Would I be a jerk to say this film is kinda mediocre?
Scarecrows (1988)
Directed By: William Wesley (Route 666)
The Prologue
So today we go back in time to 1988 with a tale of robbers and scarecrows, in the movie that just so happens to be called Scarecrows! Wooohoo!..Or something. Now what I’m about to get into here is a film that didn’t tickle my fancy that much, and if you guys actually like it I’m more interested in hearing as to why you do. We got gore, we got freakin’ scarecrows, and we got a cute girl in the film right? So what was there not to like? Well, a lot of things really. I mean sure, it wasn’t THAT bad at the end of the day, but it wasn’t really that good either now was it?
The Movie
So five people jack the Camp Pendleton payroll and kidnap a pilot and his daughter, the daughter of which isn’t hard on the eyes for those of you keeping score at home. The plan is to go to Mexico, but you know what they say, the best laid plans of both Mice and Men and so on and so forth. So, one of them decides to pull a double cross and steal the money for himself. So he snatches it, parachutes out of the plane, and they have to go after him. Oh, and guess what? They just so happen to land in an area that is protected by evil Scarecrows that come to life when someone is on their land. And to make matters worse, if they kill you, then you become one to!…Yeeeeah buddy!
You ever watch a movie that on the surface isn’t bad per say, but just doesn’t do a whole lot for you? Well, that’s me with this film. I didn’t hate it, there wasn’t anything wrong with it that was overly terrible, but it was just kinda there at times and seems to drag a lot, and that just bums me out while watching a film. I swear this movie just never seems to get going and stay going. Sure, it at times picks up, but it seemingly cools back down and drags again once that happens. So by the time the credits rolled, I’ll admit, I was sadly bored.
Now if there is one nice thing that I think stands out with this movie, it’s the gore. When you get the gore it’s very good and that fact kind of caught me by surprise a bit. Limbs are cut off, heads are cut off, blood runs wild, but there’s just not enough of it in my point of view. Then again, I actually really love lots of blood, so it’s hard to please me with it. I also didn’t like the whole army vibe this film has. From the group of people who jacked the loot, to the lame night vision shots we get in the film, I just don’t like it. I also don’t care much for the characters in this movie at all. That also includes the cute girl that they kidnapped in it.
I also think the movie was rather anti-climatic, a feeling some people share for this film. It just seems to be kinda interesting, but ultimately predictable. I’ve heard a few folks say they liked it, so it may be a play on just what style of film you like when finding out if you are happy with the way it ends or not. Also, while it seems I’m hating on this movie, I do happen to have a few things I did like about it. Like I said above, I dug the gore. I also liked the look of the film and I thought the Scarecrows themselves were kinda cool to look at it, even if we have to look at them way too much with the same shot of them always being the transition shot. But ultimately like I said, it was just kinda there for me. If you can deal with a slower pace then this may be for you, but I’d almost say just skip it.
The Conclusion
Well it was 1988 so I guess that has a lot to do with it. Offhand I can’t recall what was out at the time but it seems like there was a lot of stuff like this. Keep in mind I was just five at the time, but since this movie was never heard of by me until just now, I’d like to think there’s a lot of people who feel as if there wasn’t much to see here overall.
The Rating (5/10)
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