Nerdly » ‘Axeman At Cutter’s Creek 2’ Review

26th Sep2023

‘Axeman At Cutter’s Creek 2’ Review

by Phil Wheat

Stars: Arielle Brachfeld, Ari Hader, Bryan E. Clark II, Arielle Brachfeld, Monique Parent, Alisha Seaton, Farrah Abraham, Edward Gusts, Allen Merritt, Michael Wayne Foster, Craig Partamian, Jacqui Holland | Written and Directed by Joston Theney

I’m not going to lie, the Axeman franchise is starting to get a bit confusing… the original film was released in 2013 and a sequel arrived a few years later under the title Axeman 2: Overkill. Then in 2020 the original film was recut and re-edited, making it – as filmmaker Joston Theney stated – a more straightforward horror with a leaner edit, new footage and new music. Originally set to be released under the title Axeman: Redux, instead it was released as Axemen at Cutter’s Creek.

Now comes Axeman at Cutter’s Creek 2 which, if you believe IMDb is a sequel to Axeman 2 and NOT Axemen at Cutter’s Creek – though the press materials claims otherwise, stating this film is in fact a sequel to Axemen at Cutter’s Creek, a re-edit of the original 2013 film and is also in fact ANOTHER re-edit, this time of Axeman 2: Overkill… Told you things were confusing!

Axeman At Cutter’s Creek 2 marks the blood-soaked return of the titular killer who takes his axe-wielding skills to a bunch of crazed evangelical Christians and murderous bank robbers led by Bird (Craig Partamian) and his girlfriend Sunshine (Jacqui Holland), who all “invade” quaint town of Cutter’s Creek on the same day. On top of that, you have Deputy Sheriff Darlene (Arielle Brachfield) coming across two injured campers (played by Whitney Nielsen and the film’s creator Joston Theney), who claim to have escaped the clutches of the Axeman… who was supposedly killed by Darlene father! Oh and did I mention that the Axeman is joined by his family for this one too?!

Like the re-edit of the original film, writer/director Joston Theney has trimmed down the film’s running time, focusing more on the horror aspects (though this film still has a sarcastic, sometimes vitriolic, sense of humour) as well as adding a new original score from composer John Baxter. And the new edit of this film – like it did for the original film – works wonders in terms of storytelling. This film keeps things tight, with not a single minute of footage wasted – even the moments of dialogue drive the story forward instead of slowing down the pace.

With some great kills and a running time cut down from the original 100 minutes to a swift 79, Axeman at Cutter’s Creek 2 is without a doubt the best film in the “franchise.” What marks the film out from a myriad of other slasher movies is the film’s twisted nature – not only are some of the Axeman’s kills downright disturbing (and gory) but there’s a particularly disturbing bathroom scene involving bank robber Sunshine that is, honestly, probably worse than anything the titular killer gets up too!