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Jeepers Creepers
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - America - MGM Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (25th November 2012). |
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The Film
 “Every 23rd spring... for 23 days… it gets to feed”. The state of American horror throughout the past decade has not exactly been what fans would call glorious. In fact, as one such fervent fan, I would say it’s been largely devoid of any real lasting titles, save for a few lucky franchises and the odd instant classic. But, more often than not, the swill our directors serve up is diluted, redundant, callow, and - much like most of the cast by the time the credits roll - lifeless. There aren’t a lot of truly passionate horror directors making the genre pictures fans demand, so when something hits my radar with a mountain of buzz signaling enormous potential, I tend to take notice. Sometime back in 2001, a somewhat hazy post-high school period for myself, I started to catch wind of a film that was being heavily touted as the "Next Big Thing" in horror. This wasn’t exactly the pre-internet days, but I was rocking a horribly outdated Dell desktop with a 56K modem, so my surfing was minimal at best. I had to get my horror news the old-fashioned way: magazines. Specifically, Fangoria, since it was just about the only horror publication worth reading (my, how times have changed…). Earlier that year, I went to the Fangoria Weekend of Horrors convention and got a free poster for this anticipated creature feature, “Jeepers Creepers” (2001). I knew next to nothing about the film aside from the poster image featuring an eye creepily gazing out from behind some stitched together human skin, and that it had a creature in it. Generally, that’s enough to sell me. So, once it rolled out on Labor Day weekend (setting a new box office record for that weekend in the process), I plunked down my hard-earned $6 or $7 and settled in for what I can arguably now say is – just as the cover art suggests – one of the best U.S. horror films of the last decade. Darry (Justin Long) and his sister Trish (Gina Philips) are traveling cross country to visit their parents. Not long into their trek through the Florida countryside, they’re practically run off the road by a mysterious, aging truck blasting a horn that can be heard for miles. Not long after, they spot the same truck parked behind a decaying church… and see the man who was driving it dumping what appears to be a body wrapped in a white sheet down a drainage pipe. Using the excuse of “what if it were you” (but, really, it’s obvious he’s just a curious cat), Darry convinces Trish to drive back so he can investigate. Once inside, he realizes he’s inside a mammoth lair filled with preserved bodies, intricate weaponry, bizarre decorations, and a fresh corpse with a poorly-stitched slit right down the chest. Naturally, he freaks out a bit and hurriedly gets back to the car so the two of them can call the police. The cops arrive, but on the way back to the church they’re intercepted by the “man” they saw earlier. They quickly realize he’s no man, and a game of cat-and-mouse ensues with Darry & Trish trying to outrun The Creeper (Jonathan Breck). The only hope they seem to have is a crazy old woman named Jezelle (Patricia Belcher), whose dreams are able to predict the future, as well as inform them about The Creeper’s past. First off, I have to give major kudos to writer/director Victor Salva, Creeper designer Brad Parker, and FX artist Brian Penikas for putting together what is arguably one of the most interesting and fleshed out antagonists horror has seen in years. I’m not about to propel The Creeper to the upper echelon of horror icons like Freddy, Jason, or Michael, but Salva’s creation is among the best modern horror has seen. Hell, if we’re taking everything into consideration here I’d argue The Creeper is better than anything we’ve seen since the early 90's. This isn’t just a mindless killing machine; this is a fully-realized creature with distinctive, thought-out attributes that set him apart from most of the pack. Let’s just start with the legend of the Creeper: every 23rd spring, for 23 days, he gets to feed. That fact alone brings with it enormous intrigue. Where did this thing come from? How does “23” figure into his schedule? It raises questions and eyebrows. Despite being a creature technically, he’s more humanoid than anything. This was a big part of the design phase; to create something that appears to be human, maybe a serial killer, but as he’s revealed throughout the film we learn there are very non-human characteristics specific to him. None of this is ever fully confirmed, just heavily implied or suggested. The Creeper has lived so long because he eats the parts of his victims that he needs to regenerate, which explains the cave of preserved snacks he keeps hidden away. But how does he know who’s got the best body parts to choose from? He can smell it through your fear. So, while it might seem funny when he rifles through Darry’s old laundry, it’s really just so he knows who to eat. Did I mention he’s also got wings and can fly? And that when confronted by large menacing groups, he can make these little lobster legs on his head stand up and he looks freaky as hell? There’s a lot to this Creeper, and the rich backstory provided by everyone involved in his creation shows that this isn’t just another lame attempt at making a new horror icon (see: “Hatchet” (2006)); this was an attempt to prove that monster movies are not dead. The guy even has a custom vehicle! People with the right passion for such projects can produce a picture that, regardless of the reception, shows memorable screen villains can still be made if the right ingredients are there. Salva came up with something different, Parker realized it, Penikas made it tangible, and Jonathan Breck fully inhabited that role, making The Creeper such an enigmatic, darkly humorous, truly terrifying cinematic monster. The biggest criticism I had toward the film when I first watched it – and I still have it to a degree now – is that I never liked the two leads. Well, I’ll give a little more of a pass to Long because he’s built up goodwill by choosing some good projects since this film, but Philips is just a lifeless bore. Their sibling chemistry feels forced and unnatural, from their constant bickering to lame little one liners lobbed back and forth; it just never felt genuine. Long’s character reminded me of one of those guys you know – we all know at least one – who just cannot keep his mouth shut. He prattles on endlessly, constantly laughing at his own bad jokes, and he can’t mind his own damn business. He also can’t drive a car for shit, as we learn in the beginning when avoiding a tailgater becomes a serious issue. His character becomes a little more sympathetic after the church investigation, mostly because he’s so freaked out that we are no longer subjected to torturous brother/sister dialogue. Philips’ may or may not be a good actress – I haven’t seen her in anything else I can recall – but her character here is just so… bland. I don’t want to jump right on to Salva’s writing and say it’s his fault; it’s more than likely just that Philips isn’t a very charismatic actress, leaving her lines to suffer under the yoke of just plain old bad acting. Maybe a better actress could have done more with the material. We’ll never know. These two were serviceable enough to prevent the film from being an out-and-out horrid exercise, I just wish they’d cast a different female lead. These two weren’t the worst offenders to the film, though. That dubious distinction goes to Patricia Belcher as Jezelle, the crazy old woman who can see the future in her dreams. Not perfectly, mind you, just enough to spout off enough exposition that the audience thinks they know something about The Creeper. After all, we wouldn’t want to watch a film with a mysterious creature menacing two innocent leads and not know what his primary motivation is, right? I dunno… maybe? Here’s the thing – I’m all for exposition as long as it feels like it has a natural place within the script. But when it becomes clear that a character exists solely for the purpose of proving such exposition then it is unwelcomed. It really bothers me when a film takes the time to establish a mystery, create a world of intrigue and suspense, then it bludgeons the audience to death with the Exposition Hammer because it’s afraid we don’t like to think for ourselves. To be fair, Salva & Co. still leave plenty of unanswered questions by the time credits start rolling, but the force fed bits of story we’re given don’t change any of the plot. If Jezelle never existed, the worst thing that would happen is that we wouldn’t know some pertinent details about The Creeper; her revelations don’t alter the outcome enough to justify placing her in the film. The cinematography here is really superb. Director of photography Don E. FauntLeRoy captures some very atmospheric, iconic shots of The Creeper. He’s mostly lit from the back throughout the film, allowing us to only see enough of him to get an idea of his visage but not enough to fully reveal his intricacies. Only in the third act does the lighting increase, putting The Creeper right in front of the camera to show off all of the design work that went into crafting his entire being. Creature feature directors usually relegate their titular beasts to the shadows, preferring to let the audience decipher what they’re seeing. This is usually because the creature is decent FX job, but won’t hold up under any kind of natural lighting. Here, the full body makeup done by Penikas deserves all the spotlight it can get. Salva is a noted fan of the classic Universal monster movies, and the lighting choices made here are indicate of someone who wants to make sure his story is properly anchored by an appropriately moody aesthetic. “Jeepers Creepers” might not have been perfect, or even great, but it gave horror a character that I found interesting enough to endure within the genre. Here’s to hoping he gets the much-rumored third entry off the ground soon.
Video
Have you bought an MGM Blu-ray in the last year? Ok, good, then you’ll know what to expect from the 1.85:1 1080p 24/fps AVC MPEG-4 encoded image. Fox (who distributes MGM titles) has chosen to give most of MGM’s mammoth library unvarnished releases in hi-def, which basically means they’re taking whatever high-definition master is available and slapping it on a disc. No fancy clean up, no restorations, no remastering, no tinkering, and no DNR. Honestly, aside from the lack of a little spit-and-polish I think this is the best approach to take. Having said all of that, the film does show its age. Grain is a little heavy at times, although I wouldn’t call it problematic. The film was shot on 35mm and the color timing runs a little dark, so these results aren’t unexpected. Black levels get rough at night, with some of the sky taking on a hazy, gray-ish hue. An odd peculiarity is that is some shots one half of the sky will be hazy while the other will be a little richer and blacker. Such shots are anomalous, though, and not frequent enough to bother most viewers. Colors are generally pleasing, with primaries like Darry’s bright shirt, or blood on a white sheet, popping a decent amount on screen. The film has been given a full 50 GB dual layered disc to breathe, allowing artifacts and compression issues to be no problem at all. I wouldn’t call this a major leap over the previous DVD, but it is a marked improvement.
Audio
The film’s English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound mixed at 48kHz/24-bit is a strong track, thanks largely to composer Bennett Salvay’s brooding, primal score. There’s a great deal of activity in the rears – road rage vehicular assaults, a murder of crows, The Creeper enjoying a late-night snack, completely excessive gunfire. Salva knows the effectiveness of immersing a viewer in the world he created, and this sound mix fires from all sides to keep you on your toes. Dialogue levels are perfectly balanced, so even when The Creeper’s imposing truck is riding the fender of Trish’s old classic and blaring its horn, you can still hear Darry screaming like a little b*tch. Salva made the car chase scenes in the beginning very intense, with a beefy sound design to back it up. This is a great track full of creepy cues. There are French and Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 surround tracks included, as well as subtitles in English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
While there’s nothing new to see here, at least everything from the previous Special Edition DVD has been ported over. Literally, since it’s all still in standard definition. At least it beats the common alternative of getting nothing at all. The audio commentary with writer/director Victor Salva is a rare track that’s really just a joy to take in if you relish in the minutia of filmmaking. While it sounds a little scripted, Salva’s starts off right away by blazing through factoids and relevant information with an obvious enthusiasm. He touches upon everything here – casting, how they chose locations, shooting in 90-100 degree weather, weird laws in neighboring states. He’s got a great tenor and cadence to his voice, never making the proceedings feel rushed but always keeping it moving along. “Behind the Peepers: The Making of Jeepers Creepers” (480p) is a multi-part documentary that can be watched all together with the play all function (59 minutes and 44 seconds) or in individual segments: - “Finding Trish & Darry” runs for 12 minutes and 12 seconds, this focuses mainly on casting the two leads. Salva talks about what he saw in both actors that made him feel they were right for his film. We also get to see some of Long’s audition footage. - “Designing the Creeper” runs for 8 minutes and 44 seconds, Salva, along with artist Brad Parker, and FX artist Brian Penikas, talk about how they came up with the film’s creature creation. It started off with a simple sketch and grew exponentially from there. - “Cars & Trucks” runs for 13 minutes and 33 seconds, we get a closer look at the classic Plymouth that Trish & Darry drive, as well as the menacing horn-blaring Truck from Hell that The Creeper prefers. - “The Creeper Comes to Florida” runs for 9 minutes and 24 seconds, we meet Jonathan Breck, the man behind the makeup, and discuss with him and Salva what it was like shooting in Florida’s naturally humid conditions. - “Night Shoots” runs for 12 minutes, this mostly focuses on the film’s lighting. It was very interesting to see how they lit the street to appear like moonlight, when it was really dozens of raised mega bulbs. - “Composed by Bennett Salvay” runs for 13 minutes and 22 seconds. The film’s composer takes us through his process for writing and recording the score, and we get to see some scenes with isolated score to show how it enhances them considerably. There are a number of deleted & extended scenes (480p) included: - “Original opening” runs for 3 minutes, nothing new other than some minor dialogue. - “Worried About Mom” runs for 1 minute and 4 seconds, Trish expresses concern over their mother. - “Where There’s a Hell, There’s a Way” runs for 1 minute and 6 seconds, The Creeper proves he’s a wicked interior decorator with a sense of black humor. - “Drive to the Diner” runs for 1 minute and 24 seconds, more of Darry in shock after his exit from the Creeper’s lair. - “Strip-O-Gram” runs for 58 seconds, Trish teases Darry about one of the cops. - “More Creeper, More Tongue” runs for 1 minute and 31 seconds, the Creeper does a little more snacking under an amusing billboard. - “The Creeper Attacks” runs for 3 minutes and 17 seconds, this extension of the Cat Lady attack has one major change: The Creeper speaks! Wisely cut, too. - “Calling Home” runs for 1 minute and 56 seconds, Trish calls mom with an update. - “It’s in the Building” runs for 42 seconds, The Creeper arrives at the police station. - “Original ending” runs for 1 minute and 23 seconds, more like an alternate shot; the original is better. “Photo Gallery – Last Looks” (480p) featurette runs for 7 minutes and 52 seconds, features dozens and dozens of production shots set to Salvay’s score. “Director’s Cameo” (480p) featurette runs for 24 seconds. Blink and you’ll miss a clean shaven Salva hanging in the Creeper’s lair. The film’s theatrical trailer (1080p) runs for 1 minute and 55 seconds.
Packaging
The 50 GB dual-layered disc comes housed in an eco case. The newly commissioned artwork is decent, I guess, but the original theatrical art would have been far preferred.
Overall
I’ve watched Salva’s film a handful of times since it came out and I’ve more or less had an enjoyable experience each time. The film is not perfect, and there are certainly areas that could have withstood improvement, but I almost find the film secondary to The Creeper. Everyone involved in bringing this creature to life deserves credit for crafting a cinematic beast that should hopefully stand the test of time. Maybe if we’re lucky MGM will give us “Jeepers Creepers 2” (2003) sometime next year. There’s plenty of fun to be had watching this entry, and I’d say the well is far from dry if they want to make a couple more sequels.
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