Ethan Bourke
On the cover of the DVD, where they usually stamp quotes and praise from various critics this one simply said "Some great kills", or something along those lines. Now when the best quote they could get for the movie is that, you're probably not going in expecting a masterpiece.Before I start taking a metaphorical dump on this movie, it should be acknowledged that it DOES have some creative kills, and the effects on that front are obviously where the bulk of the budget went - and lets face it - that's probably why you're watching it. Without spoiling anything, Chromeskull is probably in contention with American History X for best curb stomp.The writing is just shitty, no point being delicate on that one. It's obviously low budget (nothing wrong with that) except that a lot of the shots look like they were filmed on $400 handy cam.The flow of the story is in some ways similar to Final Destination, in that it introduces an uncompelling character, with one sentence worth of development, then desperately attempts to build tension by having Chromeskull hunt and kill them in elaborate ways.The characters are mostly bland and one-dimensional. You want to sympathize with JESS, who is going blind, but the character devolves into a hysterical sack of tears and screaming, but is amazingly less useless than her able-bodied male counterpart, Tommy.The ONE relationship which is actually compelling is CHROMESKULL and PRESTON'S. But the director doesn't seem to recognise this and forfeits any hope of adding another layer to the movie. Performance-wise the film is a mixed (colostomy) bag. Owain Yeoman as King (a detective) does a decent job with very little, as does Brian Austin Green as Preston (Chromeskulls right hand man).In summary, this is not by any means, a decent movie, but if your having a movie night with some friends, and cheap thrills and gory kills are your thing, this movie might appeal to you. But there is basically nothing new or original about this.
Steve Pulaski
Robert Hall's 2009 horror debut Laid to Rest wasn't perfect by any means, but offered a great gore-scheme and pacing and suspense that came to its favor. Its characters weren't very well crafted, and logic had to hide out so the film could do its thing, but overall it was a cute and enjoyable little gore flick. Did it ever need a sequel? Well, to Hall, since it was a moderate success on the message boards and online yes it did.Laid to Rest 2, accompanied by the "Chromeskull" subtitle, is a bleak and ugly film not because it's gruesome and violent, but because its plot becomes blown out of proportion and it becomes a cocky horror film. Somebody should've whispered in the filmmakers' ears that this wasn't a big success, but a fairly unexpected one. The story has now become enlarged and has now gone to expand its boundaries to the point where it's unbelievable and contrived.The film picks up right where the first left off, then manages to fast-forward three months later where we are introduced to Jess (Michaels), a girl going blind because of scar tissue in her eyes. Jess is drugged, kidnapped, and locked in a coffin by the killer who has a video camera on his shoulder and a shiny, chrome-silver mask in the shape of a skeleton on his face. He uses deadly, homemade knives that are something straight out of a sadist's mind, but are crafted with such detail they become one of the strongest points in the film.I'm not going to even try to explain the backstory of the killer because I feel ashamed for even asking for it. I wished for minor backstory after seeing Laid to Rest. I thought, I'd like just a small, brief explanation of why this person was killing and videotaping it. I didn't need a huge, bloated, and exhausting storyline that is convoluted and outright ridiculous. The film wants to bring the top-secret, government business into play but it doesn't have the budget nor the skills to do so. This is a slasher film. It's a hack and slash, gorehound, bloody, disgusting, gruesome horror film that deserves zero conspiracy talk at all.The fact that they bring the overblown backstory into play is just a clear sign of cockiness, but who can really blame them? If you spat out a random, unknown horror film into stores with a promising cover and you made big bucks off of it, you'd take the obligatory sequel one step further wouldn't you? Well, Chromeskull: Laid to Rest 2 doesn't take just one step, it takes about two leaps and, when you think it has officially stopped in one place, it manages to tip-toe a bit further and further. Have mercy.Bobbi Sue Luther, director Robert Hall's wife respectively, played the heroine from the original film and makes a quick appearance in this one as well. Sadly, she's killed off very quickly just to bring in an annoying and obnoxious blonde girl instantly. She's no Bobbi Sue, and she's not even interesting enough to be concerned for unlike her.Chromeskull: Laid to Rest 2 was somewhat promising, but ultimately falls flat on its face. There is a third film planned which I assume and sort of hope will close the series. I hope after this ludicrous sequel we at least get a final and respectable entry in a series that never got off its feet completely. Aside from gore, the series never truly accomplished much else. It succeeds in being a standout for a few reasons, but overall, when closely examined, or even mildly, it's just another horror film inspired by too many others.Starring: Brian Austin Green, Danielle Harris, Mimi Michaels, Nick Principe, and Thomas Dekker. Directed by: Robert Hall.
