MovieChat Forums > Harper's Island (2009) Discussion > First time viewer

First time viewer

posted 8 years ago by magic-4000
2 replies | jump to latest

Big fan of the Scream movies and I'll admit to liking Scream the TV series as mostly guilty pleasure (the new season seems to be on track to be much better so far though.) I've seen this recommended as a better slasher/whodunnit series. Saw they had the season on Amazon Prime so I'm giving it a shot!

I'm avoiding spoilers on this board so I didn't look to see how active it is but maybe, if there's enough activity, I'll share my thoughts as I go along.

First episode:

Lots of characters seems to equal high body count. No way I was going to catch everyone's names but they did a good job establishing majority of them and giving them different personalities. I'm assuming Abby is our final girl but I liked how she wasn't stereotypical.

The opening death (Cousin Ben?) was pretty tense although maybe it could have lasted a little longer. A hell of an elaborate and complex death to pull off which seems to suggest things are very personal for this killer. Obviously though, right? I didn't think Uncle Marty was going to bite it next. He low-keyed threatened Mr. Wellington which would suggest Mr. Wellington had motive to kill/have him killed right after. But that would be too obvious, wouldn't it?

Marty's death scene started off really well but when they panned back and revealed his entire lower torso was gone, I rolled my eyes and laughed. It was cheesy but I guess we didn't really see what the murder weapon was so maybe it's more logical than I think. Speaking of cheesy, a lot of the "tense" or "jump scare" moments were rather typical and lackluster. Turning and bumping into people, animals rustling in the bushes, etc.

All in all, I did enjoy the first episode. I'm getting the sense that this show will do a good job with characters and development. Really make you care about a handful of them while simultaneously making you root for others to get killed off.

Wesley, why can't I stay?

[–] magic-4000 8 years ago

Suspects after episode 2: Henry or Jimmy. I was starting to suspect Kelly somewhat but that quickly went out the window. Can't be Cal or Chloe or Sully or the other bigger friend who was with them unless it's a Scream deal with more than one killer. JD and Hunter seem like obvious red herrings, Shane too a little bit. In fact, a lot of the main characters were still at the bonfire when the death happened except for a few, like Jimmy or Mr. Wellinton. Could be one of the more minor characters who hasn't gotten a lot of screen time yet.

Another decent episode. Nothing amazing but still entertaining. It feels like it's moving at breakneck pace even though there's not a whole lot happening to advance the plot. Mostly character interactions and relationship building which is fine. The father's death was random. I missed what the kind of weapon the killer stole but it's enough to decapitate a man in one swing.

Now, I've never been lit on fire before, but it seems like the flames weren't that intense and a little stop, drop and roll would have gone a long way. I'm sure the killer would have just retaliated with more gasoline and more matches but hey, it's the thought that counts.

My gut feeling is that the whole Wakefield murders didn't happen the way everyone thinks. Maybe Wakefield was an innocent scapegoat who was killed to cover up the truth. Maybe Abby's dad had something to do with it. I dunno. We shall see.

Wesley, why can't I stay?

[–] magic-4000 8 years ago

After episode 4: Still in the Henry or Jimmy camp. I'm leaning more towards Henry at this point as I think Jimmy and Abby will end up getting back together and he'll either survive or die heroically towards the end. Jimmy was conveniently absent in episode 3 but there were no encounters/deaths/incidents with the killer so it doesn't really matter. Henry just seems like the "too perfect, too nice, too good of a guy" for him not to be the killer. Not to mention, he has the ties to the island and to Abby, and the ability to get everyone he may want dead back to the island so it would fit. It's clearly not Trish who also would have the ability of choosing who does or doesn't come to the island. Speaking of Trish, is no one concerned that the girl who died by fire in the pit is missing? Seems like she was a close girl friend of Trish and her bridesmaids yet no one gives a *beep* that she's not at the bachelorette party, etc. At least Uncle Marty has an excuse as far as everyone else is concerned.

As for the end of the episode, it was sketchy as hell. Trish is drowning under the pool cover, Henry is clearly in the area and yet the brother in law (Richard?) has to save her? Henry was close enough to get to Trish's body for CPR first even though Richard pulled her out. Which means he was just as close to the scene as Rich yet he didn't dive in. Which leads me to believe he's the one who closed the pool cover and only ran down after Richard went in and saved Trish. Besides the fact, he seemed very wishy-washy when it came to the money.

I'm guessing Wakefield is still alive based on Kelly's comments and the things the sheriff found at her crime scene. Or if the original murders weren't him, then whoever the culprit was then is still around now, repeating history. Makes me think maybe there's two killers but I'm not sold on that.

My guess for now: the killers are Henry and the sheriff (aka Abby's dad, aka the real perpetrator of the "Wakefield" murders previously)

Wesley, why can't I stay?