While it may’ve not have been the best film to end the series on, Phantasm: Ravager does provide a mostly satisfying conclusion to the saga with its good protagonist, engaging plot and great horror.

Ravager focuses almost completely on Reggie as he struggles to determine what is reality and what is illusion. In one reality he has just returned from one of the Tall Man’s portals and is continuing his quest to find Mike. In another however he is in a hospital battling the early stages of dementia. Despite his uncertainty, Reggie fights with everything he has in both realities, trying to convince Mike to help him at the hospital while journeying through a fiery apocalyptic world ruled by the Tall Man.

The Characters

Ravager is unique compared to the previous films in that it’s the first to focus on one single character. We never leave Reggie for the whole film, we follow him on every step of his journey. While he does display the same courage and determination we’re familiar with by now, Ravager places him in a completely new and original situation. One of my main criticisms of Oblivion was that Reggie didn’t have a lot to do, he was just overcoming obstacles we’ve seen him overcome before. Ravager doesn’t do that. In the film we see that Reggie’s resolve has been challenged in a way that he’s never dealt with before. His sense of reality has been completely distorted. He’s trying to save Mike in a world teeming with dwarves and the Tall Man’s agents while at the same time trying to escape the hospital. We’ve never seen him this powerless and alone, which makes his character even more compelling and empathetic than he is in the previous films.

One downside to Reggie’s protagonist role is the limited time we spend with the other characters, Mike especially. His relationship with the Tall Man is a thread that’s run through the entire series and while it is resolved in Ravager, it’s done so quickly with little development that it’s not as emotionally affective as it should be. For the majority of the film Mike’s in the hospital where he doesn’t recall any of the events from the previous films. He’s focused on helping Reggie with his condition. He’s an engaging watch but his presence in the film is too small.

One of the supporting characters is a woman called Dawn, who Reggie meets during his travels. Her characterization is quite dull, however it’s what she does and what happens to her in the plot that makes her really interesting.

The Plot

Ravager is probably the most fast paced out of all the Phantasm films. The plot is very engaging and is constantly moving. However, sometimes it goes to places it doesn’t need to go and ends up wasting time. There’re a few scenes that have little to no point in the overall narrative. A good example of this is when Reggie encounters the Lady in Lavender from the first film. While the scene provides some good fan service and has some great scares, it’s never referenced again and doesn’t really affect Reggie’s journey. It’s nothing but filler. Another example is Reggie’s time with Dawn in the first act. The familiar Phantasm formula of Reggie meeting a woman and trying to seduce her is subverted fantastically, however most of it doesn’t really contribute to the film’s conclusion.

The plot does progress the story but at a slow speed. Reggie’s conflict with the Tall Man for example gets a lot of attention and development. They have a few scenes together where Reggie is tempted by the Tall Man as he offers to resurrect his deceased family if he stops interfering with his plans. Reggie also learns of the Tall Man’s power. We see that his campaign is complete and he has conquered most of the planet. This forces Reggie to up his determination as he realizes the huge, almost unstoppable influence of the Tall Man.

This plot thread is fantastic, particularly in the third act. The third act makes all the filler in the first two acts worth watching. Story-lines are concluded, revelations emerge and questions are answered. It’s great.

The Horror and Comedy

Similar to Oblivion, Ravager consists of more horror than comedy. Like the original, the horror is made up of atmospheric scenes, jump-scares, disturbing imagery and of course, gore. Unfortunately, most of the horror occurs in the first and second acts, which contain a lot of the pointless scenes like the Lady in Lavender one. On a positive note, the horror does make the first and second acts very engaging and maintains the film’s fast pace. The dwarves for example are very well done in Ravager. Following his encounter with the Lady in Lavender, Reggie enters a cave that mysteriously appears in the mortuary. As he approaches, dwarves crawl on the walls like spiders and leap onto him, revealing their very articulate monstrous faces. It’s a good scene.

The comedy is minimal, which is appropriate considering the epic, climatic tone of the film. Most, if not all of the humour actually comes from a new character called Chunk. He’s a little man who’s apart of a resistance group on the Tall Man’s Earth. Like Rocky in Lord of the Dead, he constantly mocks Reggie but his humorous remarks are made in doses, providing a healthy comic relief that doesn’t spoil the overall tone of the film.

Phantasm: Ravager has a lot of filler, which could’ve been replaced with more scenes with Mike and his story, however its conduct of Reggie’s character, the threads that do contribute to the climax and its good horror make Ravager a potent and pretty solid conclusion to the Phantasm saga.

I give Phantasm: Ravager a worthy 7 out of 10.

 

Well, that’s it. Phantasm’s done for now (I’ve heard rumours of a sixth film but that seems unlikely since the passing of Angus Scrimm). It’s been fun watching these films and reviewing the various story-lines that connect them all. There’re still some questions that have been left unanswered but that’s a topic for another article. One which I might pen before New Year’s, probably over on Vocal. Anyways, thanks to everyone’s who read and shared these reviews and I hope you all have a Happy Halloween!