Official Synopsis:
“When five teenagers unwittingly resurrect a demon, nobody is safe from the creature’s bloody rampage. But this monster is different – inside its demonic form dwells the soul of a boy murdered years ago. Can the evil creature be killed without destroying the innocent boy trapped within?”
There are countless films that have spawned unnecessary sequels, the horror genre is more guilty than most. However, in each there is usually at least some shred of the original story. This is not the case with Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings. Nothing from the original is relevant, except the name.
The film opens decades earlier when a group of teenagers torment and brutally murder a defenseless deformed boy named Tommy. Particularly eye-rolling, it offers no reason or any information whatsoever, instead cutting immediately to the present where we meet Sheriff Sean Braddock (Andrew Robinson) who has just moved back to this small town, which in no way resembles any location of the first. Sheriff Braddock must endure the local government buffoons, and keeping an eye on his teenage daughter Jenny (Ami Dolenz).
Jenny begins to make bad decisions almost instantly, meeting a group of teenagers, Danny (J. Trevor Edmond), Marcie (Soleil Moon Frye), Peter (Hill Harper) and Paul (Alexander Polinsky). Seconds after meeting them, they convince her to ditch school to go hang out at an old well, the same well that Tommy died at decades earlier. The group finds themselves getting into all kinds of mischief: drinking, driving around turning off their headlights randomly. They hit Miss Osie (Lilyan Chauvin) with their car, the old woman who lives in the woods, who took care of Tommy all those years ago. Is this the same woman from the first Pumpkinhead? They go to a lot of trouble to make her look and act like that same character, but ultimately it isn’t, which only adds to the confusion that is Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings.
After Miss Osie scurries off, they go looking for her, finding her house deep in the woods. With no one home, they naturally break in, finding things of the dark arts nature. They read about a certain ceremony that will resurrect the soul of Tommy, and for some reason can’t wait to perform it. Pumpkinhead rises, hungry for revenge against the people who killed Tommy, then turning its attention to the ones who summoned him.
The fact that Pumpkinhead and Tommy are one in the same really doesn’t make any sense, and goes against everything we learned about the creature from the first film. This is supposed to be a demon that is summoned for revenge at great cost to the summoner’s own humanity. Instead we get a mindless monster rampage, void of all substance and intelligence. The film tries to put together a coherent plot we can follow, but fails at some of the most basic forms of storytelling.
As bad as this film is, I have to say I did enjoy watching it. Seeing Kane Hodder get his eyes pecked out and Punky Brewster meeting a tragic, but totally awesome demise was a lot of fun. There are films that are so bad they are a blast to watch time and time again. Is this one of them? I’d have to say it teeters on the edge. If you’re giving it a shot, you have to set your expectations below ground level low.
Video
Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings is presented in 1080p 1.85:1. The picture quality is one of the best things about this disc. Very few blemishes noticeable, with bright colors and clear picture throughout.
Audio
The audio is presented in DTS Master Audio Stereo. All the elements, dialogue, score, blood curdling screams sound great.
Special Features
Interview with Director Jeff Burr
Re-Creating the Monster – Interviews with Special Effects Artists Greg Nicotero, Gino Crognale and Actor Mark McCracken
Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings is a sad follow up to such a classic film. Although it has a few good moments, it throws out everything good from the first film, setting it apart and in a category of its own: BAD.
