Some years back… I really don’t recall how many… It’s not important.

A story broke on some horror media conglomerate’s “socials” about an upcoming sequel to the 1984 slasher film The Mutilator. That’s probably how it happened. I don’t really remember. Either way, as far as I can recall, my initial reaction was “Huh?”. I’m sure many other horror fans had the same reaction as, no offense meant, The Mutilator wasn’t exactly the most well-known of films. While it has its fanbase, the film most assuredly doesn’t rank in popularity with slasher classics Friday the 13th and Halloween, nor do I believe that it’s as talked about and/or celebrated as say Maniac or The Prowler. Also, as The Mutilator ended with its killer fairly incapacitated, if not dead, the door had not really been left open for a follow-up.

For those unfamiliar with the first Mutilator film, the plot focuses on a college student, Ed, and his friends spending the weekend at Ed’s father’s beachside condo. Meanwhile, Ed Sr. (aka “Big Ed”) lurks in the building’s basement, waiting to brutally murder them all as vengeance for Ed’s having accidentally killed his own mother as a child. Sure, there’s massive plot holes here, such as why Big Ed waited so many years before deciding to kill his son, and why such an elaborate plan involving multiple innocent victims was needed, but, hey… someone gets the pointy end of a fishing gaff shoved up their vagina! It’s “kill” scenes such as this that helped the film develop a small fanbase over the years.

Naturally, many wondered just what Buddy Cooper, the original film’s writer and director, had been up to these last few decades. Turns out Cooper really hasn’t been up to a damned thing, at least not as far as filmmaking was concerned. That said, since returning to the world of horror cinema, Cooper has served as either an associate or executive producer on a trio of low-budget films: 2023’s The Woodsman and Late Checkout, as well as 2024’s Silent Night, Bloody Night 3, the 2nd sequel to a 2013 remake of the 1972 cult classic starring Mary Woronov and Patrick O’Neal. In case you were wondering just what Cooper does in these producer roles, he does answer that question during his cameo in the sequel.

Nothing. As a producer, he still doesn’t do a damned thing.

As mentioned, The Mutilator ends quite resolved. As such, the sequel takes what some (many, actually) have referred to as a “meta” approach with the plot focusing on a fictionalized remake of The Mutilator (for some reason, also entitled Mutilator 2). In what may be Mutilator 2‘s only true moment of continuity, the remake is being shot in the same location as the first film; the building now converted into a small beachside hotel with the pier, heavily featured in the original film, still adjacent. Presumably to help promote and celebrate the new film, a small convention seemingly dedicated to the original Mutilator film is also being held at the hotel, with cast and crew of the new film in attendance.

Joining them are Ruth Martinez and Bill Hitchcock, two cast members from the original The Mutilator. Also in attendance is Jack Chatham, the actor who played “Big Ed”, the killer from the first film. However, unlike Martinez and Hitchcock, who appear as themselves, Chatman is now portrayed by veteran actor Terry Kiser. Although best known as “Bernie Lomax” in the Weekend at Bernie’s films or “Dr. Crews” in Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood, Kiser has also appeared in From A Whisper to A Scream, Mannequin Two: On The Move, and the short-lived “Carol & Company” television series, among other works. I can only assume that the real Chatman did not appear due to age or having read the script.*

*This was intended as a joke. Clearly, there was no script.

As the remake nears the conclusion of its tight shooting schedule, a killer starts picking off the film’s cast and crew. Truth be told, only one person meets their bloody end in the film’s early goings. Instead, Mutilator 2 spends most of its exceptionally brief 63-minute runtime playing more as a highly disjointed comedy, spoofing not only the original film, but also indie film making, horror films in general, and even horror fandom. The biggest fault to this approach, aside from not adding anything of importance to the plot or any sense of nostalgia for fans, is that it’s just painfully unfunny. Among the lowlights are a 5-minute sequence involving a prop head glued to a man’s penis, which then becomes a running joke throughout the entire film. In retrospect, that’s actually one of the highlights. 

Gore, which is what The Mutilator built its fanbase off of, does finally show up in Mutilator 2’s rapid-paced, but completely non-sensical final act. I do respect the fact that the film uses primarily practical effects, with maybe some CGI added for blood spray. However, while these effects are frequently quite gruesome and grizzly, they are not always entirely convincing. Although the kill count is quite high, more than half of the kills are generally background characters or extras who play no role in the already non-existent plot.

Making matters worse, performances are generally pretty bad across the board. I will exclude Damien Maffei (The Strangers: Prey at Night, Haunt) from this criticism, mostly because he is given exceptionally little to do in a fairly small role as a detective investigating the killings. I’ll assume that someone thought it was a clever joke to name his character “Columbo”, but this is far from being the biggest dud in the film’s attempts to be humorous. Cody Renee Cameron (Full Moon’s “Barbie and Kendra” films), who appears as the remake’s make-up effects artist, looks like an absolute veteran compared to most of the cast, especially the older actors. Meanwhile, Kiser often seems to be having a hard time taking any of this seriously, while spending his non-speaking moments frequently staring off into space as if he were questioning the career choices that lead to this moment. I can’t say that I blame him. 

Mutilator 2 ends quite abruptly and with no explanations given for much of anything, which seems like something of a “slap in the face” to viewers, particularly the original film’s more devoted fans. All 13 of them! Even more insulting, the film then has the balls to roll out nearly six minutes of end credits when it’s abundantly clear that quite a few of these folks, much like Cooper, didn’t actually do a damned thing! As I have seen at least one other reviewer speculate, one has to wonder if the production ran out of funds and simply stitched together what had already been filmed. Even then, one has to question if the “finished product” should have been released at all. As is, Mutilator 2 feels like little more than a “fan film”, albeit one made by people who not only hate the original film, but hate the people that enjoy it even more.

I don’t know if it will take another 40 years before we see a third Mutilator film, but if it’s anything like this sequel… that’s not long enough. Who knows? Maybe one day, some young filmmaker will come along and offer up a true remake or sequel to the 1984 film. Then, there’s at least some chance that the film will be made by someone who actually gives a fuck. All I know is that it probably won’t be me and it sure as Hell won’t be Buddy Cooper.

As of this writing, Mutilator 2 is currently available to rent ($2.99) or buy ($9.99) on Amazon Prime Video. I don’t recommend either option. Just go watch the first movie and forget this one ever happened.Â