Killjoy (2000)

Killjoy 

Written by Carl Washington
Directed by Craig Ross, Jr.

Killjoy...Angel Vargas
Jada...Vera Yell
Lorenzo...William L. Johnson
Jamal...Lee Marks
Monique...Dee Dee Austin

 

A picked on teenager reaches out to urban voodoo to win the heart of Jada, the girl of his dreams.  Instead, he is gunned down be her gang member boyfriend Lorenzo and his two cohorts.  One year later, a mysterious ice cream truck arrives in the 'hood, driven by the murderous clown Killjoy, who dishes up more than just soft serve.

With his supernatural powers and magical truck that transports his prey to an abandoned warehouse, Killjoy targets first Lorenzo and his pals before then turning his sights on Jada, her best friend Monique, and her new, sensitive loverboy Jamal.

It seems almost as if the Full Mooners were trying to cross Candyman with Freddy Kruger in an attempt to create a brand new franchise killer, only to accidentally wind up with Pennywise as filtered through Chris Tucker doing his best Crypt Keeper impression.  That is to say, Killjoy is one of the most painfully obnoxious villains in recent history, full of bad puns delivered in a grating voice that is like nails dragged across the chalk board.

Now, as any frequent reader of my blog knows, I love killer clowns with a passion that is rivaled only by my love of nicotine, beatniks, bacon, and naked ladies, so I can't totally hate on this film.  But that doesn't mean that I can just ignore the weaknesses here, which are as obvious as they are plentiful.

The special effects were merely passable.  The acting at times bordered on poor, as characters stumbled over their lines and tried to show emotions that they have no experience with.  The storyline was ludicrous and the plot was full of holes, with certain elements never expanded upon or explained.

For example:

• Why did the ice cream truck teleport people to a warehouse?
• Who the hell was Killjoy, where did he get his powers, and how did Michael know about him?
• Who was the magical homeless man, and how did he know so much?
• And, perhaps most importantly, did this really call for two sequels?

A bit of a weak entry in the Full Moon catalogue, but far from the worst film I've seen.  I've grown weary of these "urban horrors" that are aimed at an audience I'm not convinced exists, and it's too bad that a killer clown pic from Full Moon couldn't have been handled better.

Although I've not been able to procure a copy of Killjoy 2 as of yet, a review of part 3 will be coming shortly.  Here's hoping the series manages to deliver the final product that it has the potential to.

(Visit Full Moon Direct or the official webpage)

2000
Rated R
72 Minutes
Color
English
United States

"Come alive, Killjoy!  Come alive!"
--J/Metro