How is it possible that a new sheriff coming to town always exactly coincides with a series of murders?
This very much feels like someone took all the wrong lessons from Twin Peaks. Everyone is shot with crazy headroom, we spend a lot of time in wood paneled kitchens, the teen/family drama is frivolous. But of course without all the self awareness, mystical profundity, and tonal absurdity that made Twin Peaks such a culturally influential phenomenon.
And don’t even get me started on the wrong lessons it takes from the original Pumpkinhead. Not the worst misunderstanding I’ve seen a sequel have of its source material, but a big reason why the original works so well because each of Pumpkinhead’s victims are direct bystanders or active participants in the killing of the boy; that’s his whole thing. He is the concept of Vengeance taking a physical form— most of the victims here are characters introduced in the same scene in which they die. That theme of revenge is so consistent in the original and so inconsistent here.
I get that the victims are the 50s guy from the cold open a la Dark Night of the Scarecrow, but it’s muddied by the idea that Pumpkinhead is also going after the kids for burning his mother/late wife (yeah I’ll come back to that one). Which like……. Oh man. Come on. He’s a mythical demon, not a resurrected deformed little boy. They really expected us to buy that he accepts the sheriff’s sappy speech and spares his daughter. He doesn’t have a conscience. He’s a cruel, thoughtless force of evil.
Also, the music and cinematography are such aces in the original, and so deeply mediocre in this one. And Pumpkinhead himself… my sweet boy. He does not look good here. They just show too much of him too. In the first film they shoot around him in the dark, atmospheric environments so cleverly, revealing more of his horrific frame little by little. In here he’s just like, full Halloween onesie illuminated with a flood light. The hanging scene at the end was deeply hilarious to me, he looked like he was dancing puppet style. He doesn’t have the sick sense of subtle sadistic humor he has in the first, or the methodical yet animalistic overkill instincts; I could go on and on. Complete misunderstanding of the character on every level.
Lance Henriksen’s absence is also deeply felt, as is Florence Schauffler as Haggis the witch, who is recast(?) or is maybe a totally different witch named Miss Osie. Either way, the witch was metal as fuck in the first, hokey and lame in this one.
This is watchable and has some interesting little moments but I’d really only recommend it if you’re a big fan of the first and curious. And even then, you probably won’t like it. It’s a lesser Pumpkinhead, a lesser Twin Peaks, and a lesser Dark Night of the Scarecrow. Not annoyingly bad, but just like, bad lmao
Also holy shit. Pumpkinhead fucks. The last iteration of Pumpkinhead had sex with Ms. Osie. P in va-G. With a human woman. He’s naked and on full display in this movie and we don’t get one look at his cock. How does he do that? Was it consensual? Did she want that? Did she at least have the decency to give him some Pumpkinhead first? That sounded funnier in my head
How is it possible that a new sheriff coming to town always exactly coincides with a series of murders?
This very much feels like someone took all the wrong lessons from Twin Peaks. Everyone is shot with crazy headroom, we spend a lot of time in wood paneled kitchens, the teen/family drama is frivolous. But of course without all the self awareness, mystical profundity, and tonal absurdity that made Twin Peaks such a culturally influential phenomenon.
And don’t even get me started on the wrong lessons it takes from the original Pumpkinhead. Not the worst misunderstanding I’ve seen a sequel have of its source material, but a big reason why the original works so well because each of Pumpkinhead’s victims are direct bystanders or active participants in the killing of the boy; that’s his whole thing. He is the concept of Vengeance taking a physical form— most of the victims here are characters introduced in the same scene in which they die. That theme of revenge is so consistent in the original and so inconsistent here.
I get that the victims are the 50s guy from the cold open a la Dark Night of the Scarecrow, but it’s muddied by the idea that Pumpkinhead is also going after the kids for burning his mother/late wife (yeah I’ll come back to that one). Which like……. Oh man. Come on. He’s a mythical demon, not a resurrected deformed little boy. They really expected us to buy that he accepts the sheriff’s sappy speech and spares his daughter. He doesn’t have a conscience. He’s a cruel, thoughtless force of evil.
Also, the music and cinematography are such aces in the original, and so deeply mediocre in this one. And Pumpkinhead himself… my sweet boy. He does not look good here. They just show too much of him too. In the first film they shoot around him in the dark, atmospheric environments so cleverly, revealing more of his horrific frame little by little. In here he’s just like, full Halloween onesie illuminated with a flood light. The hanging scene at the end was deeply hilarious to me, he looked like he was dancing puppet style. He doesn’t have the sick sense of subtle sadistic humor he has in the first, or the methodical yet animalistic overkill instincts; I could go on and on. Complete misunderstanding of the character on every level.
Lance Henriksen’s absence is also deeply felt, as is Florence Schauffler as Haggis the witch, who is recast(?) or is maybe a totally different witch named Miss Osie. Either way, the witch was metal as fuck in the first, hokey and lame in this one.
This is watchable and has some interesting little moments but I’d really only recommend it if you’re a big fan of the first and curious. And even then, you probably won’t like it. It’s a lesser Pumpkinhead, a lesser Twin Peaks, and a lesser Dark Night of the Scarecrow. Not annoyingly bad, but just like, bad lmao
Also holy shit. Pumpkinhead fucks. The last iteration of Pumpkinhead had sex with Ms. Osie. P in va-G. With a human woman. He’s naked and on full display in this movie and we don’t get one look at his cock. How does he do that? Was it consensual? Did she want that? Did she at least have the decency to give him some Pumpkinhead first? That sounded funnier in my head
