Messengers 2: The Scarecrow

Believe it or not, this movie used the script that was originally intended for THE MESSENGERS. Obviously, something went wrong, and it ended up becoming the basis for this sequel. A corn farmer down on his luck finds a creepy old scarecrow hidden away in his barn and puts it up in his dying cornfield, which is plagued by crows and lack of water. The nasty crows soon disappear, and the farm's faulty irrigation system begins working again. Unfortunately, people start dying as well, and the farmer begins to believe the change in fortune is tied to the creepy scarecrow. He attempts to burns it, but ... well, you get the idea. Highly reminiscent of ":Children of the Corn" and any number of previous killer scarecrow-oriented horror flicks, M2 is still eerie enough on its own terms to hold one's attention. Award-winning character actor Norman Reedus plays the haunted farmer, otherwise the cast is nondescript. There are a couple of surprising twists and turns near the end that add to the overall enjoyment of this STV. Moody and atmospheric throughout, M2 is for connoisseurs of intelligent horror, as it can be slow-moving and is definitely not into JASON territory -- at least, not until the grand finale. Enjoy.

Tired, predictable, and dull for stretches. It's never scary or suspenseful. The acting is weak, with Norman Reedus trying his best as the lead character but he's just woefully miscast here. He's about as believable as a farmer as he would be as the King of England. His son in the movie is played by an annoying child actor. Claire Holt plays his daughter in her movie debut. The role isn't great but she's fine in it. The wife character is terrible and there just to service a few clichés. So much of this feels I have seen it before in better movies. On the (very shallow) plus side, Darcy Fowers has a couple of very nice nude scenes. Hey, that's something, right?

Another direct to DVD film to fill the shelves of Blockbuster, this film wasn't THAT bad. It also wasn't that good.

The plot is that a down on his luck farmer is getting it from all sides. The bank wants to foreclose on his farm, the old friend from high school is making moves on the wife, and even the damned crows are eating your corn and pooping on it... The poor guy can't get a break, until he finds the scarecrow. Well, it's the best scarecrow ever, because not only does it kill the crows, but the banker and the interloper die in amusingly ironic ways as well...

Well, you know how these things always go. Some diabolical force (never really specified) is behind the scarecrow, and he'll want your loved ones, too. (Don't they always?)

Still, the movie has some genuine thrills, as well as being fairly interesting as a character study. (The farmer does this Faustian bargain, but he doesn't recoil away from it right away.)

Certainly a lot better than most of the usual "bottle of ketchup" horror films who just think gore and cheap thrills make these movies work.

John Rollins (Norman Reedus) is under pressure with his failing family farm. He has his wife Mary (Heather Stephens), daughter Lindsey (Claire Holt) and son Michael (Laurence Belcher). His farm is over-run with crows. He finds a creepy scarecrow in the barn to scare the crows. His son wants him to get rid of it. His new neighbor Jude Weatherby (Richard Riehle) convinces him to put it up. He hears voices. All the crows die. Sleazy banker George Chapman comes with an offer to buy him out. The broken water pump starts working again. The banker dies getting run over by a truck. There seems to be an evil possessing John. He grows more jealous of his wife's friend Tommy.

It's questionable if this is related to the first movie. It's just as well. The first one wasn't any good. This one is a little better. It has some personal drama that's not relying on a cheap reveal. The scarecrow is an old cliché but that's not a problem. I do like Reedus but he doesn't have enough range to project a big creepy change. I like the story in this one slightly better than the original but the production quality is straight-to-video level.

Basically The Shining meets Signs meets Children of the Corn but it's better than it sounds. John Rollins is an out of luck farmer, his corn is diseased, crows are eating what's not, he can't afford to fix his irrigation or buy fertilizer, he's on the outs with his wife and an evil banker is foreclosing on his farm. Then he finds a hideous scarecrow that frightens his son but a new neighbor convinces him to put up. Suddenly his luck changes... the crows die, the corn is healthy, the water pump works, he finds a wad of money and even gets laid. Soon bad things happen to his enemies, his family situation grows worse and he starts to worry about the scarecrow.

On the face of it, M2 isn't a very good movie but two things save it, Norman Reedus and Heather Stephens. Reedus fully develops John Rollins, in the beginning a good Christian, a tad paranoid and an almost broken man. When things improve his confidence and virility grow as do his bad habits with a little nudging from the new neighbor; and finally desperation when the price of success grows too high. Stephens does a very good job in her supporting role as John's wife, Mary Rollins. Between them, they make the movie believable. The filmmakers allow Reedus to act and don't burden him or Stephens with too many lines. For most of the movie, the scarecrow is just a totem but eventually comes to life and the film loses effectiveness. From other reviews I get that M2 doesn't work well as a sequel but I never saw the original. As a standalone, it's worth a watch.