Years have passed since Mike (James Legros) lost his brother to the sinister Tall Man (Angus Scrimm) and his other worldly gnomes. Spending much of that time in a mental institution he finally decides to play with the administrators and agrees with them that his visions of the past were just that….visions. Fooling his caretakers into believing he was cured he’s set free. Tracking down his friend Reggie (Reggie Bannister), also suffering from the losses induced by the Tall Man the last time around, they team up to take down this menace once and for all.
Never before has a man sans mask rose to be such a horror icon as Angus Scrimm. We all know Jason Vorhees and his trademark hockey mask and machete, or Freddy Krueger and his burn scars and razor claw. Angus Scrimm though, he has his shiny silver balls and the simple fact that he’s just plain creepy looking. It’s that simple! Imagine running through a mortuary to hear this man behind you shout ‘BOYYYY!’ The thought makes me consider Depends, that’s for sure.
The first Phantasm brought a certain element of fantasy and wonder with it. A young boy who has stumbled upon this sinister evil, only to have no one believe him until it’s almost too late. In round two our story jumps ahead into the future giving us an older perspective with a need to help and a sense of revenge. The beauty here though is that this jump in the story line also goes a long ways towards fleshing out this world surrounding the franchise and building a mythos to make the entire package feel more whole. As Mike and Reggie set forth to track down the tall man, we’re show that the small town cemetery of Phantasm I was not the only world that the Tall Man has known…it was the first of many. Adding a sense of post-apocalyptic horror as they roll through boarded up ghost towns that our monster du jour has bled dry, we come to realize the reach of Scrimm’s evil. Ladies and gentlemen, we have now transcended from your typical slasher sequel formula showing one mad man revisiting the same place time again.
With the plot ramped up to add new layers of darkness and scope, it would make sense for our hero’s to evolve as well. Where in their first encounter Mike was a teenager still vaguely innocent and whiling away his days exploring in the woods and cemetery, he has now grown into a man with a single purpose letting nothing stop him on that path. Where Reggie was a bit of a looser ice cream man doing what he could do to help Mikey out when the going got rough, he’s now turned into a tough guy needing to avenge the death of his family and holding a similar singular purpose as Mike. Where the fun lies is when these two start to bust out their home made weaponry and start to kick down mortuary doors in the search for Mr. Man. Four barreled shot guns, flame throwers and grenade window traps all combine together to add the camp to this adding a bit of fun to the noticeably heavier turn of the plot. Mix in some good one liners from Reggie and you’ll manage a few chuckles as well. The Tall Man this time around is exactly what you’d expect from Angus Scrimm. He is what he is and there’s no need to change. Once his embalming balls of Doom make their appearance in the mortuary halls, we have traversed full circle to come finish up in the Phantasm formula that we fell in love with the first time around.
There’s a lot to love here and the fan base surrounding the franchise shows it. If you found yourself in love with the nostalgic and mystical wonder that surrounding the first venture, know that this time around things have changed some, but it’s change for the better. Building a franchise foundation, fleshing out our characters and adding a dash of kick ass to them helps to make this a worthy sequel that improves on the original, which in this genre is often a rarity.
If you haven’t seen either, check them out. The Phantasm series should be a staple for every horror nerd out there.
4 bad ass ice cream men out of 5
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