Messengers 2: The Scarecrow

John Rollins is a farmer that is barely making ends meet.  That is until his latest crop of corn is attacked by the crows, which basically destroy it.  Things are further complicated by the banker, who refuses to loan him the money to fix his irrigation pump and the fact he can’t afford money for fertilizer.  But everything changes when he finds an old scarecrow hidden away in the back of the barn.  After he puts it up in the field the crows die, the pump starts working, and he gets the cash to pay for what he needs.  But what will the scarecrow require of him in return and will he be willing to pay it?

Now I never saw the original Messengers movie, but I have to say this movie wasn’t at all what I thought it was going to be, and that is a good thing.  The story is very creepy and atmospheric, if not entirely original.  I mean as a horror fan the minute he found the scarecrow hidden in the barn you knew it wasn’t going to turn out well.  As I was watching the movie I was predicting each character’s fate as soon as they were introduced.  Oh and I have to mention that I think the movie tries to make the audience believe that perhaps Rollins is the killer, but I never saw it that way.  In fact until the end with the reactions of the other characters it never even occurred to me to think that.  So if that was supposed to be some kind of red herring I missed it.  But then I don’t expect ever horror movie that I sit down to watch to reinvent the genre or throw crazy twists at me.  If that is your expectation every time you see a new flick then more often then not you are going to be very disappointed.  On the other hand if you can appreciated a well executed, if predictable effort at making a horror film then Messengers 2: the Scarecrow is worth checking out.  The cast does a decent job in their roles, but honestly no one stands out.  Well not for their acting skills anyway.  I did need to mention that there is even a nice bit of nudity, which I didn’t really expect.  Overall it is just a solid movie. 

One of the most impressive things about the movie is the camera work.  It really is a beautifully shot movie that has a bit of a surreal feel to it.  I’m not sure if they used CGI, but the sky has a very strange look to it.  I also thought the scenes in the cornfield looked great, but then being from the Midwest I’ve always been freaked out by cornfields.  Trust me until you’ve wandered around in one in the middle of the night you haven’t lived.  The scarecrow mostly just hangs out in the field (literally) and they save the scarecrow moving around for the very end of the movie.  When it does get down to business on screen it looks pretty damn good and the effect is executed nicely.  Other than that there isn’t much else as far as special effects.  Most of the kills are off screen and those we see are pretty tame.  But that works okay here, because this movie seems to be more about the atmosphere than the gore. 

If you can’t tell I sort of liked this movie.  Though I don’t know if it is a case that the movie is pretty good or if my expectations were so low that it far exceeded them.  I mean I kind of expected a cheesy made for Sci-fi flick (especially as soon as I saw it was filmed in Bulgaria) but it was way better than those.  I recommend renting this one or buying it if you can get it on the cheap (less then 10 bucks). 

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer

© Copyright 2009 John Shatzer