Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings

Just stick with the first Pumpkinhead kids 'cause if you watch this you'll get a headache. The plot has little to do with the original Pumpkinhead and ignores continuity (the old lady who invoked Pumpkinhead died but Pumpkinhead stayed alive. Big plot hole. And soft music during a so called "horrifying" (Re: absurdly fake) murders don't make it better. The only scary thing about the movie is it has Roger Clinton and the girl from Big Comfy Couch.

I just wanted to clarify that this film WAS IN THEATERS!!! It was not direct to video!!! IMDb IS WRONG!!! (as usual I have VHS of the TV ads for this film!

It received a large amount of free media attention due to the current president's brother Roger Clinton appearing in the film.

Once again, this was in theaters, it was NOT direct to video.

As proof I can break out my complete VHS of 'All My Children' for 1993 and show you the ads for this film! It was in theaters!

This film is in fact a very poor follow up to Stan Winston's cult classic.

It does not contain any of the characters from the first film. The story is merely a rehash of the original. A woman in run over by city slicker teens and a witch conjures the demonic monster Pumpkinhead to kill them.

So it's just like the first film sans the good FX and photography.

*****Five Out of Ten Stars*****

Considering this film was made in three weeks, it's not all that bad. It's a strange film; there are quality experienced actors combined with unprofessional actors. Robinson and Edmond's acting talents are wasted on this rushed production. The original director bailed out of the project at the last minute and they had a difficult time finding other qualified director's to pick it up. Jeff Burr accepted the directors role reluctantly, I think, at the last minute.

The plot just isn't faithful to the original, which is a big let down. The script isn't bad but is totally hammed up by a number of unprofessional actors. You can feel Robinson's frustration in some scenes as he contends with acting counterparts with no talent. The special effects are decent enough, if not slightly behind, considering this was made in 1993 and 1994.

Even though I was thoroughly disappointed in the handling of this sequel, I do own it on DVD. My love for the original PH keeps me faithful to this one and the third segment, but definitely not the fourth installment, "Blood Feud". It's a shame one of the major movie studios didn't try to do more with this franchise. The pumpkin head monster could've been used more effectively than it was used in the sequels. Perhaps one of the main studios could've picked the pumpkin head idea up and released several sequels around Halloween. Why Sci-Fi got involved in this franchise, I'll never know? But once Sci-Fi gets involved in any project, the project is destined for the "straight to DVD" category.

P.H. II is a brainless ride that should be taken for what it's worth: A rushed production, made for under $1,000,000, that no one really seemed to care a whole lot about. A better plot more faithful to the original, better acting, and a slower production pace would've gone a long way in producing a sequel worthy of the original. Take a whirl on "Blood Wings" if you're a die hard PH fan, if your not, you'll have issues with it.

Crazy high school kids get into something they don't understand and release the soul of Tommy, a boy killed in 1958. Of course, we know who the monster is after, but the Sheriff (Andrew Robinson) is going crazy trying to figure it out.

And, does the town doctor (blaxploitation star Gloria Hendry) rent a room in the sheriff's house? She sure seems to be there a lot.

I have to say that the monster was certainly creatively done and provided some gory action. I find the fact that he can respond to the sheriff's pleas to be stretching it a bit.

Ami Dolenz and Soleil Moon Frye provided enough eye candy to keep viewer interest.

Pumpkinhead II: Bloodwings is a slightly mixed bag. Director Jeff Burr has had better results from sequels in the past (Leatherface) but does his best with the material. I might not love the story, but you won't hear me complain about the cast. Bloodwings has a great cast featuring some familiar genre faces and a few veterans. These faces include Andrew Robinson, J. Trevor Edmund, Joe Unger, scream queen Linnea Quigley, and Kane Hodder. Throw Punky Brewster and former president Bill Clinton's brother in the mix and you've got the cast. I enjoy the score as well; very reminiscent of Southern Comfort. One of the best pieces of this puzzle is KNB effects. KNB's work is always fun to watch. With all this going for it, I still can't help but feel like something's missing. Something is holding it back from me giving it a positive review. One aspect I don't like is that it has little to do with the original, other than the vengeful demon. Speaking of the demon, he seems to carry around a strobe light that gets real old real quick. And the look and feel stinks of the straight-to-video curse. On one hand, it doesn't touch the original. On the other, it just didn't need to be made.

"Bolted doors and windows barred, guard dogs prowling in the yard, won't protect you in your bed, nothing will from Pumpkinhead."