ChromeSkull: Laid to Rest 2 (2011)
Last I heard LAID TO REST 2 was gonna be released in theaters on September 20, 2011 (the day before my birthday). So imagine my surprise when I was scrolling through the horror section on my AT&T U-Verse’s On Demand and saw that CHROMESKULL: LAID TO REST 2 was available for rental. Surprised? Of course. Excited? You bet your ass. Confused? Hell yeah. I don’t like it when huge genre flicks like this one slip in under the radar (and I hate having to promote AT&T U-Verse … it’s actually a pretty shitty service that’s narrowly earned another month based solely on offering LAID TO REST 2). So I told my wife to buckle herself in because this is the film I’ve been waiting to see for over a year now and has been my single most anticipated film of 2011. So was it worth the wait?
Fuck yeah it was!! LAID TO REST 2 is pure rock and roll in the horror genre. It’s got a hugely talented writer-director, Robert Hall (Kevin Bocarde co-wrote), who is also an extremely well-respected special f/x guru (he owns the f/x company Almost Human, Inc.); it’s a fast paced slasher flick that, while paying homage to the old-school slashers, also re-invents the ‘slasher genre’; and it has a no-holds-barred attitude and amps up the gore and violence from the original LAID TO REST (if you can believe that). CHROMESKULL: LAID TO REST 2 is a horror-lover’s dream film that delivers in every possible way and surpasses all expectations (and my expectations were high).
ChromeSkull is back & badder than ever!!
LAID TO REST 2 begins exactly where the first one left off … exactly. Tommy (Thomas Dekker) and The Girl (played by Bobbi Sue Luther in the original) are trying to get away from ChromeSkull at the little roadside gas station/convenience store. We see them drive off (just like we did in the original), but this time a bunch of black cars and an ambulance show up seconds after they escape. A well trained group of … what … government workers? private sector-funded workers? (it’s never made clear) jump into action and immediately start working on ChromeSkull, who got very fucked up by Tommy and The Girl. ChromeSkull is swooped away and Preston (Brian Austin Green), who seems to be the group’s leader, immediately sets out to track down the survivors of ChromeSkull’s rampage. Slowly we’re introduced to this secret cabal who’s apparently been working with ChromeSkull but whose motives aren’t really made clear. Preston seems to wanna take over the operation (it’s alluded that ChromeSkull is the boss here) while Spann (Danielle Harris) helps nurse ChromeSkull back to health and encourages him to start his killing spree once again.
Tommy (Thomas Dekker) & Jess (Mimi Michaels) inside the "kill cage".
In the meantime poor Jessica (the very cute Mimi Michaels) is caught between the two factions of this mysterious group as the newest kidnapped and intended victim. Tommy, the police’s only living witness to the massacre from the first film, ends up trying to help Jessica while at the same time trying to exorcise his demons by confronting ChromeSkull … not such a good idea.
The cast Robert Hall assembled is terrific. Nick Principe (ChromeSkull) continues to be more menacing and threatening than ever, while still never speaking a word. Danielle Harris fits in perfectly as the most mysterious member of this cabal, and although she doesn’t have a huge role in Part Two, I have a feeling she’ll be playing a bigger part in the third installment (more on this later). And Mimi Michaels makes a great “final girl” victim. She’s uber-cute and is a great actress to boot (sorry, this was unintentionally rhymed). But by far Brian Austin Green steals the show with his performance as Preston. Green just looks like he’s having a great time with his role and is extremely comfortable in a horror film. This is definitely not the Green from BEVERLY HILLS 90210, and I’m guessing after acting along side Shannen Doherty, ChromeSkull is a welcome sight.
Holland (Angelina Armani) is about to get it bad ... no really; B A D!!
What made the first LAID TO REST so amazing, besides the story and the killer, is that Hall wasn’t afraid to embrace excessive gore and violence. The first film helped to slap genre fans awake and realize how standard and ‘pussified’ the genre had become, catering to the PG-13 crowd. After LAID TO REST, Hall raised the bar high (very high), and he himself wanted to make sure he matches and goes beyond it in Part Two. And oh boy does he!! (Just wait until you see how Angelina Armani gets it). ChromeSkull’s preferred weapon of choice is of course the knife. And here the knifes get bigger, sharper, and way more functional (there’s an entire “department” in the cabal that makes ChromeSkull’s weapons). Hall also keeps the “tech” angle in the story and keeps ChromeSkull very much a human being; he’s never elevated to that of some kind of supernatural or invincible killer.
Just because it's Brian Austin Green doesn't mean Jess is any less safe!!
Not only is CHROMESKULL: LAID TO REST 2 a great follow up to the original, but it’s a damn near perfect genre film. Robert Hall is a hugely talented f/x artist and writer-director who, judging by the ending, isn’t done with the LAID TO REST franchise yet. We don’t get a lot of explanation about what this cabal is and ChromeSkull’s connection to it, but Part Three is beautifully set up here without forcing anything. But this sucks: LAID TO REST 2 has barely been released and I’m already very anxious to see the next film (and in interviews Hall said he’d be involved in a third film, but wouldn’t direct it).
CHROMESKULL: LAID TO REST 2 is available on AT&T U-Verse’s On Demand and will have a theatrical release on September 20, 2011. I already watched this one twice at home and will definitely be supporting it when it hits the theaters. Don’t miss this one (and make sure you watch through the credits; there’s an important “reveal” about ChromeSkull after the credits). I love every gory second of this film!!
You know ChromeSkull ... ready to submerse himself into his work!!
My Summary:
Director: Robert Hall (& writer along with Kevin Borcarde)
Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Gore: 9 out of 10 skulls
Zombie Mayhem: 0 out of 5 brains
Reviewed by Scott Shoyer
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Outstanding – FIOS is offering it as well, I’ll be watching it one night this week then coming back to read your review.
Definitely let me know what you think of LAID TO REST 2 Bill!! I loved it.
I never saw the first Laid to Rest, but based on your review of the second, I am putting both on my list to watch! I will probably wait until the second one is available to rent and then to a double hit! I love that you put the well known and the not so well known out there for us to decide whether or not to try them out. Thanks for another great recommendation!
You definitely need to tell me your thoughts on the 2 LAID TO REST films, Katie!! I think they are 2 of the best horror/slasher flicks of the decade!!
I don’t know if I’ll bother with this one. I find it hard to take a killer seriously who looks like Billy Corgan in a Halloween mask. The special effects were top notch, but the whole drive away in a car plot hole was distracting.
You’re depriving yourself of 2 of the best horror films of the last decade James!! The LAID TO REST films re-define the slasher genre and simply kick some major ass. Not sure what you’re referring to as the “drive away in a car plot hole”. And ChromeSkull is one of the scariest modern horror villains!!
They had a car that worked despite the fact they said it was low on gas they drove around with it all movie. Maybe, where I grew up, every third kid having a chrome skull as a shift nob or hitch cover on their truck desensatized me to the image but I don’t find him particularly scary. His build is too lithe for the fact that he is played as if he’s built like Jason. It looked to me that Kevin Gage should have been able to beat him in a physical confrontation.
That being said, I will probably see it if it hits Netflix for no better reason than I’ve watched my way through so many of the other horror movies there.
My review is coming soon but I was highly disappointed. I think it’s probably equal or a little worse than the first. There’s just no character development for any of the victims. No one you can get behind or root for. The fx were great but not sure if they were that much better than the first movie. I also thought the ending was pretty anticlimatic. Like the first movie I think it’s about a 7/10 at best.
I don’t know Jason … maybe it comes down to what people are expecting with LAID TO REST 2. I loved the feel to it and I loved the fact they continued to explore the world they created in the 1st one. In other words, they didn’t change shit around. The kept the spirit of the 1st film while at the same time exploring new avenues in that world. I also liked the fact that Hall wanted to address the fact that ChromeSkull was still alive instead of just beginning the film with him coming back to life in the morgue, or something else cliched like that. I also felt we did get some characters to relate too. Mimi Michaels’ and Thomas Dekker’s characters and Brian Austin Green’s villain were all characters I was rooting for and interested in.
No it wasn’t as good as the 1st one, but that’s also because the 1st one was so fresh and new. Hell; it essentially re-defined the slasher sub-genre. But LAID TO REST 2 is a very strong follow up and suffers only from being the middle film in a trilogy. I’m worried about LAID TO REST 3 because Hall already said he won’t direct it. We’ll see.
Laid To Rest 2 was amazing, I can’t wait for part 3. Does anyone know if it’s coming out in the UK or how I can get in contact with Hall and ask him?
Hey Jamie. I know it’s opening next week on September 20, 2011 in the USA, and I don’t think there’s a date for when it’s gonna open in the UK. But let me give you writer-director Robert Hall’s twitter address and that of his fiance Angelina Armani (she also starred in the film):
@RobertGreenHall
@AngelinaArmani