acting leaves a lot to be desired as does the rest of the cast who appears to be phoning in the horribly written dialogue.
This story starts somewhere and ends up nowhere. Multiple story lines that have zero to do with any reaper. We're given a quick spiel on the reaper, but it doesn't have anything to do with his focus on people in this hotel. Unless you want to see a cute girl, avoid at all costs.
Following a score of strange incidents, a group of criminals hiding out at a reclusive hotel find their troubled hitchhiker target is the least of their problems when a supernatural being begins taking out everybody one-by-one.
This here was quite the bland and overall uninteresting effort. The biggest issue here holding this one back is the fact that so much of what happens here is just not that interesting or enjoyable, which is mainly due to how this one starts off. The majority of the first half here is dedicated to thoroughly uninteresting by being more of a lame crime/drama rather than straight-forward horror film. By focusing on her troubled life-style and willingness to utilize her femininity to get the drop on both guys which allows her to continue being such a tease to everyone makes for such an overly bland offering. Hardly anything about this section works well in determining this one as being much of a horror film with the three different plot lines coming into play here that makes this one drag out the horror elements which come so late into the film that there's little opportunities for horror elements even before taking those elements on throughout the rather extended series of stalking scenes in here. These are just so overlong that it ends up really ruining the few attacks at slasher rhythms with the fact that the killer is so underdeveloped and completely clueless about his origins that he's quite unimposing long before having his first appearance pop up in the second half of this one. Still, once it does get into some of the more involved sequences here this one becomes quite a bit of fun with the fact that there's some genuinely fun sequences in here, from the rather tense stalking done in the middle of the hotel where the crackling bolts of electricity that signify its presence burst into the middle of the scene and make for a creepy time as it begins stalking the unwary groups still in the midst of their petty arguing and allowing for some tense moments, as well as the final confrontation in the church which has some creepy moments. Along with some fine action in the different races to get to safety throughout here, there's some fun to be had but it's mostly pretty flawed.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and drug use.
This here was quite the bland and overall uninteresting effort. The biggest issue here holding this one back is the fact that so much of what happens here is just not that interesting or enjoyable, which is mainly due to how this one starts off. The majority of the first half here is dedicated to thoroughly uninteresting by being more of a lame crime/drama rather than straight-forward horror film. By focusing on her troubled life-style and willingness to utilize her femininity to get the drop on both guys which allows her to continue being such a tease to everyone makes for such an overly bland offering. Hardly anything about this section works well in determining this one as being much of a horror film with the three different plot lines coming into play here that makes this one drag out the horror elements which come so late into the film that there's little opportunities for horror elements even before taking those elements on throughout the rather extended series of stalking scenes in here. These are just so overlong that it ends up really ruining the few attacks at slasher rhythms with the fact that the killer is so underdeveloped and completely clueless about his origins that he's quite unimposing long before having his first appearance pop up in the second half of this one. Still, once it does get into some of the more involved sequences here this one becomes quite a bit of fun with the fact that there's some genuinely fun sequences in here, from the rather tense stalking done in the middle of the hotel where the crackling bolts of electricity that signify its presence burst into the middle of the scene and make for a creepy time as it begins stalking the unwary groups still in the midst of their petty arguing and allowing for some tense moments, as well as the final confrontation in the church which has some creepy moments. Along with some fine action in the different races to get to safety throughout here, there's some fun to be had but it's mostly pretty flawed.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and drug use.
- kannibalcorpsegrinder
- Feb 17, 2016
- Permalink
I enjoyed it for what it was and who really listens to the "intellectualized" critics these days any way - for horror or any other genre. Many times they critique to hear themselves talk or be relevant - not to really review the movie for its entertainment value. I can name so many movies that critics loved and movie goers hated.
Bottomline: Its about suspense and thrill which you will enjoy - if you are a Halloween Movie fan. Halloween movies weren't about the blood and horror. They were about the guy who hears a noise outside and decides to check it out when the audience knows there is a killer on the loose.
So from one movie lover to another: The Reaper is all that with good B Actors and unknown Actors. Was it entertaining? Yes. And that is all that matters. Go see it.
Bottomline: Its about suspense and thrill which you will enjoy - if you are a Halloween Movie fan. Halloween movies weren't about the blood and horror. They were about the guy who hears a noise outside and decides to check it out when the audience knows there is a killer on the loose.
So from one movie lover to another: The Reaper is all that with good B Actors and unknown Actors. Was it entertaining? Yes. And that is all that matters. Go see it.
- keelyus-702-35380
- Oct 25, 2014
- Permalink
Bad acting(especially by the lead actress), no plot, bad dialogue, ridiculous villain/killer, barely any on screen gore, no jump scares or comic relief, no originality, etc. There is nothing to like about this movie, even for fans of low budget horror/slasher flicks. Vinnie Jones has about 3 minutes of screen time and Trejo was just collecting a paycheck. Avoid this garbage.
There seem to be a lot of false reviews for this movie. I enjoy b-grade movies of all types, especially horror movies. I have watched and enjoyed countless B-grade movies that most other people find appalling. I even enjoy watching Danny Trejo strut his stuff in many cheesy movies.
Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this movie at all and would struggle to even call it a B-grade movie. It falls firmly into the C-grade pile of movies which have no redeeming qualities and are not even in the so bad it's funny category. I am very disappointed that I was fooled into watching this movie and wasting time that could have been spent watching something else. For some reason, I kept watching the movie hoping something good would happen, but it just got worse.
Unless you are associated with the making of this film, you will not like it. Let me just reiterate that - YOU WILL NOT ENJOY THIS MOVIE. You've been warned.
Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this movie at all and would struggle to even call it a B-grade movie. It falls firmly into the C-grade pile of movies which have no redeeming qualities and are not even in the so bad it's funny category. I am very disappointed that I was fooled into watching this movie and wasting time that could have been spent watching something else. For some reason, I kept watching the movie hoping something good would happen, but it just got worse.
Unless you are associated with the making of this film, you will not like it. Let me just reiterate that - YOU WILL NOT ENJOY THIS MOVIE. You've been warned.
- drdeathforpresident
- Jul 27, 2015
- Permalink
- dcarsonhagy
- Jun 15, 2015
- Permalink
- innocentbroad
- Oct 30, 2014
- Permalink
I am not really sure what everyone else was watching on here but I could have written better material if I ties a pencil, and piece of paper, to my nether regions and ran on the treadmill for an hour. First and foremost I only rented this movie because of the description, which has nothing, and I mean nothing, to do with the movie what so ever. It's even worse in Redbox than it is here, the description says a man was wrongly accused and executed for a crime which he did not commit and it unleashed a spirit that descends upon an unsuspecting town full of criminals who have to band together ....or something like that. Not even close to what the movie is about. There is no wrongly accused anything, no spirit, we can only assume the movie starts off weeks after the movies description so that's already over and done with and no recap on what has already transpired to get to this point. There is no story, except for the here and now, basically a bunch of people arguing who are just as clueless of whats going on as the audience, no information leading up to what has happened, no closure, just a bunch of over dramatic, over exaggerated actors, who keep you guessing on what is happening. You can kind of piece together what was in the movie, towards the end, but it takes you a bit since there really is no closure of any sort. We did, however, get a lot of smug grins from the characters despite what had just happened, ten minutes beforehand, like they are top dog in the locker room at a high school basketball game, or something, and when they really did nothing but argue scream and cry through the entire ordeal. Now, I understand this was a low budget film, and I am a big fan of a lot of low budget movies, but this was so unrealistic it was kind of watching the old revenge of the killer tomatoes with the original nightmare on elm street blood and gore.....At least attack of the killer tomatoes was entertaining ... Lame!
- swchamberlain
- Aug 13, 2015
- Permalink
This was just an unabashed entertainment from start to finish. Didn't take itself too seriously, combining some familiar horror genre elements (spooky hotel, supernatural monster)with some really cool neo-noir crime thriller twists. Loved how it blended the two genres into a kind of supernatural thriller with an edge.
Great cast, which is rarely the case in these kind of films. Trejo is awesome as always, Jones and Busey both hoots, plus some solid fresh faces as well.
Really enjoyed this and would recommend it to anyone looking for an unpredictable, fun scary movie.
Great cast, which is rarely the case in these kind of films. Trejo is awesome as always, Jones and Busey both hoots, plus some solid fresh faces as well.
Really enjoyed this and would recommend it to anyone looking for an unpredictable, fun scary movie.
- filmfrequent234
- Oct 29, 2014
- Permalink
Overacting throughout the movie, voice & actions. It is as if none of them ever had voice coaching or acting lessons. Since it is so global I wonder if that is what the directer was 'directing' them to do. Really dumb. Stupid plot and drama. I don't care for hollywood's spewing divisive bigotry against Christianity. Terrible continuity: Nothing stops the 'Reaper', bullets, traps, etc. but near the end a seriously wounded old man manages to grab the Reaper and drown him/it. A real waste of one and a half hours of your life that you will not get back...
- ccunning-73587
- Aug 30, 2019
- Permalink
Review: This movie wasn't worth the paper that it was written on. It took over an hour for anything to really happen and even then it wasn't that great. The acting was really bad from the leading lady, who just went around stealing anything that she could get her hands on, and the storyline was ridiculous. I really don't know how the hitchhiker got away with half the things she was doing and the whole Reaper concept was bloody stupid. Personally, I just lost interest after a while and I just couldn't wait until they all got killed off. Terrible!
Round-Up: The poster looked promising, but this is yet another movie were the people on the poster wasn't really in the movie that much. Vinnie Jones only had a couple of scenes and Danny Trejo doesn't come into the movie until the last half an hour. Although both actors are on the poster facing each other, they don't even have any scenes together so that must have just been a selling point. Anyway, there isn't anything good to say about the film so my recommendation is not to bother wasting your time.
I recommend this movie to people who are into there cheap thrillers about a girl who goes around stealing from people who would give her a lift and ending up in a hotel were there is a Reaper looking fellow killing people in a hotel. 1/10
Round-Up: The poster looked promising, but this is yet another movie were the people on the poster wasn't really in the movie that much. Vinnie Jones only had a couple of scenes and Danny Trejo doesn't come into the movie until the last half an hour. Although both actors are on the poster facing each other, they don't even have any scenes together so that must have just been a selling point. Anyway, there isn't anything good to say about the film so my recommendation is not to bother wasting your time.
I recommend this movie to people who are into there cheap thrillers about a girl who goes around stealing from people who would give her a lift and ending up in a hotel were there is a Reaper looking fellow killing people in a hotel. 1/10
- leonblackwood
- Oct 17, 2014
- Permalink
I am completely nonplussed as to why this film got such a high rating. Unlike the previous reviewer, I felt this film was absolutely dreadful, and not in a 'good' way. The acting is wooden with a largely unknown (to me at any rate) cast, the script abysmal with all the characters, including Reaper, being far too derivative and stereotypical, and the plot predictable. There are so many other film 'references' (I'm being kind) that the whole film becomes a patchwork of ideas that are clumsily sewn together. I gave it a good try but lost interest half way through. I'm quite easy to scare, but I did not even have the urge to grab a cushion to hide behind. I am sorry for such a negative review, but I really struggled to find anything good to say about this. Unfortunately for me, it had no saving graces.
- jandriod2012
- Nov 1, 2014
- Permalink
I honestly only got through about a half hour of this dumpster fire of a movie. The acting was awful, the scenarios were just so ridiculously unrealistic, and the story to this point was not even interesting. Maybe it gets better, but I honestly don't see how. The characters were all pretty much garbage so I couldn't see myself caring about what happened to any of them. Save your time and avoid this one.
- karma-08218
- Jun 2, 2018
- Permalink
Usually if movies score more than 5 stars it's not always good but most of the time it's entertaining at least.
Acting is really really bad right from the beginning and the story makes no sense, the acting is bad because the script and the director were really really bad too.
This movie shouldn't score more than 3 stars.
Acting is really really bad right from the beginning and the story makes no sense, the acting is bad because the script and the director were really really bad too.
This movie shouldn't score more than 3 stars.
- eddyhate-45338
- Jul 17, 2020
- Permalink
Danny Trejo is the reason i wanted to see this little straight to dvd Horror but it's a fairly decent little flick. The cover art of the dvd is terrible & has nothing to do with the film.
Reaper is a well made little Horror/ Supernatural/Crime Thriller it's definitely a mix of genres crossing over abit like the 90's Classic From Dusk Till Dawn that also starred Danny Trejo so the idea is a cool one here putting a small group of criminals against each other & a supernatural serial killer that all end up at a big creepy old Hotel but it doesn't truly go anywhere exciting or thrilling.
This is a fun movie with a road thriller feel that turns into a trapped in one place Horror!!!
Danny Trejo, who I'm a huge fan of plays a good role here as a wise Criminal with a heart who is a drug dealer that picks up a young hitchhiker girl & ends up at the big creepy old Hotel.
Trejo also has a cool moment where he gets out a big Machete & as we know that's a little nod to his most famous role.
The atmosphere is creepy with a feel that something is about to happen like it's tense in a way building up to something is coming!!!
The Dark gloomy lit hotel is a great setting for a Moody Horror like this but never goes for full action of blood bath type stuff, it's good for what it is but also abit boring & could've been way better!!!
Could've used more Trejo & Could've used some more action scenes & some more bloody scenes to make the stakes feel higher but like i said for what it is it's not a bad little flick.
The next best performance after the cool rugged Trejo as Jack the criminal with a heart comes from the beautiful hitchhiker on a personal mission played by Shayla Beesley as Natalie a smart & cunning thief who gets caught up in this complicated criminal underworld.
Natalie is a very good well written character & a smart quick thinking one too it's a very good performance by Beesley.
Jake Busey turns up as a weird travelling salesmen who seems to have given up on life.
We also have tough British actor Vinnie Jones as a violent crime lord who also gets mixed up in the supernatural mess & basically plays the same character he always plays.
James Jurdi is another class actor here as a petty criminal who gets on the wrong side of just about everyone in this movie.
Mike Michaels plays the Supernatural serial killer The Reaper who is roaming the deserted country back roads killing anyone in his path of death who ends up the hotel with the group of criminals.
Gotta say again i love Danny Trejo & have since the 90's & i think he's one of the greatest B-movie character actors of all time!!! Trejo is a class act with a great screen presence & he is basically the new Charles Bronson in some ways!!!
I'm so glad Trejo finally made it as a big star & got the big cult following he deserves as he is a proper vintage rugged tough guy like a real grindhouse hero who has actually lived it & seen it all.
He has become legendary...finally.
I always look forward to seeing his rugged mustached face on the front of straight to dvd B-movie covers.
Trejo has become so popular after the success of Machete that any low rent cheap film he even had a small cameo in has released the movie with Danny Trejo billed as the main lead star on the cover with a cool picture of him but I've been tricked too many times by buying these films because I'm a huge Trejo fan & find out that the film is crap & Trejo has a tiny bit part for a few mins!!! Very annoying but that's the impact of our cult hero Trejo,we just love seeing him in anything.
This is a fun & interesting story & damaged characters that happen to cross paths & come accross a supernatural killer & it's the characters that really save the film from being a "bad film" because you are interested in these people & as said Trejo gives a nice thoughtful performance.
Reaper is a well made little Horror/ Supernatural/Crime Thriller it's definitely a mix of genres crossing over abit like the 90's Classic From Dusk Till Dawn that also starred Danny Trejo so the idea is a cool one here putting a small group of criminals against each other & a supernatural serial killer that all end up at a big creepy old Hotel but it doesn't truly go anywhere exciting or thrilling.
This is a fun movie with a road thriller feel that turns into a trapped in one place Horror!!!
Danny Trejo, who I'm a huge fan of plays a good role here as a wise Criminal with a heart who is a drug dealer that picks up a young hitchhiker girl & ends up at the big creepy old Hotel.
Trejo also has a cool moment where he gets out a big Machete & as we know that's a little nod to his most famous role.
The atmosphere is creepy with a feel that something is about to happen like it's tense in a way building up to something is coming!!!
The Dark gloomy lit hotel is a great setting for a Moody Horror like this but never goes for full action of blood bath type stuff, it's good for what it is but also abit boring & could've been way better!!!
Could've used more Trejo & Could've used some more action scenes & some more bloody scenes to make the stakes feel higher but like i said for what it is it's not a bad little flick.
The next best performance after the cool rugged Trejo as Jack the criminal with a heart comes from the beautiful hitchhiker on a personal mission played by Shayla Beesley as Natalie a smart & cunning thief who gets caught up in this complicated criminal underworld.
Natalie is a very good well written character & a smart quick thinking one too it's a very good performance by Beesley.
Jake Busey turns up as a weird travelling salesmen who seems to have given up on life.
We also have tough British actor Vinnie Jones as a violent crime lord who also gets mixed up in the supernatural mess & basically plays the same character he always plays.
James Jurdi is another class actor here as a petty criminal who gets on the wrong side of just about everyone in this movie.
Mike Michaels plays the Supernatural serial killer The Reaper who is roaming the deserted country back roads killing anyone in his path of death who ends up the hotel with the group of criminals.
Gotta say again i love Danny Trejo & have since the 90's & i think he's one of the greatest B-movie character actors of all time!!! Trejo is a class act with a great screen presence & he is basically the new Charles Bronson in some ways!!!
I'm so glad Trejo finally made it as a big star & got the big cult following he deserves as he is a proper vintage rugged tough guy like a real grindhouse hero who has actually lived it & seen it all.
He has become legendary...finally.
I always look forward to seeing his rugged mustached face on the front of straight to dvd B-movie covers.
Trejo has become so popular after the success of Machete that any low rent cheap film he even had a small cameo in has released the movie with Danny Trejo billed as the main lead star on the cover with a cool picture of him but I've been tricked too many times by buying these films because I'm a huge Trejo fan & find out that the film is crap & Trejo has a tiny bit part for a few mins!!! Very annoying but that's the impact of our cult hero Trejo,we just love seeing him in anything.
This is a fun & interesting story & damaged characters that happen to cross paths & come accross a supernatural killer & it's the characters that really save the film from being a "bad film" because you are interested in these people & as said Trejo gives a nice thoughtful performance.
- lukem-52760
- Jun 8, 2019
- Permalink
- nogodnomasters
- Nov 29, 2018
- Permalink
Boisterously entertaining, this low budget throwback slasher has bodacious hottie Natalie (Shayla Beesley) riskily hitch-hiking the dusty back roads scamming on lecherous creeps for their dough to dutifully pay mom's medical bills, and after she reluctantly accepts a ride with greasy sleazer salesman Bill (Jake Busey) they both fatefully end up at the ominously monikered 'Last Chance Hotel', a deliciously doomy locale, this heart-broken hotel amusingly replete with visibly disturbed, batso bonkers, bible-blathering, doom-auguring receptionist Caine (Justin Henry). The local news dramatically report the extraordinarily lurid details concerning the supernaturally revivified mass serial killer 'Reaper' allegedly continuing his murderous modus operandi of super-sanguineous sinner slaying from beyond the grave!
Director Philip Shih's splattery shocker provides electrifying scenes of sublime midnight movie madness as noble-hearted, machete-weilding drug mule Danny Trejo and the monstrously beleaguered guests of the bloodily besieged motel do desperate battle with the high-wattage, hell-fired 'Reaper'. Consistently compelling due to the engaging performances of a damn fine cast, with Trejo, Beesley, Henry, and Busey's boozy curb crawling creep all being far more nuanced protagonists than the usually drearily disposable knife fodder. 'Reaper' is one eminently diggable B-Horror, with pacey direction, a creepier-than-thou location, pluckier than average final girl, and this red-eyed, reprehensibly rampaging, riotously revenging Reaper is guaranteed to scythe his wanton way into the contemporary slasher pantheon! While I thoroughly enjoyed 'Reaper', I could have done without the ceaseless grimacing of ex-footie thug Vinnie Jones, a boorish amateur with all the subtlety of a sinkhole! 'Reaper' is a pleasingly gritty B-crime horror hybrid that references Renny Harlin's cult classic 'Prison'.
Director Philip Shih's splattery shocker provides electrifying scenes of sublime midnight movie madness as noble-hearted, machete-weilding drug mule Danny Trejo and the monstrously beleaguered guests of the bloodily besieged motel do desperate battle with the high-wattage, hell-fired 'Reaper'. Consistently compelling due to the engaging performances of a damn fine cast, with Trejo, Beesley, Henry, and Busey's boozy curb crawling creep all being far more nuanced protagonists than the usually drearily disposable knife fodder. 'Reaper' is one eminently diggable B-Horror, with pacey direction, a creepier-than-thou location, pluckier than average final girl, and this red-eyed, reprehensibly rampaging, riotously revenging Reaper is guaranteed to scythe his wanton way into the contemporary slasher pantheon! While I thoroughly enjoyed 'Reaper', I could have done without the ceaseless grimacing of ex-footie thug Vinnie Jones, a boorish amateur with all the subtlety of a sinkhole! 'Reaper' is a pleasingly gritty B-crime horror hybrid that references Renny Harlin's cult classic 'Prison'.
- Weirdling_Wolf
- May 25, 2022
- Permalink
Well not quite but check out how many 10./10 reviews there are - people seem to forget that this means its the best movie you have ever seen!
Its your standard stalk and slash fair but it has the woeful Vinnie "cant act" Jones in it - How the hell do lowlifes like him get into the movies? its a disgrace - whenever I see his name in the cast list my heart sinks.
Danny Trejo did his best but its just your average stalk and slash with nothing particularly interesting or memorable about it apart from the tasty blonde so it gets an extra star for her - she is to be fair quite a nice little actress and quite cute! I think I saw this before in a movie called Shocker but I think it was much better if I remember correctly - Oh and the after credits ending lol I guess they were hoping for a remake - 3 hopes - Bob Hope, Cape Of Good Hope and Nae Hope!
Settle down with a few friends , a few beers and a few spliffs and this will pass an hour or so!
Not as bad as some make out but not as good as all of the fake 10/10 - 1 review in their lifetime shills make out either!
Its your standard stalk and slash fair but it has the woeful Vinnie "cant act" Jones in it - How the hell do lowlifes like him get into the movies? its a disgrace - whenever I see his name in the cast list my heart sinks.
Danny Trejo did his best but its just your average stalk and slash with nothing particularly interesting or memorable about it apart from the tasty blonde so it gets an extra star for her - she is to be fair quite a nice little actress and quite cute! I think I saw this before in a movie called Shocker but I think it was much better if I remember correctly - Oh and the after credits ending lol I guess they were hoping for a remake - 3 hopes - Bob Hope, Cape Of Good Hope and Nae Hope!
Settle down with a few friends , a few beers and a few spliffs and this will pass an hour or so!
Not as bad as some make out but not as good as all of the fake 10/10 - 1 review in their lifetime shills make out either!
When seeing a film called "Reaper" that's headlined by some of the great B-movie icons of our time, one undoubtedly expects a bloody killing machine of a movie instead of a twisty, character-driven thriller. But surprisingly enough, "Reaper" proves to be an engaging, thoroughly enjoyable ride with unpredictable characters, a few good surprises, and one mean monster of a Reaper.
Usually in these kind of films, you have a bunch of friends, college students, or party goers stranded in a haunted house or a cabin in the woods. Then the mythic, unbeatable killer comes along and starts slashing away characters who have zero persona and no texture. Here, you have the exact opposite: criminals, drug pushers, religious zealots, and a thief trying to survive one another's duplicity, plus a monster! That's what makes "Reaper" both unique and interesting. It actually devotes more time to setting up its characters and plot shifts than it does to the serial killer story.
We get news clips and radio announcements informing us of a cult leader death row inmate who has survived execution and returned as an otherwordly being. But what really draws us in is main character Natalie's wild journey cross country. Desperate to gather enough money to help her ailing mother, she hitchhikes, schemes, steals, and cons her way through the film. Her victims include a lecherous traveling AC salesman (a comically creepy Busey), a drug dealer with a deadline (Jurdi, deviously slick), and a weary trucker (Trejo, a badass with a surprising soft side). But when she ends up at a hotel which happens to be the resting place of the Reaper, she is forced to team up with the men she's betrayed in order to survive one long night.
It's refreshing to see a horror thriller where the female lead isn't just a prop but is actually driving the action. As Natalie, Beesley holds her own, creating a character that's both shady but sympathetic, tough but vulnerable. In supporting performances, Jones is fun as a cruel, knife wielding mob boss; Judge chews up the scenery as a dangerous cop; and Henry is eerie as hell as a strange hotel attendant/Reaper worshipper.
As for the Reaper himself, he does the job when he shows up, but part of the fun of the film is that he's not there long enough for the kills to become redundant or predictable. Our characters have as much to fear from one another as they do from this supernatural force, and guessing who will turn on who and survive in the process is the ultimate thrill of watching this film.
While some hard-core horror film aficionados will undoubtedly be let down that there isn't as much carnage as one would expect in this brand of genre movie, one would hope that thriller/moderate horror fans take a moment to appreciate what director Philip Shih and the makers of this picture were trying to do: a monster movie where the characters, not the monster, push the story forward.
To best sum it all up, here's a memorable quote from early on in the film where Beesley whispers into Busey's ear: "big bad wolf slain by damsel in distress... a whole new kind of fairy tale."
Enjoy!!! Cheers.
Usually in these kind of films, you have a bunch of friends, college students, or party goers stranded in a haunted house or a cabin in the woods. Then the mythic, unbeatable killer comes along and starts slashing away characters who have zero persona and no texture. Here, you have the exact opposite: criminals, drug pushers, religious zealots, and a thief trying to survive one another's duplicity, plus a monster! That's what makes "Reaper" both unique and interesting. It actually devotes more time to setting up its characters and plot shifts than it does to the serial killer story.
We get news clips and radio announcements informing us of a cult leader death row inmate who has survived execution and returned as an otherwordly being. But what really draws us in is main character Natalie's wild journey cross country. Desperate to gather enough money to help her ailing mother, she hitchhikes, schemes, steals, and cons her way through the film. Her victims include a lecherous traveling AC salesman (a comically creepy Busey), a drug dealer with a deadline (Jurdi, deviously slick), and a weary trucker (Trejo, a badass with a surprising soft side). But when she ends up at a hotel which happens to be the resting place of the Reaper, she is forced to team up with the men she's betrayed in order to survive one long night.
It's refreshing to see a horror thriller where the female lead isn't just a prop but is actually driving the action. As Natalie, Beesley holds her own, creating a character that's both shady but sympathetic, tough but vulnerable. In supporting performances, Jones is fun as a cruel, knife wielding mob boss; Judge chews up the scenery as a dangerous cop; and Henry is eerie as hell as a strange hotel attendant/Reaper worshipper.
As for the Reaper himself, he does the job when he shows up, but part of the fun of the film is that he's not there long enough for the kills to become redundant or predictable. Our characters have as much to fear from one another as they do from this supernatural force, and guessing who will turn on who and survive in the process is the ultimate thrill of watching this film.
While some hard-core horror film aficionados will undoubtedly be let down that there isn't as much carnage as one would expect in this brand of genre movie, one would hope that thriller/moderate horror fans take a moment to appreciate what director Philip Shih and the makers of this picture were trying to do: a monster movie where the characters, not the monster, push the story forward.
To best sum it all up, here's a memorable quote from early on in the film where Beesley whispers into Busey's ear: "big bad wolf slain by damsel in distress... a whole new kind of fairy tale."
Enjoy!!! Cheers.
- flickpick135
- Oct 4, 2014
- Permalink
Unintentionally hilarious. Start with the SuperBowl of crazy in real life celebrities, Jake Busey and Vinnie Jones, rampant plot holes, some of the worst acting and with a storyline that doesn't match the synopsis given. With all due respect to the young lady in the lead but she has zero talent an complete inability to not look like she's acting which was so bad she maybe some sort of horribly programmed acting robot. She's attractive but at times when she turned her head i swear I heard a rattle. The one and only redeeming quality, other than the laughter, is Danny Trejo. I would watch him in just about anything. You want to be scared not this movie, want to see cringe worthy moments that are broken up with laughter this is the film. So bad it's almost worth watching. Oh wait if the female lead wants to keep acting she should push for a reboot of Married With Children Christina Applegate is a superior actress but she may distract by looking like her when she was younger.
- berg-74532
- Aug 4, 2020
- Permalink