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Jack Brooks
family was killed by a monster when
he was only a little boy and ever since then he's
been struggling with rage-issues. His girlfriend
is fed up with his anger-attacks and his grades
are suffering. Fortunately for Jack, his rage
will come in handy soon as monsters are about
to take over his school.
I really wasn't expecting much out of this horror
comedy. I thought that it looked silly, fan-base
oriented (not in a good way) and campy. Well,
it is campy and occasionally silly but it's all
in a good way actually. Jack Brooks: Monster
Slayer is a pure popcorn flick. It's witty, it's
funny and there's not too much cheesy monster
action in it. Sure it's fairly low-budget but
they've used their budget wisely (thank god, no
CGI-animated monsters).
The story revolves around Jack Brooks, a teenager
with some serious rage-issues. He works as a
plumber in his spare time and takes life for what
it is. What he didn't expect was that monsters
would take over his school and that his rage
would come in handy. You know, it's not the
best of stories and it certainly doesn't feel
very fresh but what makes it so entertaining is
the fact that the gags are actually funny. This
isn't just your run-of-the-mill monster flick,
it's well-executed, it has a great pace and
I believe that it's enjoyable for all people,
not just for the hardcore horror fans (I'm sorry
but I'm sick of everyone trying to make the new
cult horror flick - for most of the time they're
absolute rubbish).
Robert Englund gives us an outstanding performance
as always and the rest of the cast do a stellar
job as well - even if Robert is clearly on the
top here. The directing is above average for
independent horror productions and I was surprised
to see how competent everything felt on the
technical aspect. They were also clever enough
not to make the movie too long because had this
been 90 minutes long, it could've easily started
to drag. 10 minutes make all the difference and
just when you're starting to loose interest,
the movie ends anyway so you end up feeling quite
pleased with the result.
Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer delivers what it
promises and so much more. Certainly a positive
surprise. It may not be groundbreaking in any
aspect but it's sure to keep you entertained
for 80 minutes. Worth a rent but perhaps a bit
over-hyped by the general horror-crowd. Still,
it's a competent horror comedy with wits and
gore and I warmly recommend this indie production
despite its shortcomings.
Mainly green goo and green gore but I think
the gore-hounds will be pleased anyway.
A solid score that works for its intents and
purposes. Not much more though.
Surprisingly entertaining and not nearly as
campy as you'd expect it to be. Jack Brooks
is actually a pretty decent indie monster
comedy with the heart in the right place (no
pun intended). Definitely worth a rent.
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