Jeepers Creepers (2001) - Review
It's not very common for a song to be made into a movie but for "Jeepers Creepers", this was the case. "Jeepers Creepers" is a popular 1938 song written by Harry Warren & the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, for the 1938 Warner Brothers movie "Going Places". The song would then go on to be featured in the 2001 horror movie "Jeepers Creepers" starring Gina Philips & Justin Long as the main characters.
The film was shot in Florida in the summer of 2000, written & directed by Victor Salva with a budget of $10 million. Opening in 2,944 theatres, Jeepers Creepers grossed $37,904,175 domestically and went on to gross $21,313,614 internationally, making a total of $59,217,789.
Despite receiving mixed reviews, the movie was nevertheless a financial success as it broke the highest ever Labor Day weekend gross in America.
The movie begins with Trish and Darry Jenner (played by Gina Philips & Justin Long) travelling home from college for spring break. Whilst driving through Florida's countryside, an old, rusty truck tries to run them off the road before eventually passing them. Later on, they see the same truck next to an abandoned church with a man sliding what seems to be a body wrapped in bloodstained sheets into a large pipe sticking out of the ground.
The man sees Trish & Darry watching him so he pursuits them in an attempt to run them off the road a second time.
There's a huge catalog of great horror movies but Jeepers Creepers is one of the few with one of the most exhilarating starts as described in the above paragraph. Although some critics argued that the tension and suspence quickly deflated into genre cliches, the film is still worth spending 91 minutes on your time.
~ Written by Tanaka Musanhi
Picture © American Zoetrope
Text © Tanaka Musanhi