JEEPERS CREEPERS 2

Victor Salva never intended for there to be a sequel to JEEPERS CREEPERS. In fact, he went out of his way to construct a concept that would deny continuation a demon that feeds on humans for 23 days before disappearing for 23 years. Any prequels detailing the monster's activities in the past, he thought, would be uninteresting. And any continuation would have to be set 23 years in the future too expensive to shoot for a low budget horror sequel. However, the solution is deceptively simple: the first film only covers a couple days out of that 23. With the first film a surprise hit, MGM was sure to take advantage of this loophole, and producer Francis Ford Coppola convinced Salva that it would be better for him to shepherd his own creation into what is already the most interesting horror franchise since SCREAM.

And so, JEEPERS CREEPERS 2 (refreshingly, there's no subtitle) picks up about four days after the end of JC1, with the story expanding on ideas that had to be abandoned from the original. Though originally introduced as what appears to be a Leatherface-style serial killer cannibal, by now we've found out that the Creeper (Jonathan Breck, who ought to become the next big horror star) is actually some sort of winged demon from whoknowswhere. Flushed from his prime hideout, our monster is trying to squeeze as much hunting into his schedule as he can before going into his locust-like hibernation. A bus loaded with a high school basketball team, headed back from a championship game at night down a lonely road, makes for tempting pickings once the Creeper disables the vehicle using some of his handcrafted weapons. Isolated and under attack by a terrifying unknown creature, the bus becomes a pressure cooker for the ensemble cast, as their differences pop to the surface in-between arguments over survival options. Not that anything they do will make a difference, as it appears that the Creeper can pick off whichever of them he finds the most tasty at will.

Meanwhile, an element of hope appears in the person of Ray Wise as a farmer who has lost a son to the Creeper, and has rigged a fence post puncher into a truck-mounted supergun to hunt down the devil himself.

As with the original, Salva succeeds brilliantly once again by mixing together pitch-perfect dialogue from believable characters with well developed suspense and horror situations - only now pumped up bigger, particularly in its special effects and music. One could imagine a film made with the same characters stranded on a bus without the monster stalking them. The only false note in his mythology is that it seems the Creeper generates psychic activity in his surroundings, since the sequel has another character (Nicki Aycox this time, as a suddenly psychic cheerleader) picking up vital exposition from the ether. However, so much of the film's details and characters ring true, and the rest of the story works so well, that this clunky device is forgivable. Since the filmmakers have been even more careful here to stay away from any references or props that would tie the film to a specific point in time, it's a sure bet that JEEPERS CREEPERS 3 can be filmed without placing it in a ridiculously advanced future. Looking forward to that ride, especially if Salva is back on board.

Salva is deeply involved in the DVD presentation as well, on hand for interviews with various crew members for the Making-Of documentary, a 26-minute "day in the life" behind-the-scenes segment, and a lively commentrak for which he's reunited with much of the talented young cast. In-between all the expected joking around, the director continues to direct, prompting plenty of revealing reactions from the actors. A second "Creeper Commentary" reassembles the monster team of Breck, illustrator Brad Parker and f/x makeup chief Brian Penikas. While this group is a bit over-focused on the horror effects, it also documents Breck's possession of his character it seems odd, but even under that heavy make-up, it will be increasingly difficult to think of any other actor as the Creeper.

Once again, the folks in MGM's DVD division prove themselves to be among the best in the business, bringing a full slate of extras on a single disc in an era when most major studio releases spread things over two. All the menus are accompanied by video and stills with Breck specially created just for the DVD. The aforementioned documentary material does a good job of giving an impression of what it was like to make the film, a feeling reinforced by other extras. The deleted scenes section, compiled by Salva and editor Ed Marx, reveals little except to show why each bit was left out. One clip shows a character trying to use a cell phone (a little too modern). The most interesting footage was cut from a dream sequence it's too long and slow, but it gives a nifty peek at the remains of Creeper victims from bygone eras. Two other scenes were cut before they were filmed, but are represented by animated storyboards. One of these shows the Creeper talking, but Salva feels it's not yet time to show his monster talking to his food.