Jack Brooks: Fuck man, I broke a bottle over my head once because I couldn’t open it! I mean, you know… that doesn’t even make any sense!
People were way too quick to write “Jack Brooks” off as some sort of “Buffy” clone when in actuality director Knautz never actually strives to gear his film in that vein. I for one hate “Buffy” so I was very immediate in my defense of the film, and more so after watching it. Director John Knautz’s horror comedy has some epic possibilities with a character almost as cool as Ashley Williams, because even on its small budget and obviously modest production it’s shocking in its ability to involve the viewer with dark comedy that’s actually funny, and horror that’s about as good as anything else being released.
The origin of Jack Brooks is probably one of the more interesting personality breakdowns thanks to the rather stunning performance by Trevor Matthews who completely grabs the persona of this repressed warrior by the balls delivering a passionate play on a character who could have easily transformed in to a poor man’s Ernest. Matthews is a force of nature in “Jack Brooks” delivering some of the most raucous laughter with a man who is so angry and enraged without any idea why. And his rage is elevated by the fact that nothing seems to help, not even his therapist whose new age techniques leave Jack about ready to pummel him in to the ground. But like every story of a good, there’s also the emergence of evil as Jack’s friend and teacher Professor Crowley (the always entertaining Robert Englund) who stumbles on to an ancient relic after a problematic plumbing job from Jack leads him to it.
Writer John Ainslie seems to have all the right pieces in place as “Jack Brooks” ends up a traditional origin story that’s really more entertaining than other superhero origins we’ll catch in theaters. There’s the background of tragedy that keep Jack’s personality bittersweet, the odd and humorous supporting characters and the thankless blue collared job Jack uses to put himself through school. Being a plumber is thankfully not a shtick used to turn Jack in to cartoon as he’s simply a young guy in college whose profession accidentally leads him in to a confrontation with a wicked carnivorous monster one night. You see Crowley’s hunger for flesh becomes almost insatiable and when he finally turns in to a disgusting monster, Jack is left with no other option but to fight the demons back and hopefully come to terms with the demons from his past.
Ainslie and Knautz’s influences are obvious with allusions to Ash, “Hellraiser” and “Demons” but their nods to the aforementioned pop culture facets are subtle enough to where they become detrimental to the story, while Jack is an always fascinating figure who inspires a sense of dignity and potential for greatness that Matthews sells with ease. Once the hell begins, Knautz’s dark comedy becomes a vicious and disturbing horror film with demonic creations who actually seem to be a match for Jack, while their leader takes to some disgusting cannibalism that flexes the surprising ability the special effects team displays with decapitations, mutilations, and gruesome forced demonic digestion. Audiences expecting a full on monster hunting orgy will probably be disappointed, since “Jack Brooks” is really more about the formation of the character and his origin.
There are never actually any hunting of monsters until the last half hour, even if director Knautz feeds up gory monster carnage that are mostly disconnected and told through flashbacks. When we finally see monsters wreaking havoc with Jack Brooks stomping some demon heads, it’s really with about twenty four left in the film, and even then it may not be enough for audiences to be satisfied with, regardless of how vicious and entertaining the battles with the demons and ghouls are. “Jack Brooks” is enough of an ode to horror to please the fan boys, and enough of an origin story to leave audiences wanting more. If there’s more up Knautz’s sleeve, I hope he gives it to us soon, because “Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer” is too good to be a one shot. There’s not really any actually monster hunting and slaying until the last half hour, but “Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer” is a damn good horror comedy with great performances, a fun if traditional story, and some brutal gore and grue.