AmateurMovieReviews.com

The Story: Three sadistic killers embark upon a road trip of murder and mayhem while attempting to evade the wrath of a vengeful sheriff.

Back in 2000, moviegoers were treated to a teaser touting musical madman Rob Zombie's first foray into filmmaking. In a genre dominated by safe, PG-13 rated excuses for horror, fans all around the world chomped at the bit to see what promised to be an unflinching and frightening gore-fest. Three years and several MPAA-demanded cuts later, Zombie's flick finally saw the light of day. Perhaps inevitably, the general consensus seemed to be one of disappointment. House of 1000 Corpses, while certainly above average in several respects, suffered from Zombie's limited experience, bizarre editing, sub-par acting, and no doubt from the cuts required to obtain its R rating.

Two years later, Rob's back, and I'm happy to report that this time around he's delivered a film that fires on all cylinders.

The Devil's Rejects opens with a voiceover reminiscent of a certain horror movie that took place in Texas. The year is 1978. Sheriff John Quincy Wydell (William Forsythe) and his posse arrive at the Firefly compound- guns a blazing. Wydell's brother, George, was killed by the Fireflies (Mother Firefly specifically, who is now played by Leslie Easterbrook) in the first film, and John wants revenge in the worst way. As he prepares his men for battle, the family inside the home has no intention of going quietly. A massive shootout ensues, and by the time the smoke clears, four officers are dead, with seven more injured. Mother Firefly is taken into custody as Otis (Bill Moseley) and Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie) escape. One unfortunate member of the family does not make it out alive.

Now on the run, Otis and Baby call Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig), and agree to meet him at a pre-determined location, the Kahiki Palms Motel. Through their conversation, we learn of exactly how the three know each other, answering a question that was left hanging at the end of the first film. As Otis and Baby wait at the motel for Spaulding to arrive, they take a musician hostage, along with his friends and family. Otis has a little fun with the wife, and then takes the two men out to the desert to dig up some hidden artillery. When the gents get a bit testy, Otis proclaims that he's the Devil, and proceeds to do what he does best. Murder. The ladies don't fare much better, as they're left in the hands of Baby back at the motel.

Meanwhile at the police station, Wydell interrogates Mother Firefly, and attempts to get information out of her. Firefly is uncooperative to say the least, and has some choice things to say about the sheriff's departed brother, prompting the lawman to rough her up a bit. Wydell loathes the Firefly family, and wants them brought in alive so that he may inflict his own vision of justice. To hasten the manhunt, he hires the two toughest bounty hunters he can find (Danny Trejo and Dallas Page) to pick up on the trail of the murdersome trio, who have been dubbed "The Devil's Rejects" by the local media.

Once Spaulding arrives, he takes Otis and Baby to seek refuge at Charlie's Frontier Fun Town, a whorehouse run by Spaulding's brother, a pimp by the name of Charlie Altamont (Ken Foree). Whether or not Charlie and Spaulding are actually related is dubious, but they're undeniably two peas in a pod, and Charlie opens both his home and the spoils of his labor to the three reprobates.
The fun doesn't last, because it's not long before Wydell and his goons catch up to ruin the gang's party. A thrilling climax follows that finds the hunters the hunted, the good guys the bad guys, and the bad guys, well...they're definitely still the bad guys. I'd love to tell you more, but I'm just not going to. You'll have to find out for yourself, and I highly recommend that you do.

The Devil's Rejects, a sequel of sorts to House of 1000 Corpses, is Rob Zombie's second feature film, and is thankfully leaps and bounds better than his first offering. Rather than making a film that is merely a summation of classic horror influences, Zombie has created an original story that actually makes you appreciate why you liked those very movies in the first place. This film just doesn't pretend that it takes place in the 70's, it dives right in with the look, feel, and sound of the decade, throws on some arterial-red camouflage for good measure, and becomes the 70's. This is classic exploitation here, folks, and it pulls no punches. How Zombie got away with an R rating is beyond me. This one has it all: full-frontal nudity, sadistic violence, sex, and enough colorful language to make Quentin Tarantino blush.

Zombie has greatly improved as a director/writer and lets the film shine through his characters and story instead of camera tricks and gimmickry. The jarring vignettes that plagued his first film are gone and he's wisely replaced them with the type of shots and wipes that blend in perfectly with the timeline of the picture. He's also ditched using his own music (which I enjoyed in the first film, but didn't seem to fit the 1977 setting) in favor of tunes straight out of the decade. The humor is still there, and although it's the darkest shade of black, there are enough one-liners to keep one grinning throughout the film.

The acting is also much better this time around (well, for the most part; but I'll get to that a little later). The cast reprises the same characters played in the first film, but they behave much differently in The Devil's Rejects. They seem like real people, despicable and reprehensible; only shadows of the forgivable caricatures that they were in the original story. Moon is the most improved, and although her portrayal of Baby is still annoying at times (the "Chinese, Japanese..." line quickly springs to mind), it's a vast improvement from her previous performance. Moseley has also toned it down a few notches, and isn't nearly as over the top as he was in House of 1000 Corpses. Haig, who was a delight in the first film, is every bit as fun to watch as a Reject.

The supporting cast is phenomenal. Most notable is Ken Foree (Dawn of the Dead) as Charlie, who chomps up every frame in which he appears as Spaulding's hustling brother. Forsythe also gives one of his more memorable performances as a brother who will stop at nothing to avenge a loved one. Add to their performances those of genre favorites Michael Berryman (The Hills Have Eyes), PJ Soles (Halloween), Danny Trejo (From Dusk Till Dawn), Steve Railsback, Geoffrey Lewis, etc., and you get the idea of just how important casting is to Zombie.

Unfortunately there are a couple of things that don't work. Leslie Easterbrook looks quite a bit like Karen Black, but sadly cannot match Black's portrayal of the Mother Firefly character, nor transcend the character to anything above that of a cartoon. Easterbrook goes way over the top, making it practically impossible to take her straight-faced. Fortunately, her scenes are few and far between.
There are also a couple of scenes that seem out of place. When Wydell finds out that the killers have been using aliases based on Groucho Marx characters, he brings in a movie critic (Robert Trebor) for questioning. The banter between the two is meant as comic relief, but in a movie with humor so black that you almost feel guilty laughing, this overachieving attempt momentarily disrupts the pacing and mood of the film. There's also a pointless (albeit mildly funny) scene involving a chicken that runs a little long.

When it's all said and done, The Devil's Rejects is a difficult movie to classify, but one that's destined to become a cult classic. It's not a horror film in the traditional sense, but one that fans of the genre will certainly lap up with gusto. It has elements of horror, exploitation, grindhouse, comedy, crime drama, and action- all rolled into one dark and disturbing piece of cinema. This is not a movie for the squeamish, nor is it for those even remotely offended by graphic, sadistic violence, or harsh language. What it is, however, is one of the finest movies of its kind and easily the best horror film to hit theatres for years.