MovieChat Forums > Jack the Reaper (2013) Discussion > had some interesting ideas, I thought [s...

had some interesting ideas, I thought [spoilers]

posted 10 years ago by blacknyellowsquid
3 replies | jump to latest

Disclaimer: I'm not a horror buff. But, this had some interesting concepts going for it, I thought. Though it didn't all come together well. Some bad acting, a bit confusing...etc.

But to me, I like the idea that they really were just 'fighting to survive' after the bus wreck, and it was all manifested in a frightening, dead-end fight-to-survive via being stalked by a crazy murderer, in horror film style. I've certainly seen other "ta daa, it was really just the last moments inside this person's mind while s/he was dying!" twists before, but not done in a horror movie...where the whole running-from-a-creepy-assailant-in-a-creepy-setting represented an altered state of that struggle not to die. Not me anyway. But it's a cool idea. Death might be distressing and horrifying, after all...at least a painful one...

Also I liked the idea of an abandoned amusement park. Haha. I liked the scenes of the kids running amok and playing in it...that WOULD actually be fun, wouldn't it? Playing all the games, riding rides -- haha. Just wasn't a setting I'd seen before. And the mirror room/maze...I got a kick out of that. That carnival attraction IS so f--ing annoying for anyone who's been in it lmao, and it would be annoying trying to outrun a murderer in that. Dumb choice to go into! And the fun house, another clever thing, even the haunted ride...so again... I liked the idea of that setting to play with for a horror movie. And it could be the backdrop of a fevered dream/nightmare/last moments...or as some kind of nightmare-ish inbetween state between life and death. going from something possibly good/fun, and it turning menacing and not something you can escape, as it goes on. It also could be that allure aspect...of wanting to just 'give in' and death looks alluring...but then comes the fight.

I see the amusement park and that level of reality either as all in the kid's head as the last moments before dying, that struggle to live... (particularly the last male kid's head, because he's the one Tony Todd talked to and put weirdness inside his mind that would fuel this dream state) or as some actual in-between-netherworld right before death that people get stuck in out there after a crash as they die...etc. I like my first interpretation better but can't rule out the second.

So yeah. Overall -- a bit confusing, not great acting from everyone, some awkward pacing/editing... but some good ideas that I personally hadn't seen before. I also liked the character development of the teens and that they were a group that weren't necessarily friends but stuck on that same trip.

[–] Kelea7 10 years ago

I almost completely agree with you. Only difference is I'm a bit ambivalent towards the ending. Other than that our thoughts are practically identical. I appreciated that while this film was archetypal to a degree, it actually had its own personality and didn't always fall too predictably.

I thought the reaper was creepy. And I thought the carousel was well done, certainly a highlight to the movie. As for the acting, you're right it wasn't great, but you know for what it's worth...I honestly felt like the actors (most) were trying their best and I don't think I can say that too often in these types of films. I don't know.

where the whole running-from-a-creepy-assailant-in-a-creepy-setting represented an altered state of that struggle not to die.

I also can appreciate this angle, I'm just not sure I like it in this movie.

[–] ScorpionTDC 10 years ago

I sorta felt the same way. It had some interesting ideas with characters/plot, but the film itself was incompetent and failed to utilize them well.

I kinda interpreted the twist a bit differently than you (I got the impression it was a supernatural slasher and that the teens were in limbo after the crash with Jack taking them to the afterlife), which I still thought was kinda interesting and not too mishandled, aside from the incredibly in-your-face foreshadowing and the ending, where he's inexplicably able to kill the last girl despite her escaping him (not that I cared too much, since she really shouldn't have lived in the first place)

Setting was another one. I haven't seen any many Carnival/Amusement park horror movies and it's a setting that SHOULD have been awesome, especially with all the rides and locations for deaths and chase scenes. Unfortunately, it didn't really use those too much in general, let alone use them well. Not sure if this is because of the budget or incompetence, however.

Besides that, I liked the idea of the final boy being a (soon to be) teen father and related to the douchey jock. Both had some potential for interesting character development (not to mention development that actually isn't very cliched), but neither is really utilized or even acknowledged outside a small handful of scenes, so that was kind of a letdown. Definitely some wasted potential there. (Not to mention I didn't like that he got killed off so the random girl on the bus was the last one standing) Also, while there's not a lot of ways to pull off deaf/mute characters, I don't think I've ever seen a movie where the deafness was an actually obstacle to overcome when trying to communicate with her, though it didn't play into the movie too much.

Death Awaits (Horror forum)
http://w11.zetaboards.com/Death_Awaits/index/

[–] smitthhh 9 years ago

They should have dropped the whole railroad/ mr. Steel part of it. It worked fine as a haunted carnival movie. It should have started with the bus breaking down.

And it took too long for us to see the reaper. I thought he was lame at first with his alien looking eyes, but I ended up liking him.