Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed

JULY 29, 2007

GENRE: WEREWOLF
SOURCE: DVD (STORE RENTAL)

Way back in April, I watched the first Ginger Snaps, a film that started off almost unbearable but eventually turned out pretty great. Luckily the sequel, Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed, has no such problems. Yes, we have here a true rarity, especially in the DTV world: A sequel that improves on the original.

The movie picks up more or less where the original left off, though the mother is MIA and never mentioned. Brigitte, a.k.a. the less hot sister, is now becoming a werewolf, and worse, is haunted by the ghost of her sister. I say worse because since she is a ghost, she doesn’t slut around like she did in the original. Sigh.

And much like the first one, the film falls into the rare “feminist horror” sub-genre. In fact, it often comes off like Girl, Interrupted, albeit with an occasional werewolf attack. But it never overpowers the narrative, and the film moves along swiftly. The effects are also greatly improved (they used a mechanical/foam werewolf this time, at least I think. I don’t spot any obvious CG at any rate), so kudos!

The only thing I didn’t really dig was the lack of explaining why the hospital orderly guy had a large supply of Monkshood, which is the antidote Brigitte needed to keep from wolfing out. Does he just carry some around, just in case? The film also never bothers identifying the male wolf that comes after Brigitte. It’s SORT OF set up as a mystery (and the first film had a few male characters who may now be wolves), but it’s never resolved. Oh well. It still eats a few folks and that’s all that matters.

There is also a 3rd film, so I will check that one out before year’s end, and thus conclude the first “HMAD Franchise”! Unless I go through the Dark Harvest series quicker than any man should (which is to say, watching all of them before death)

What say you?

9 comments:

  1. You know - it has been a few years since I watched this trilogy - but - one thing i do remember is that in part 2 - the werewolf that is chasing brigette is the guy from part one - the one that was bitten by the hot sister... crap - i am trying remember exactly how that happened - but it was never dealt with - he was just left to be a werewolf. brigette ran into him in the park when she had the wolfsbane or whatever - but didn't give him any and just said l8r! I am sure brigette says it is him that is chasing her too in the sequel....

    either way - you have rekindled my interest to re-watch the trilogy...

    xjx

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  2. yeah i assumed that but then i read somewhere that the director (or writer) of 2 said it WASNT him. I listened to the commentary but I sort of zoned in and out of it while I was writing up some reviews. Maybe they didn't want it to feel like you had to see the other one to know the identity or something.

    How is part 3? It's a prequel, no?

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  3. I too liked this one better than the original, and I liked the original plenty. The girl playing Brigitte really does some great acting, and it doesn't fall into the "ooh I'm big and hairy and having a great time killing people!" trope that lesser werewolf flicks like American Werewolf in Paris and much of The Howling series falls into--rather focusing on the "lone good person cursed to kill against her will" thing, which is were it all started with The Wolf Man, the grandaddy of them all and my favorite horror flick.

    *Whew!*

    I didn't think the male werewolf was the guy from the first (the one thing I didn't like about the first movie was the bit with him getting lycanthropy as an STD), but just that there are other lone, cursed werewolves out there, and he was one of them, tracking her b/c they're in heat. Not knowing his identity didn't bother me. After all, I'm a sonneteer, but that doesn't mean I know every other sonneteer out there. :)

    I also loved the subplot with the blonde girl, whose name I think was "Ghost," and how it was resolved at the end. It wasn't at all the ending I expected, it was tragic and surprising given all that came before, but it worked for me.

    Never saw the 3rd one, but I can't see it improving on this.

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  4. PART 3. Hmmm.. well. I did enjoy it. and looking back - i do like the fact that the 'setting' was completely different. what i mean is this. if you have seen From Dusk Till Dawn, and then seen From Dusk Till Dawn Part 3 - it is really the exact same movie - but just in a different time period.

    I am glad you talkied about the werewolf costumes in part 2. becasue in part 3 i loved them. but some reviews said they are horrible. but at the end of part 3 - there is an all out assault by the werewolves on an old terading post fort - and i was totally loving that... i thought the wolves were dam good looking. not sex - but cool. i don't like wolves that much.

    man - what was the question? o ya - did i like part 3. yes. i thougt most of it was pretty good - the werewolf attack i was loving - and the ending - i didn't see it coming - but after it was all over i didn't see - how i could not have seen it coming....

    nuff said!

    i think i ned an account. this anonymous posting sucks!

    xjx

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  5. to anonymous:

    You can click "Other" (instead of "Anonymous") on "Choose an Identity" and then just type in your name. That's what I do. :) No account required.

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  6. There was one thing about this film that was awful though...

    The character Ghost and how the film ends... those just ruined things for me.

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  7. The orderly had the monkwood because it was taken from Bridgette. They thought it was heroin or something. The male werewolf is the kid from the first one who the hot sister banged. You think he was cured at the end of the first but by the second you discover there is no cure. So he is chasing her in order to mate. I want to be a werewolf, i could run around the woods of Vermont terrorizing people and drinking maple syrup. Oh how they would fear me........

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  8. Ginger Snaps Back (aka part 3) is to the origional as 'dusk till Dawn 3' and 'Mirror Mirror 2' are to their respective first installments, ie. An inferior to the origional 'period remake'.

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  9. The dude had all the purple shit cuz they took it off bridget when she was picked up he states i know where alice keeps her stash

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