Monday, April 5, 2021

[A to Z] D = The Devils Rejects


The horror films of Rob Zombie seem to be a collection of polarizing efforts.  I believe I have seen all of them.  I only own 4 of his films - the firefly family trilogy and Lords of Salem - and I intend to buy his two Halloween films.  I am a fan of his films in general.  I get why there are unfavorable opinions of his work but I am willing to give any of his films a chance.

I was pretty excited when I first heard Rob Zombie was going to get into horror films.  I waited for House of 1,000 Corpses but then it got delayed.  I do not remember how many times or how long it was delayed but I do recall that it made me wonder whether it was getting released at all.  I finally saw it and - I was not blown away or anything like that - I did not feel let down and was interested in seeing more of his films.

I was not one of the first people in my circle to see THE DEVIL'S REJECTS but I do remember hearing a lot of buzz about the film.  It was suggested almost every time we were looking for something to watch while enjoying a small gathering drinking adult beverages or just hanging out.  No one seemed to ever have a copy available but I eventually watched it.

THE DEVIL'S REJECTS became an instant member of my personal top 10 horror films list; I have watched it countless times after the initial viewing.   It has several memorable moments with some definite quotable lines such as "I am the Devil and I'm here to do the Devil's work", "Official clown business", and "Tutti F--n Fruitti" to name a few.  I find many of the characters in the movie to be interesting and would enjoy a separate feature with The Unholy Two played by Danny Trejo and Dallas Page.  Yes, the film and characters are sleazy but that is appropriate. I would have liked to see his take on the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. 

I consider THE DEVIL'S REJECTS to be the best work of Rob Zombie.  He has other films I enjoy but this is the one I always recommend.  House of 1,000 Corpses and 3 From Hell are both good but I feel they are inferior bookends to THE DEVIL'S REJECTS. House is a little uneven and 3 From Hell suffers from the (mostly) absent Sid Haig.  I enjoyed Zombie's take on the Halloween franchise.  I know there are detractors but you can not claim any high standards from previous entries when Michael Myers is crying in one movie and the rapper Busta Rhymes beats him down with Kung Fu in another one.  Lords of Salem is a slow burn and I understand why people have issues with the film. It took me two or three viewings to really get into it.

There are my thoughts on THE DEVIL"S REJECTS.  Give it a shot.  You just might like it... 

5 comments:

  1. Haven't seen 3 from Hell yet and I need to rewatch The Devil's Rejects because I don't remember much about it. (For a while I had the bad habit of multitasking while watching movies... What was I thinking?)

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    1. Ugh....multiasking while watching movies. I've made the same mistake! It doesn't work so well.

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  2. Ooh Sig Haig! He can be very compelling. I haven't seen any of these movies, but I may have to, now. Thanks!

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    1. Indeed! He is probably the best part of these movies. Captain Spaulding is awesome!!

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  3. “Polarizing” is the right word. I’ve had more than one argument with my buddy over RZ’s films (he’s a fan, I’m not). I can’t even be bothered to remember which is which between the first two films, neither of which I enjoyed.

    I do like his music, however.

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