PLOT: When horror guru Rad Chad Buckley’s funeral turns into an elaborate series of hilarious death traps, the guests must band together and use the rules of horror to survive the bloody game.
REVIEW: The first Scare Package released in 2020 on Shudder and provided an entertaining anthology film. With its practical effects and more meta approach, it stood out amongst the slew of horror anthologies that release yearly. It was both humorous and absurdly violent, so I was a big fan. But sequels are hard to pull off, let alone when dealing with something that’s so high concept. And where do you even take the “story” after the ending of the first film?
Well Scare Package 2: Rad Chad’s Revenge picks up shortly after the first: with some characters from the original attending the funeral of the film aficionado. Things take a very Saw-like approach with its wraparound segment. Actually no, this segment is just a straight-up Saw parody, complete with television and a game to be played. But Chad and a mysterious partner make for a great Jigsaw, parroting movie knowledge in that familiar, raspy tone. If anything, I felt the Saw jokes were a little on the nose and surface level.
The “Welcome to the 90’s” segment features a ton of characters all named after various Final Girls. It’s a fun breakdown of the various “rules” established in horror films, namely that certain girls are meant to survive the killer, and some are supposed to die. These roles being reversed provides some interesting commentary on the tropes themselves. It also goes to spotlight the absurdity of so many different tropes.
Like any true sequel, we get a continuation of an older segment with The Night He Came Back Again! Part VI: The Night She Came Back, furthering the story of Part IV – The Final Kill. As you can probably tell, this is a big Friday the 13th parody, but it also throws in some Halloween for good measure. One aspect that’s sorely missing is the character of Mike, who essentially worked as some kind of horror film guide in the first. That was my favorite part so I was very sad to not see it included here. But really, that’s the only thing that doesn’t get some kind of connection.
Just like the original, not all of the segments work. “Special Edition” doesn’t match the tone of the rest of the film, and sticks out like a sore thumb. It doesn’t really fit into the larger overall story in the same way that the other segments do either. I also feel like I need to draw attention to the fact that Kelli Maroney is in this movie. Not only that, but the 80’s vixen is in a shockingly large amount of the film. It’s nice to see someone used as an actual character and not just a quick piece of nostalgia. Speaking of which, I was quite happy to see Joe Bob Briggs return, even if IT WAS just a nostalgia grab.
Ultimately, Rad Chad’s Revenge doesn’t quite live up to the fun of the original, but it does a better job than I expected. Any horror fan will have fun just keeping an eye out for all of the references, whether it’s in the characters’ names, clothing, or even the stories themselves. And all the practical effects will be enough to satiate any gore fan. This is a companion piece, so to get the maximum enjoyment, make sure you’ve seen the original. Just get ready for plenty of silliness because, for the curmudgeonly tightwad, this is not.
Scare Package 2: Rad Chad’s Revenge is STREAMING ON SHUDDER ON DECEMBER 23rd, 2022!
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