Wolf Creek 2

I am lost for words for what Greg McLean was thinking when coming into Wolf Creek 2. The first film set the benchmark for future Australian Horror films and really gave me renewed hope that my nation was making inroads into my favourite genre. I was so psyched to see the sequel. Knowing how nasty and memorable the first one was, while i didn't expect this one to surpass it, i still hoped it would have kept its gritty style and "true horror" feel. I was mortified to see that for some unknown reason, Greg has chosen to go down the "Horror comedy" path and completely butcher everything that made him a household name in the extreme horror genre. Wolf Creek 2 has completely eliminated the menace, the isolation, the gritty style of film work and the ultra realism. He has substituted it with over stylized crap that you come to expect from Mainstream Hollywood. Yes it was funny in parts and John Jarratt showcases his talents as a truly great actor, but this is not what Wolf Creek is about! Congratulations Mr McLean, you have officially sold out and lost a fan in the process. This is evidence of the power of money and how a potentially great film maker, can lose his identity when lured in by money.

'Wolf Creek 2' suffers some of the similar problems seen in other horror movie franchises. Like in the later 'Nightmare on Elm Street' films, too much focus is placed on the antagonist, causing the film to lose quite a bit of suspense and tension. In the first 'Wolf Creek', released nearly a decade ago, John Jarratt's Mick Taylor was an enigma to the audience. He didn't make an appearance until nearly halfway through the film, and even then we had no idea what his deal was until he started torturing and murdering the main characters. In the sequel, Mick has been turned into much more of a comedic antihero, with there being a large emphasis on Mick and his pun-laden one-liners, which kills off a bit of the mystery and edginess that defined the first film.

Likewise, this leads to Mick's victims being that little less relatable and sympathetic, as we are much more familiar with Mick than we are with them.

Like the original, 'Wolf Creek 2' is obviously not for the faint of heart, with the gore and sadistic violence being ramped up. The film's car chases and fright scenes are all the more elaborate and effective due to an obvious budget increase. This much more polished look obviously removes a bit of the grindhouse aesthetic present in the preceding film, however makes up for it in terms of sheer scale.

On the whole, 'Wolf Creek 2' is still quite an intense thrill-ride, and one worth checking out, especially if you enjoyed the first. Unfortunately, the creative team's decision to spend more time with Mick and less with the unfortunate tourists who encounter him deprives the film of what could have made it a superior sequel.

You have to have a brain that releases the reward hormones, etc. that are excited by horror and gore to sit through this Aussie rendition of a "not-so-nice-person" gleefully and with good Aussie nationalism dismember visiting hiking tourists or any others of similar persuasion who upset him or for that matter simply anyone who upsets him.

Well acted. The usual pursuit of the prey scenes, but what makes this a seven vs. eight or nine stars are the stupid decisions of our prey. A common problem in this genre and it's not clear if it's written into the script on purpose to annoy viewers or the writers simply need to prolong the agony to fill 90 minutes or they just don't have a good understanding of thinking under pressure.

Doesn't match the quality of the first film, but overall still a highly enjoyable film.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel. Kept me on the edge of my seat right throughout the film. Having seen Ryan Corr in other things it was easy to have sympathy for him. I felt like I was apart of all the action. Some scenes were obviously added for the international market (flying kangaroo's) but that didn't phase me. Some aspects of the film were barely believable, but you have to remember this is a film, whatever happened to poetic license?

If you want to cringe, scream and get your adrenaline pumping this is a film for you!

I thoroughly enjoyed Wolf Creek. All elements of film making seemed to work, for me. I like realism in films and the sense of isolation in the Australian outback was palpable. After viewing the trailer for Wolf Creek 2 I thought that the film might fall into the Hollywood category. What I was hoping for was another gem.

John Jarratt returns as serial killer Mick Taylor. He delivers another strong performance. His laugh and hoarse, Aussie voice never falter. He gets totally into character and runs the show. He has too much screen time, however, to make him as scary as he should be. The viewer is given too much knowledge of his whereabouts, I felt.

The actors who play the tourists are good, notably Ryan Corr, playing well-educated British traveler, Paul. The film doesn't provide much insight into his character which might be the reason why I had little empathy for him, or any of Mick's victims in this film. Towards the end I was routing for the tourists solely because as the viewer we have witnessed the hell their put through. For whatever reason, I really liked the characters in the first film and it was hard to watch them meet their fate.

The sense of isolation is there but doesn't have the same effect as it did in the first film, probably because there are a few more characters in this film, and other devices used to create action, which made the film appear less chilling and more thrilling.

I liked that McLean used subtitles for the German couple because I wasn't expecting it. Of course English isn't always going to be a tourists first language and they're not going to speak it for our benefit. Fret not, once the screaming begins you don't have to do a lot of reading.

Some parts of the film felt a little odd to me at first, and there are a couple of comical sequences. I took it in the movie's stride. Perhaps that was writer number 2, Aaron Sterns, input. I didn't mind. There was enough Mick Taylor sadism to pull me back to the horror film I went in to watch. The setting at the end was a little disappointing because it felt too orchestrated and unlike Mick Taylor. It felt more like a scene from 'Hostel'.

The first film is a rare beauty, and Wolf Creek 2 is a good sequel - nothing more, nothing less IMO.