Aaaaaaaah... and tonight, ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and ghouls and assorted monstrosities, we are back in the beautiful, scenic West Virginia woods, home to the nice, god-fearing inbred mutant cannibals from Wrong Turn.
To quote my DVD for a synopsis: The ultimate reality show turns into the ultimate in horror for six contestants when they find themselves pitted against hideously deformed and insatiably hungry cannibals... AND it features Henry Rollins.
This is Kimberly Campbell, playing herself (an interesting way to break the fourth wall, if I might say so). You know what will happen to her, right? Right?
Exactly.
And so, the sequel to Wrong Turn starts. Promising and truly enjoyable. I love my unrated redux version. It is pretty.
To quote director Joe Lynch from the commentary track (I like the guy - anyone who says to himself "I want to start the movie with a chick being split in half with entrails coming out of her vagina!" is okay in my book): "This is their walking off into the sunset shot, the movie is practically over now." I could agree, but then again, I would miss out on 96 minutes of gore.
The characters are, for the most part, stereotypes - they seem shallow and over the top at first, but the fact that the movie revels in using these stereotypes and just runs with them makes it ...work. And it works surprisingly good. We get a few bits about the background of the characters spiced throughout the movie, and it doesn't deter from the pacing or violence. We get to know mainly the dynamics between the characters, which is interesting in itself.
Did I mention that this movie features Henry Rollins? Henry Rollins!
Also, I totally approve that, unlike in its predecessor, we have no idea about who will survive and who won't. Trust me, if you know how horror movies work, you will be in for at least... 8 surprises. Okay, at least one. But seriously, Wrong Turn 2: Dead End breaks with the killing conventions. But see for yourself - take a mental note of who you think who will die when and how, and compare with the actual movie. If you can foresee all of the deaths and the survivors and the timing, then I shall bow down to your superior knowledge of horror flicks.
Speaking of characters... Jonesy. Oh my gods, JONESY. Every time he appeared on screen, I had to cringe inside. I was most definitely annoyed by that character... really annoyed. I was praying for him to die as soon as possible.
It has been criticised that Wrong Turn 2: Dead End isn't as atmospheric as the prequel, which is true to some extent. However, Wrong Turn's suspense mainly happens at night. This sequel is mostly shot during the day, in natural, bright daylight. Whereas Wrong Turn doesn't show us the inbred cannibalistic mutants until the end, we get treated to full, clear shots of the family from early on. However, it works for me - what reason is there to hide the mutants? We know them already, to repeat the whole not showing them clearly gimmick from the first movie would have been annoying.
Wrong Turn 2: Dead End also delivers more guts, more blood, more violence... all in all, more of everything. Sure, this is a matter of personal taste, but I like it. Usually, I'm not a big fan of sequels, but this... this definitely tops Wrong Turn. Although I have to admit that I liked the mutants from the first movie better than the family here (with, of course, the big exception of Three Finger. He rules.)... however, I can live with it.
Henry Rollins can stare people into submission.Because, you know, Wrong Turn 2: Dead End makes me happy.
Something I never thought of seeing, not even in my wildest, most twisted dreams: A young mutant jerking off to the sight of a non-mutant character (see below for a portrait of the inciting sight), creating a relationship drama between him and his sister, who also happens to be his lover. I approve of Sister.
Those boobs nearly destroyed a happy couple's love life.
This is what happens to the boob-equipped lady. Behold - the spine!Mutant masturbation, relationship drama, brutal killing and incest all in one scene. This pleases me.
What does not please me is Henry Rollins beating up my favourite mutant, Three Fingers, He of the Howling, Ghoulish Laughter.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaand the old timer from the first movie! I iz happy. By including him in this movie, we get so much... a delightful twist for once, that explains his presence and behaviour in the first movie, AND an actual origin story for our sweet mutant inbred family of cannibals.
Also, I just LOVE the bonding scene between Pa and Brother. Man, that young mutant is a perfect shot. His dad surely must be proud of him. I know I would be proud... in fact, I perversely feel a little bit of pride. A brave young man.
At which point I want to address the camerawork. It's truly outstanding - some of the shots are dangerously awesome, and all of them are beautiful. I really can't say anything more. Just good. Not just solid, but really good. Light, shadow... beautifully used, and just... I am truly impressed.
Also, we spend the last act of the movie in a veritable slaughterhouse (the family's house). I love slaughterhouses. Especially ones like that, complete with torture - physical AND psychological torture. I fully approve of that.
Preparing the food.Another funny thing is that Henry Rollins pulls a Boromir* on us in this movie. Only infinitely cooler than Boromir did.
Everyone involved in that movie really did a great job. The acting is good throughout the whole movie, the script is cool, the violence and gore are awesome, the camerawork is at times brilliant...
AND we get a Happy End!
This movie earns the cynsanity stamp of approval. Now I just have to come up with a design for it, and I shall, but not now.
Thank you, Joe Lynch. Thank you for this movie.
9.75/10 incestuous inbred mutant cannibal hunters. I don't give the full 10/10 because I found the cannibals from the first one to look cooler. Oh, and... in case you want to have a character who attempted suicide at some point prior to the movie: Always remember Rippy the Razor!
*If you ever watched The Lord of the Rings, you will probably know what I mean. Remember that scene in which Boromir bravely takes about half a dozen arrows from the Uruk Hai, and still fights off hordes of orcs and tries to protect the annoying little hobbits? He is literally just like a sieve, and still he smashes his sword around. That's pulling a Boromir. And... Henry Rollins. Oh my. He does it so well.
