The Phantom of Texarkana Strikes Again: The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014)

The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014)
Rating: ****
Starring: Addison Timlin, Veronica Cartwright, Anthony Anderson

Though I'm not a very big fan of the original Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976), I do pride myself of seeing that piece of camp history well loved, if not respected, by true slasher fans. It was an odd experience, seeing it during my years when I'm (re)discovering the world of slashers for the first time, that weird mix of psycho-drama, comedic cheesiness and slasher film dread being my entertainment for that one weekend afternoon.

Almost four decades later and this name sake comes along, a surprisingly well-made title that not only acts as a reboot but also a meta-sequel of its own style.

Set in 2013 in the God-fearing town of Texarkana, it appears that the Phantom has returned 65 years since his disappearance at Halloween night, once again targeting young teenagers in an elusive killing spree. With the entire town rattled, law enforcers from both sides of the state and too some religious groups try their best to prevent any more murders but with the killer as cunning as he was before, the death toll continues.

One survivor of the very first night the murders began, a young high schooler named Jami, decided to look into the murders herself seeing that the killer has chosen her over her boyfriend to survive for a purpose, terrorizing her with creepy phone calls, emails and letters. With the help of her new lover, Jami will soon find out the truth about the murders, both in the past and in the present, all the while trying to survive the Phantom's increasingly violent attacks.

As a meta-sequel, The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014) took elements from the original 1976 Town and crafted them into a series of red herrings and plot points set within an in-world universe that acknowledges the real-life historical killing spree, resulting to a slasher film that's both respectful of the 1976 exploitation title it is based on and an original story of its own. Much of the horror elements of the new Town, in turn, is closer to what can be found in a bonafide bodycounter flick with the sex=death cliché taken to a literal sense with a bit of zealousness, each murder simply cruel, bloody and incredibly intense. I also took notice of the film's tone, which is gritty in an exploitation kind of sense, all the way down to the watered-looking yellow tint picture, the town's oddly 70s inspired backdrop (from the clothes to the vehicles, despite taking place in the 2010s) and stylized retro camera shots, elements that worked quite well for a remake paying tribute to the original.

Intriguing to note that the fright factor of the original 1976 Town is that it has a sense of realism despite its cheesier parts, thanks to its documentary-like presentation as well as being made and released years closer since the original killing spree. The 2014 Town, comparingly, is clearly a movie made from one's imagination, made to thrill the public and entertain horror fans by relying on suspenseful stalkings and gruesomely gory killings. Not really a bad thing since it did cater enough to stand on its own too feet without relying too much on people recognizing the movie it's both remaking and following-up on; in fact, since the original Town is a recurring artifice frequently shown through out the film, it kinda advertises it and plays around with the notion of what is fictionalized and what is not. The acting delivers a lot better compared to the the original as well, which helped the film drive through parts where it needed to slow down to focus more on the investigations, both amateur and not, albeit dwelling down to a cliched twist ending that could have been a lot longer and engaging but nonetheless satisfying.

The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014) is a slasher that deserved to be warmly welcomed by fans of the original and those who are looking for a worthwhile remake/sequel these days. Stylized and engaging, a combination that makes any cliched horror movie a fun ride.

Bodycount:
1 male stabbed to death with a knife, face mutilated
1 male beheaded with a knife
1 female knifed to death
1 male shot dead (?)
1 male seen covered in stab wounds, shot on the head
1 male repeatedly stabbed with a knife-attached trombone
1 male and 1 female killed in car crash (flashback)
1 male shot on the eye
1 female knifed to death
1 male knifed into pieces (flashback)
1 male shot on the head
1 female shot on the neck
1 male shot
1 male found in pieces
1 male shot on the head
1 male shot to death
Total: 17