The 1997 horror-comedy Jack Frost (not to be confused with the 1998 Michael Keaton family film) is aware of how ridiculous its premise is and mines it for comedy effectively. The horrible special effects, idiotic characters, and slapped-together plot make it a bad movie. It's also kind of fun.
On the way to his execution, serial killer Jack Frost (Scott MacDonald) is caught in an accident that fuses his cells with snow on the ground. Returning to Snowmonton, Jack resumes his killing spree, working his way up to the man who sent him to the chair: Sheriff Sam Tiler (Christopher Allport).
The pictureâs an excuse to have a killer snowman impaling people with icicles or killing hapless innocents with Christmas decorations. Everything else is an afterthought. The characters are flat and introduced only so they can be killed later, the dialogue is groan-inducing, and the plot unimaginative. Even the special effects are terrible. You donât have to live up in the frosty wastes of Canada to tell this film was shot in California with phony-looking snow (in some cases itâs just cotton) drizzled over a few branches or bits of sidewalk here and there. Then thereâs Jack himself. The monsterâs design is no good either. Itâs nothing like the cool monster I vividly remember seeing on that lenticular VHS cover when I was a child; itâs the old carrot nose and lumps of coal for eyes. Thereâs a scene where he has icicle for teeth, but it's brief. You canât keep a straight face as the incredible fake-looking creature kills one person after another, sometimes in ways that donât make sense. Thereâs a poor fella who gets killed by an ax in a way that Iâve never seen before â but thatâs because no filmmaker would ever choose to emulate Michael Cooneyâs writing and directing choices.
Itâs difficult to tell if Jack Frost tries to be good, or knew it was going to be hot steamy garbage from the moment it was conceived. Several comedic scenes are effective. I criticized the special effects, but thereâs no way the people working on this film didnât know they weren't convincing. In a way, it fits the pictureâs idiotic premise. Iâm not saying you couldnât make a legitimately good snowman-themed horror film (though considering how well 2017âs The Snowman did, perhaps not), but if you're spoofing supernatural slashers, there's no need to break the bank. I will also give it that there are a few clever moments here and there. Being made of snow, Jack can melt and then re-assemble/refreeze himself at will, making for some cool scenes where he slips under doors or effortlessly moves from one side of a room to another. I donât know how he manages to transport his carrot nose, coal eyes, and scarf while in liquid form, if he needs those to be complete, how he managed to even get to Snowmonton⊠but Iâll forgive it.
As a "so bad it's good movie", I can only give âJack Frostâ a mild recommendation. It'll make you laugh, some kills are inventive, and you'll find a couple of memorable moments but compare this to Killer Klowns from Outer Space. It trumps Jack Frost in every department. This just isn't there. The price I paid for the Blu-ray of Jack Frost was way too high, but Iâm also kind of glad I finally saw it. (On Blu-ray, November 29, 2017)