The Horror Show
Chromeskull: Laid to Rest 2
by Robert Hall
In 2009 “Laid to Rest” cut it’s way to my heart. It suffered from terrible over-acting and poorly framed shots. The antagonist ChromeSkull was the best new slasher since Victor Crowley. ChromeSkull had some great over the top kills. He donned a great yet simple getup; chrome skull mask and black clothing. He wielded a wide variety of gear to treat wounds, dull his pain, technology to track his target, and a badass hunting knife. He communicates using a phone with a speech function. I would say he’s the Batman of slashers, always prepared for any situation. Somehow, the less than par elements of the movie came together with the good and magically created one of the most entertaining slashers I’ve seen. When I learned that a sequel was announced, I was giddy with anticipation. With that, I’m happy to review ChromeSkull: Laid to Rest II.
The kills in this movie are much more ridiculous than the first film. Preston’s kills, in particular, were quite over the top; he held a fetish for mouth kills. He gives someone the Joker and kills someone else with what is essentially a bicycle wheel of hunting knives. ChromeSkull’s weren’t nearly as fantastic; his were straight to the point. His main focus was trying to kill Jessica and cutting through anyone in his way. However, he did have a great decapitation sequence.
I did feel a tad cheated on the amount of screen time ChromeSkull actually got. A majority of the film focused Preston trying to become ChromeSkull and the cops trying find the missing Jessica. Most of the movie our antagonist sat in a chair and communicated with everyone via computer screen. I didn’t buy ChromeSkull: Laid to Rest II to watch a man named Preston kill everyone. I paid for it to watch CHROMESKULL to kill everyone. It’s like going to see a Michael Myers movie only to watch someone else steal his thunder. It’s partially insulting. However, by the end of the movie we got ChromeSkull back! Then, he kills a room full of cops, so I’m willing to look over his absence.
That leads me to my next point but before I do, SPOILER ALERT! The movie builds up anticipation of this awesome fight between ChromeSkull and Preston, but it never comes. The entire movie Preston is working to over throw ChromeSkull but he’s been on to Preston from the beginning. We all knew it would lead to ChromeSkull killing Preston, I just thought it would be more epic. ChromeSkull actually sneaks up on Preston wounding him and gaining the upper hand. ChromeSkull then chains his copycat to a fence and finishes him off. I just figured there would be more of a fight. I’d even take a struggle or a small conflict. The decapitation was pretty cool, however.
I think a part of the charm of the original movie was the plot. We focus on a girl with amnesia trying to figure out who she is and why ChromeSkull is after her. She develops friendships with strangers willing to protect her. Then, she feels guilty when they die. The sequel’s plot is a little more scattered. One-third of the movie focuses on ChromeSkull pursuing Jessica, one-third on Preston tying up loose ends from the previous film while trying to replace his master, and one-third on the police trying to capture the killer. It just wasn’t as enticing. I feel like they tried to make us sympathize with Jessica by introducing a small sub plot about her losing her eyesight. Sadly, she didn’t get enough screen time to truly develop and make me care about her. I liked Tommy in this movie because he had a chance to develop from the last movie. He went from this party teen to a teen with severe but warranted paranoia. I kind of wished he’d carried this film since his presence in the previous was only a few minutes long. Like they say, however, crap in one and wish in the other and see which one fills faster.
Overall, I liked this movie. Crazy-over-the-top-kills will always win my heart time and time again. For some reason, I feel like the bad acting helped the original movie. It somehow worked and I can’t explain why. The acting in the sequel wasn’t nearly as bad, and it lost something in the process. We also learn a little bit about Chromeskull’s past. During his surgery we get a cryptic dream sequence. Then, we’re also gifted a glorious post-credit sequence. I won’t go into details but stick around after the credits roll. I like being rewarded in movies, even if I don’t 100% enjoy the ride, I still walk away satisfied. To my knowledge the future of the Laid to Rest series is a bit unclear. There was talk of either a movie dealing with ChromeSkull’s past or a prequel or something. Either way if I get more ChromeSkull I’ll be a happy camper.
Billy Wayne Martin, HMS
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