Without a doubt the most attractive lunatic you're ever gonna meet.
But it's her waaay over-the-top irritating laugh that bugs the hell out of me. Tamed down in The Devil's Rejects from the squealing annoyance of House of 1000 Corpses, she becomes more tolerable, and can be seen as more of a threat. I think Zombie was going for the whole typical mentally unstable laugh to make people uncomfortable, but to me - it was like listening to a girl in your high school study hall who fawns all over the basketball captain and giggles at his every word. May I just say, AAAARRRRGGH!
Okay, besides the vexatious snickering, Baby was a real wolf in sheep's clothing. She drew the poor victims in House of 1000 Corpses to her family abode with promises of fixing their car, then sprung the nutso factor. Flirting with the hostages, doing her silly 'I wanna be loved' routine, and that obnoxious dinner party homage to TCM shows a ridiculous side of Baby that we just about could have done without.
Silly as alot of her actions were in the first film, she was still clearly off her rocker, and becomes utterly lethal in The Devil's Rejects.
At once a darker and more visceral film, The Devil's Rejects strives to make Baby (and her two family members on the run with her) more frightening by upping the violence and turning it into a bloody revenge exploitation film.
While on the run, Otis and her relentlessly torture a group of people at a motel, to which she shows no remorse whatsoever. Baby is now purely psychopathic, and short of the scene involving getting ice cream--
--she is hell bent on destroying lives on the way to her eventual blaze of glory last ride. (Which I think is the best scene in the movie. Seems odd to hear Free Bird now and not think of that.)
While on the run, Otis and her relentlessly torture a group of people at a motel, to which she shows no remorse whatsoever. Baby is now purely psychopathic, and short of the scene involving getting ice cream--
--she is hell bent on destroying lives on the way to her eventual blaze of glory last ride. (Which I think is the best scene in the movie. Seems odd to hear Free Bird now and not think of that.)
Played by director Rob Zombie's wife, Sheri Moon-Zombie, Baby Firefly seems almost humorous in the first film, but by the end of the sequel, she is nothing but a heartless killer.
I much prefer The Devil's Rejects. A better film, first of all. Secondly, no hideous laughter.
Lastly, what can I say? I freakin' love violence.
Quite the villain indeed.
*Buy it here.
I much prefer The Devil's Rejects. A better film, first of all. Secondly, no hideous laughter.
Lastly, what can I say? I freakin' love violence.
Quite the villain indeed.
*Buy it here.
In the first one, she was playing it the way the movie was. The movie is one big ode to spooky old horror movies, and to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Her laughter is as over the top as the movie is.
ReplyDeleteFor the second one, she adapted her character to the films tone as well. Fine job on both counts I think, I dont mind her squeaky evil laughter and her hyper personality on the first one.
The Ice Scream scene shows that even though shes a psychopathic killer, shes still just a child at heart, a lost child, making up time for the childhood she never had.
Nice post!
As much as I heart Sherri Moon Zombie - I prefer her in The Devil's Rejects, sans that piercing and annoying laugh.
ReplyDeleteTutti fuckin' fruity!
I Love Sheri Moon-Zombie!
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
That ice cream scene is classic.
ReplyDeleteHuge fan of both the movies. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI just couldn't get into House of 1000 Corpses. I could see what it was trying to do, but it came across too piecemeal to me. Now, The Devil's Rejects is razor-sharp. Baby Firefly is altogether more coherently menacing in the second film, and she also carries off the change between hunter and hunted pretty well.
ReplyDelete