Tremors: Shrieker Island

30 years ago in 1990, it was a time that helped me become more open minded to the world, especially when i did my first foreign trip that year to Spain. Back in those days we did not need cellphones, we had real friends, and not like social media friends as in today´s society. We would gather a group of friends and do a lot of stuff together, especially outside in forest areas. 1990 had so many good things about this year, not only in film releases but in music as well. Australian rock band INXS released their seventh studio album X, that includes the hit single Suicide Blonde. I used to play this album a lot, since i was a big fan of INXS in those days ( i still listen to them now and then, not often though ). This was also the year when American heavy metal band Megadeath released their classic album Rust In Peace. I remember this album especially for my school class mate Tom ( who was a big Mötley Crue fan ), who used to play this album in class for us. But let´s be honest, 1990 was a fantastic year for films and there are so many titles i could mention. I think it would be better if we just pick out two titles. Let us begin with Predator 2, directed by Stephen Hopkins. This is the sequel to the 80´s cult classic Predator with Arnold Schwarzenegger. I know the sequel have very divided opinions from fans of the first film, but i really enjoy Predator 2, even if Danny Glover is in the lead role. I personally think that he did a really good job with his character, and it is also fun to see the Predator run around Los Angeles looking for prey. If you are a fan of the first film, you have to see Predator 2. It is filled with action, funny dialogue, a lot of great actors and most of all, lots of wonderful violence. The next film that came to my mind is known as Tremors, directed by Ron Underwood. A really fun cult classic horror comedy with actors Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward and Michael Gross who are fighting against burrowing sandlike monsters. Tremors is one of those films i can Watch 100 times and never get tired of, this is truly one of the best films of 1990 and have both great characters and great pratcical effects. Since this film came out we have had a lot of sequels, and i actually enjoy them all for different reasons. So here we are in 2020 with the latest sequel called Tremors: Shrieker Island. Of course i bought a Blu Ray copy of this film, since i have all the films so far in the Tremors franchise. Is this one of the better sequels, or is the Tremors franchise running out of ideas with this film?

Big game hunter Bill ( Richard Brake ), owner of Avex-Bio Tech, leads a hunting party with his partner Dr. Richards ( Matthew Douglas ) and best hunter Anna ( Cassie Clare ), where he takes wealthy participants to hunt down Graboids on Dark Island. Dr. Jasmine Welker ( Caroline Landrishe ) and her collegue Jimmy ( Jon Heder ) leaves Dark Island together with friend Ishimon to investigate a dead Graboid. They find out that the Graboid have given birth to Shriekers, and soon they are under attack as Shriekers take Ishimon. Dr. Jasmine knows how dangerous Shriekers are, and instruct Jimmy to locate legendary Graboid killer Burt Grummer ( Michael Gross ) to help them fight these bastards, before they kill the population of this island.

If you have seen the previous films of the Tremors franchise, you pretty much know what you might expect from this latest film. There is especially one detail that i appreciate about Shrieker Island, and that is that they have borrowed influences from the first Predator film in the jungle. You see the creature stare at the victims with body heat thermal view, and it´s almost like seeing a different version of Predator. There is even a rattle gun in here as well ( as they had in the first Predator film ). The colors of this film looks great in the Thailand forest, and this actually match well with the hunting scenes. One of the best things about this film is that the cast is so divided this time, with some fresh faces as well. Legendary actor Richard Burke is here as hunter Bill, and i have to say that he is actually better than i expected. I enoyed him in several films in the past, but it is nice to see him in a Tremors film, and that he brings us a fun character as well. Jon Heder ( who will always be known as Napoleon Dynamite ) is also here as the corky character Jimmy, and he also matches well with the cast. One of the coolest characters is without a doubt Anna ( played by wonderful actress Cassie Clare ), who kills these beast with her bow and arrow. She is confident, and no one will ever mess with her. Of course we have to talk about legendary actor Michael Gross, who have been in the Tremors franchise in many years as the legendary character Burt Gummer. He might be a little bit older, but he is still kicking ass in his own unique way. Michael Gross is as always charming to see, and only he can do this character in such a lovely way. The creatures known as Graboids, do they look good this time around as well ? I would say they look ok, even if i wish we could see them a little bit more than what we get to in this film. If you might remember in the past, you actually saw Graboids attack more physically in some of the previous films. They do attack here as well, but maybe not as often as you would hope. Either way, as a sequel i still had a good time with Tremors: Shrieker Island thanks for the diversity of the cast. And to make this film in Thailand turned out to be a great idea. Director Don Michael Paul ( who directed 2 other Tremors sequels in the past ) knows his material, and gives us a fun B movie moment with nostalgic feelings. Maybe not the best film in this franchise, but still a fun sequel. I suggest you go out and buy this film on DVD or Blu Ray, so we can have at least 5 more sequels in the future. Because let´s be honest, the future generation of kids needs to learn the legacy of Tremors, how else will they finish school with good education?

Rating: DDD