film: The Devil's Rejects - The follow up to 'House of 1000 corpses'

[BA]

I hope the movie isn't as bad as the reviews it's getting. "Hustle & Flow" is getting higher marks than this on metacritic and rottentomatoes.com. 8(

 

[Tongue]

on IMDB rejects is getting great reviews..im going to see it tonite...yippe hawkeye bitch..

 

[smotpoker]

According to Dayton Daily News, this movie got an A-. Hustle and Flow got a D. Hustle and flow looks kinda stupid, especially since that nerd from Road Trip is in it. God I can't ever watch a "serious" movie with that kid in it.

Back on subject, I will prolly see this today or tonight, by myself Damn my broke ass friends!

 

[Psychedelic Gleam]

"I honestly do not know what is wrong with people that enjoy movies like this. What is so entertaining about such graphic human mutilation? House of 1000 Corpses was not scary, it was gross and psychotic. Why would you want to see another movie filled with this nonsense?"

Well some people (such as yourself) apparantly don't see the humor/fun/absurdity of a film like HOTC. Zombie made it as a tribute to the slasher/horror genre, something many people love (I guess you don't..) Yeah it was gross, but it was gore, far from realistic, and so absurd that when looked at its so far from our realities that it really doesn't bother us. Plus I think some people like seeing movies that are full of puppy dogs, green fields, and fluffy clouds, the worlds a dirty fucking place with lots of sick shit, this movie gives us a quick peak into something we will (hopefully) never experience anything like.

I think that people like these films also because no matter how morally objectable we find murder/torture to be there is a part of us that wants to do it and we are allowed to spectate and partially satisfy these inner desires through films like this.... Or maybe I am a sick fuck...

Well I enjoyed it. Way different then HOTC. Great acting... Only complaint is the end... Sorry but it was way drawn out and unneccessary... Don't want to give any spoilers though and it is still definately worth watching...

I hope he pulls out some more films with the same actors (especially Sid Haig...) Haig has by far the best and most memorable lines of the movie, in my opinion atleast. Hilarious/Disturbing/Fun all I love in a movie. Its rare I throw down 8 bucks to see a film but this was worth it...

I give it between 3 and 4 stars... I guess a 4 for fun and a 2.5/3.0 for the more traditional aspects of a film. (maybe less..)

"I hope the movie isn't as bad as the reviews it's getting. "Hustle & Flow" is getting higher marks than this on metacritic and rottentomatoes.com."

You enjoyed HOTC right man, well that got less then 20% on rottentomatoes... don't worry its a good movie, fuck the critics.

 

[MaliceNwunderland]

Wow, lots of people liked house of 1k corpse....

...I thought it sucked. I was expecting a good horror film and this movie was cliche and so trying to be over the top. Many times I wasn't sure it was truly meant to be scary/horrific.

No I will not be seeing Devil's rejects.

 

[Psychedelic Gleam]

Part of a tribute film is being cliched... but I guess folks don't realize that...

I don't think Zombie set out to do a "horror film" rather then a tribute slasher/gorefest sort of deal. If thats not your thing then I understand... Its definately not for everyone.

 

[MaliceNwunderland]

I guess I didn't really approach it as a "tribute film".

The clown, the girl running in the bunny suit, a villan named "Dr. Satan.", the over the top bloody brain surgery scenes, the chicks in the barn all naked and writhing around like they're peaking on E.

All these corny elements really detracted from the scariness and horror of it for me.

No matter how gruesome and mutated a monster is, if you tell me your name is "doctor Satan", I'm gonna laugh in your face, pimp slap you and walk right the hell out of your dungeon to the nearest bus stop.

 

[indelibleface]

Great review by my favorite film critic, James Berardinelli (rating: 1/2 out of 4 stars):

When a movie is this bad, it's hard to adequately describe its awfulness in words. The temptation exists to write something along the lines of: "Something this horrible has to be seen to be believed." Of course, that kind of advice would lead to e-mail death threats and other assorted nasty comments from those who spend money on The Devil's Rejects. And I'm sure AMC won't be making the same rebate offer they made for Cinderella Man. The reason is understandable: about 95% of their customers would be demanding their money back. As for the other 5%... it is said that Rob Zombie is an acquired taste (as his awful debut, House of 1000 Corpses, indicated). If that's the case, then I hope it's not contagious and I don't become infected. This is a vile and reprehensible motion picture. Critic Scott Weinberg, with whom I endured the screening, made the following comment when it was over: "I have to go home and take a shower to wash away the filth." Amen.

What occurs on screen is more formula than plot. The verses are a little different, but the refrain is always the same: a bloody conflict that results in multiple deaths and/or maimings. There are three categories of people in the movie: the killers, the gung-ho lawmen, and the victims. In the first camp are Captain Spaulding the clown (Sid Haig); his daughter, Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie) and son, Otis (Bill Moseley); and their mother (Leslie Easterbrook). In the second is Sheriff Wydell (William Forsythe), who crosses the line from law enforcement to vigilantism. And in the third are the unfortunates: Roy (Geoffrey Lewis), Gloria (Priscilla Barnes), and a bunch of others. The Devil's Rejects has the killers methodically slaughtering the victims while the law closes in. Once there's no one left to butcher, it becomes killers against the lawmen.

Every character is repugnant, yet writer/director Zombie's sympathies seem to lie with the killers - a group whose abominations make the Manson Family's acts appear tame. Zombie views Captain Spaulding and his group like a Bonnie and Clyde or Butch and Sundance, yet there's not a human characteristic in any of them. Sitting through a movie centered on these individuals becomes a chore. (It takes a director with greater skill than Zombie to keep an audience interested when there isn't a likeable character on screen.) And it doesn't help that the lone "good guy" is as unhinged as the ones he's pursuing. It might be possible to feel something about the victims if their life spans weren't so short. They are on hand to be beaten up, eviscerated, shot, and/or filleted.

Zombie's goal is to pay homage to a genre that was born (and probably should have died) in the 1970s: outcasts who defy society by destroying it. Of course, that sentiment was socially acceptable during a time of cultural upheaval; few will find it to be relevant or engaging today. I doubt, however, that the writer/director considered this. He was probably intrigued by the gruesomeness and bloodletting. The dialogue is a pastiche (at least I think that's the intention) of the kind of bloodthirsty, overripe lines found in this sort of film, with clichés sprinkled in as liberally as profanity. There's plenty of nudity - nearly every female with more than a token speaking part bares her breasts (or more) - usually just before being gutted like a stuck pig.

Zombie has elected to shoot The Devil's Rejects as if he was making the movie during the '70s. Cheesy freeze-frames and hand-held shots abound. It's worth noting that most of the directors being emulated were hacks, and that pretty much says all that needs to be said about the film's look. I suppose on some level, Zombie thought he was rousing the spirit of Sam Peckinpah, but if that was his intention, the ghost continues to sleep. The acting makes the performances in a typical high-school play look impressive. There's more wood here than in the walls of a log cabin, and finding the occasional acceptable instance of acting is like rooting through a pile of turds to discover a chunk of glass. The cast is littered with '70s bit players. Sid Haig was all over the place in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but hasn't done much since. Geoffrey Lewis survived the '70s by becoming a character actor. Priscilla Barnes is best-known for being Suzanne Somers' replacement on "Three's Company." Even P.J. Soles has a small part.

Aside from its poor production values, horrendous acting, and ignoble morality, The Devil's Rejects isn't engaging cinema. Even if the simple act of sitting in a movie theater watching people get hacked up for 90 minutes doesn't bother you, the dullness and repetition is likely to. The ending is a cataclysmic misfire - not only is it drawn out and self-indulgent (cut down on the slow-motion!), but it robs viewers of a chance at a catharsis and re-enforces the argument that Zombie's lone point was to create mayhem. The Devil's Rejects doesn't just deserve to be rejected, but to be buried in a hole so dank that no one will discover it. Only there will it be at home.

© 2005 James Berardinelli

http://movie-reviews.colossus.net

 

[LinZ-E]

I REALLY liked it. Also, I should mention I did NOT like House of 1000 Corpses - it was way over the top. But TDR was actually a good horror flick. Not very gorey (and I am a bit pissed at the cgi blood - wtf is that?!) but good story - glad he dropped the Dr. Satan bullshit..

For horror fans, this is actually a decent flick and worth a watch.

I do think the end was a bit overdone and there were alot of inconsistencies with the first film, but I did enjoy the story.... and I hate hate hate 80% of all post-1987 horror.

 

[Perpetual Indulgence]

I was amused by my empathy for the reject family at the end of the film.

I found the dialogue more graphic than the film's images.

I was thoroughly entertained.

 

[smotpoker]

Most won't agree with me at all, but I can say that this was one of the best movies I've seen, EVER! No bullshit.

The movie was horror, but it almost had a Pulp Fiction feel to it. I found myself constantly guessing what would happen next. The movie was extremely intense right from the opening scene. The graphic language added to the climatic feel, and I didn't even care that it wasn't as gory as the first one; it didn't need it.
And not to spoil it, but I didn't think the cop would die.
Zombie was great at devoloping the characters, and I was very impressed with the acting. Plus Sherri Moon has a beautiful ass.
For most of the movie, I felt really sorry for the victims, just like House. But for the last 30 minutes, I actually found myselfm rooting for the Rejects.

In short, I can't say enough about this movie. Hell, it deserves to win the Oscar. And I mean every word of that. If I could give a film 8 stars, this would get it.

And to James Berardinelli, you, my friend, are a crap-ass critic.
Just because you don't like movies that you might consider immoral, doesn't mean it's not a good movie. Your probably a prissy rich hollywood elitist type that automatically gives a bad review to movies that don't fit the mainstream. Fuck off.

 

[alasdairm]

^ or perhaps you two just have a different opinion of what constitutes a 'good movie'

fancy that...



alasdair

 

[genaro]

hehe looks nice

 

[xena]

such a wide range of reviews... i'm definitely going to catch this one though.

 

[onetwothreefour]

Originally posted by alasdairm
^ or perhaps you two just have a different opinion of what constitutes a 'good movie'

fancy that...



alasdair

i actually disagree with you there, alasdair, for once :D

whether or not this is a good film or not i can't say, as i haven't seen it, but going back to smotpoker's original point ('Just because you don't like movies that you might consider immoral, doesn't mean it's not a good movie') i think is worthwhile.

i definitely don't think a film should be judged on its morality. this is why, as i've stated before, i adore triumph of the will, a 1934 nazi film; purely for its formal and technical achievements and its subtle manipulation of the audience - the fact that i disagree with the message doesn't come into the matter. i don't think finding a film's morality repugnant should ever be the basis for defaming it. if a film is 'too violent' for instance, it must be one of two things: either violent to convey a theme or idea, or gratuitously violent. if it's gratuitous, then one imagines that the violence contributes nothing to the film and it can be criticised on that basis, and issues of morality need never come into it. if it actually serves a point (whether that be aesthetic, genre, political, or whatever, doesn't matter), then surely the film shouldn't be criticised merely for that?

 

[peanutbutterNpaisley]

I didnt think this movie was very good. The acting in it was pretty horrible (especially the blonde girl) but the dialogue actually had potential I think. I wouldn't expect anything else from Rob Zombie of course other than what I saw but I feel as tho the previews made it out to be a different movie...more about them killing innocent ppl and whatnot and not so much being chased by that whackjob cop.

 

[smotpoker]

I know that every one has their own opinion on movies, but let me give you guys some other ratings Mr. Berardinelli has given ohter movies of recent memory:
High Tension: 3 out of 4 stars

Dude Where's My Car: 11/2 out of 4

Armageddon: 2 1/2 out of 4

Planet of the Apes(sucky 2001 w/Wahlburg) 2 1/2 out of 4


These all got higher ratings than Devils Rejects. And they all suck ass... It just astounds me that he thought all of the above were, well, decent movies, and he absoultely hates Devil's Rejects.

I don't know, maybe Rob Zombie wouldn't let him in one of his concerts and that's why he hates on Zombie so much.

 

[indelibleface]

11/2 out of 4, 2 1/2 out of 4, 2 1/2 out of 4

These are fairly dismal ratings on his scale.

In any case, he never once said that the movie was bad because it was immoral. He made a slight reference to "ignoble morality", but having read his reviews for several years, he doesn't mean the movie is bad because of it's supposed lack of morals, he was referring to the gratuitous violence that takes over in lieu of a decent plot and great acting (of which he states there isn't much). He gave many reasons why the movie is bad on many other levels.

Either way, I don't think a critic is bad based on his opinions; just because he wrote a dissenting opinion from yours doesn't mean he's an awful critic. The point is to state an opinion, not to change yours.

But, in either case, I'll still probably go see the film, just out of curiosity.

 

[Psychedelic Gleam]

I thought the acting was great...

 

[Lingo]

Critic Scott Weinberg, with whom I endured the screening, made the following comment when it was over: "I have to go home and take a shower to wash away the filth." Amen.

Those are the types of critics that Zombie lampooned in Devils Rejects in the Marx Bros Expert scene.

I loved this movie. It was everything that I had hoped it would be and more. Sick, depraved, twisted, sadistic, nihilistic and really quite funny. I went from cringing to laughing out loud back to cringing faster than any movie in recent memory.

If Tarantino is the French and Asian cinema homage master, Zombie is the Slasher/Horror flick homage master. Devil's Rejects is a great 70's style exploitation slasher flick. Sharp eyes can catch a handfull of appearences by plenty of lesser-known c and b grade stars.