Reeker (2005)
It took me at least thirty minutes
to get into "Reeker," and then, I loved it! I'm not
much of a horror film buff, especially horror films
made after the home video revolution. To often they
are silly, cheap, jiggle flicks that have about as
much brains behind them as the main female character
of the film has in her head. But occasionally you
find one that is just fun enough to be worthwhile,
one that takes itself just serious enough to become
funny, campy entertainment. "Reeker" is just such
a film.
Here's how I fell in love with it.
The film concerns a group of college aged kids headed
out to the desert who get stranded at an abandoned
motel. (The same one from the film "Identity"). But
the "villain," the evil entity that is killing people
in the film is a bad smell. It's a humorous idea and
one that seems simple enough when it comes to special
effects since the only effect needed to generate such
an idea is a sort of wavy, desert heat, ripply vapor
image. Hell, if you set a can of gasoline in front
of the camera when your shooting, you might get such
an effect.
Anyway, this simple idea was enough
to engage me somewhat in the film but to tell you
why I feel in love with "Reeker," I have to use a
spoiler. So skip to the next paragraph if you don't
want to know what's in the film. In the first real
"kill" of a main character in the film, a girl goes
into a outhouse in the middle of the night and gets
sucked down into the hole. C'mon dude! That's fucking
hilarious! A girl gets killed by an outhouse in a
film named "Reeker" that is about an evil "smell."
That's fucking genius.
Anyway, in many ways this is a standard
horror film and I can see it being just as successful
as "Identity," "Saw" or "Cabin Fever" if not more.
It certainly fits right in with those films. Writer/Director
David Payne gives horror fans exactly what they are
looking for while including just enough humor and
fun for those of us who need a little persuasion to
like such a film. By the end of "Reeker," I was laughing,
clapping and having a great time.
Notes:
With Devon Gummersal, Eric Mabius,
Scott Whyte, Michael Ironside, and Marcia Straussman
(from TV's "Welcome Back Kotter" in a blink and you'll
miss her role).
Tina Illman, who plays South African
Gretchen in the film, is also a producer.
Lensed at the same motel (I believe
it is only used for movies) as the film "Identity."
Viewed at SXSW in March 2005 where
the film had its world premiere.
