This carries over from the first movie. The Collector was absolutely exhilarating from start to finish. I enjoyed The Collector to a certain extent, and gave it a lot of credit, but this ups the ante in a HUGE way. It doesn't give you many chances to breathe. This one has more to play with, and more of a bigger feel. It has nail-biting suspense, the traps are more elaborate, and downright insane. It's one of the nastiest movies I've ever seen, and makes Jigsaw look like Barney in comparison. I'm not gonna spoil all the red surprises, but here's some stuff you'll see. <more> We get vicious stabbings, a hook in the mouth, gunshot wounds, bloody corpses, bone cracking which made cringe, incredibly gory traps, and one scene around the beginning involving huge spikes at a club. The spike scene feels like something that came from Dead Alive, with how outrageously gory it was. I watched it twice, because I couldn't believe my eyes. If you love gore, this will be a dream come true for you guys. Saw has some nasty gore scenes as well, but I believe this firmly outdoes it. I'm not trying to over-hype this, I'm just trying to tell you that the gore delivers in a big way. As I stated in my Collector review, this guy isn't doing this for revenge. He is just a sick bastard, who gets his rocks off on killing people in the most deplorable ways imaginable. Jigsaw had a motive for doing what he does. The Collector is just a freak of nature, and has no ulterior motives for doing this sick stuff. To me, that makes him all the more terrifying. I also have to give this major kudos for giving me characters I truly cared about, instead of the disposable fodder I tend to get in some horror films. We have a hero, and a heroine. Arkin Josh Stewart was our reluctant hero in the first movie, and it was a pleasure to watch him again in this one. He's certainly a flawed hero. He does some cowardly things, and he makes mistakes. When push comes to shove, he gets the job done, and puts others first, before himself. That to me is a real person. His vulnerable, yet courageous performance had me on his side the whole way. Emma Fitzpatrick is just great as Elena. She is courageous herself, and is one of my favorite female horror performers to come along in some time. This girl has major talent, and I hope people see that. Christopher McDonald has a small role as Elena's Father. It's nothing to write home about, but he did well with what he had to do. I'll give you an example about how much the lead characters meant to me. There is a battle in the finale with Arkin & the Collector With a bit of involvement from Elena The Collector is so despicable, I found myself literally yelling encouragement towards Arkin. "Get that son of a b****i***tch" "F###@ him up good!" The hero's survival meant everything to me. The ending to me was truly satisfying. After all of the twisted things The Collector does, I was a happy horror camper. I won't reveal what happens, but let's just say it was a fitting end. If they want to, a sequel is certainly possible. I'd definitely be up for it!Final Thoughts: With the Evil Dead remake, and now this film. I can now wash all that Paranormal Activity crap down a lot easier. You gotta take the good with the bad, because you end up getting gems like this one. I had a blast with this film. It's scary, suspenseful, extremely gory, and everything you need in a horror film. I was pumped after finishing this movie. It really got my adrenaline going. I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and say Jigsaw has nothing on the Collector. 9/10 <less> |