Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer (2007)

So much average

Perfect cast and a good story

People are voting emotionally.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

I know this is a bit late in the review category, but I thought it was worth saying that this was a fun and sometimes monster-movie scary. It's not jump out of your seat scary, but I felt monster-movie dread anticipating what's to come as monster(s) begin wreaking havoc. I thought Jack Brooks was hilarious, understandable, and real. He is someone I would like to know and the hilarity comes from his Happy Gilmore reactions to every day annoyances from unresolved issues. His character is believable in crazy, surreal circumstances and it was entertaining throughout. My favorite movies are those with characters for whom I am rooting whatever the story or how it's told, no matter their flaws or good-guy, bad-guy personas as developed(much like Ash's), and the character's humor when well written/played. I felt Jack Brooks fit this bill to a T. Loved him!Don't look for an Evil Dead comparable; let go of pretense and limited expectations and just enjoy. This was, in my opinion, how we all first came to know and love Evil Dead movies to begin with, and how Ash and his exploits continue to entertain to this day...

I really liked this movie simply because I identified and loved the Jack Brooks character so much. The purpose of the movie is to show a regular guy who is frustrated with the world around him trying to find his niche. What's so entertaining and hilarious is watching Jack blow in situations we all would like to blow up in while earnestly trying to trying to fit in and be normal.I think this movie has a very strong Canadian sensibility which some Americans just don't see the humor in. I'm reminded a lot of Trailer Park Boys, which I personally find hilarious, but understandably some people just don't get. This kind of material is funny if you find the humor in lower/lower middle class life and the types of struggles you have to deal with when you belong to those classes. This movie isn't a mindless slaughter-fest but instead focuses on the human element with humor and heart. If you enjoyed films like Shaun of the Dead that uses the horror genre as a backdrop to help bring out humorous yet relatable human struggles into focus then you'll like Jack Brooks. If your looking for a non-stop deluge of blood and a forgettable human characters whose only purpose is to be slaughtered then I suggest you look elsewhere.

Tightly wound plumber Trevor Mathews has serious anger issues due to the fact that his parents were killed by monsters when he was just a wee lad. When his college professor played by Robert Englund unleashes an ancient horde of evil creatures, it is up to the plucky plumber to realize his destiny as a monster slayer and save humanity. The ranting of Trevor Mathews in the title role is very amusing but it is really Robert Englund who steals the show. He is clearly having a ball with the material and his enthusiasm is contagious.I laughed quite a bit.The SPFX are pretty good and refreshingly old-school.Lots of gore and prosthetics as opposed to lame CGI. I wouldn't mind watching Jack Brooks slay monsters thru a whole series of films like this!

Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer starts as a young Jack Brooks (Evan Gilchrist) witnesses the murder of his younger sister, mother & Father by some Werewolf type monster. Jump forward many years later & Jack Brooks (Trevor Matthews) is now a lowly plumber in his mid twenties with a pretty but irritating girlfriend Eve (Rachel Skarsten) & a very bad temper. While at night college chemistry Professor Gordon Crowley (Robert Englund) ask's Jack to take a look at at his plumbing at his new house which isn't working properly. While at home that night Professor Crowley is possessed by the black heart of an ancient demon & starts to undergo a transformation into a grotesque monster who decides to terrorise Crowley's pupils. Jack steps up to the plate & takes charge of the situation & becomes Jack Brooks, Monster Slayer as he tries to stop the demon...This Canadian production was co-written & directed by John Knautz & is quite a fun little comedy horror that certainly has it's moments most of which come in the amusing last thirty odd minutes. The script has very distinctive character's with Jack himself an odd but somewhat likable hero, he reminded me of the Ash character from the Evil Dead films. Once the monster makes an appearance & things kick in Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer is quite a lot of fun & quite energetic but the first hour or so although odd & watchable isn't all that good & fairly forgettable. As a whole Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer feels a little empty for it's first hour while the last thirty minutes feels a little too packed which gives it an uneven feel. While I did like the film I didn't love it, there's a lack of gore & not much of a story behind the monster or why it hasn't possessed anyone before or even what it is. There's nothing deep or meaningful here & the wraparound segments hint at some sort of ongoing series of films but there are enough good intentions & enough silly horror moments here to keep most entertained I would have thought. Good but not brilliant.The film is very well well made with a nice slick look to it, the silly comedy moments are usually mixed in with the horror to dilute it & it's hard to take the film seriously. It's not scary although there are one or two gross out moments, there's not much actual gore apart from a bitten hand & some blood splatter. The special effects are pretty good considering, there's no CGI here & it's all good old fashion on set special make-up effects & rubber tentacles. The fat bloated monster at the end intentionally looks both gross & somewhat daft.Shot in Ottawa in Ontario in Canada this looks really good & with nice production values & good special effects, it seems like some money was actually spent on it & it was made by makers who cared about the finished product. The acting is quite good & everyone plays it straight to amusing effect, king of the horror cameos Freddy Krueger himself Robert Englund has a slightly larger role than he has been getting of late here.Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer would have been a great film if the first hour had been as energetic & fun as the last thirty odd minutes, as it is is isn't so it ain't. Not too bad but nothing amazing, worth a rent but maybe not a purchase. The IMDb lists Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer II (2010) as currently in production.