Sometimes They Come Back... for More (1998)

Memorable, crazy movie

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Inspired by a story from Stephen King but having very little to do with it just the same, "Sometimes They Come Back... For More" ensures you probably won't be coming back for more any time soon. The third installment in the increasingly absurdly-titled and logically-flawed "Sometimes They Come Back For More" series, "...For More" finds two soldiers crash-landing on a remote base in Antarctica on a mission to investigate some rather strange occurrences. See, it appears that somebody gave a group of amateur film-makers a little bit of cash and a license to leave their mark on a vaguely recognizable franchise."Sometimes They Come Back ...For More" is about as bland as direct- to-video horror gets, especially late '90s DTV fare. When most of your talent lies at the feet of Corky from TV's "Murphy Brown," you know you're in dire straits. And while the thinly-veiled attempt at ripping off John Carpenter's "The Thing" should at least make for a mildly interesting watch, the film-makers lack the skill or the means necessary to squeeze any tension or dread out of the situation. However, if you consider boredom a form of horror, then prepare to be scared out of your skin!Really, if not for the fact that this film carries a somewhat familiar title, it would never have seen the light of day, let alone been made. While there is a remotely interesting twist towards the end of the film, its execution is so clumsy, it bottoms out long before the credits mercifully roll out. "Sometimes They Come Back ...For More." But you won't. And unsurprisingly, a fourth film has yet to be produced in this franchise.

...but he never really gets here, does he? Seriously, how many films have you seen already that are all about preparing things for Satan to walk the earth? And in the end, what always happens? Some idiot ends up saving the day, and we're only offered a mere glimpse of good old Satan at best, before he's flushed down his infernal toilet again. Guess what this film shows us at the end? We don't even get to see the Devil himself. Instead, we get an image of a shiny Maria. For no reason, really. No, this is not a spoiler. I'm saving you from a major disappointment here. And what's more, the first hour of SOMETIMES THEY COME BACK... FOR MORE isn't even about resurrecting Satan. It simply has no story. And best of all: I actually liked it better that way!What on earth was all this? Like THE THING meets THE SHINING while falling flat on its ass? Either this is a really bad film, or a psychological masterpiece. Honestly, my brain just couldn't fathom the logic of this film. It also has very little to completely nothing to do with the original Stephen King short story (this film was released as a second sequel to SOMETIMES THEY COME BACK, so go figure...). It has ghostly belly-dancers, a mobile unit called "TomCam" (you're looking at a miniature tank with a camera mounted on top here) and has a character making fun of POLTERGEIST. It plays it all dead-serious and has absolutely no clue what it's trying to be, or where it's going. Zombies or ghosts? Demons or evil minions? Demonic possessions? Hauntings? Hallucinations? Too much sniffing gas? Cabin fever? Two immortal brothers? Sons of Beëlzebub? A sacrificial mine-shaft on Antarctica? The coming of Satan? What the hell? Who knows and who cares? You'll have a hard time believing this film, I can tell you that much. In that sense, once you've seen it, you should be able to remember it. So why I forgot all about it, is beyond me. Perhaps it put me to sleep once.

Sometimes They Come Back... for More has two M.P.'s Captain Sam Cage (Clayton Rohner) & Major Callie O'Grady (Chase Masterson) dispatched to a military base in the Antartic named Arebus, officially a research facility but in reality an illegal mining base. Their brief is that Arebus has a crew of six & one of them has gone 'postal', it's their job to sort things out. A helicopter drops them in & they quickly find Major Frank Whittaker (Stephen Hart) frozen solid in the snow outside the base, upon entering the base they find medical officer Dr. Jennifer Wills (Faith Ford) & technician Lieutenant Brian Shebanski (Max Perlich) who show them the frozen body of Lieutenant Baines (Douglas Stoup) & say that the remaining two members of the crew, Captain Robert Reynolds (Michael Stadvec) & Dr. Carl Schilling (Damian Chapa) are somewhere outside in the tunnels they have mined. The mystery deepens as Baines body disappears & the radio is trashed, could the puzzling events be connected to something Dr. Schilling discovered in the icy tunnels below the Antartic surface...Directed by Daniel Zelik Berk I thought Sometimes They Come Back... for More was an OK way to pass the time but ultimately disappointed. The script by Adam Grossman & Darryl Sollerh starts off really well as everything is kept as mysterious as possible, the film gradually unravels into a weak climax involving Brothers who are 1000's of years old & the resurrection of Satan which is all rather silly & doesn't sit that well with what has gone before. The character's are pretty good, the dialogue is fine, it moves along at a fair pace & the basic story manages to do a decent job of both gripping & engaging the viewer. The film obviously reminds of The Thing (1982) although that's where the comparisons stop. It kept me watching throughout but I couldn't help but think that the climax isn't worth watching the first 90 minutes for which is a shame as I thought the set-up was well executed & deserved better. One more thing, I don't think the U.S. military would send just two soldiers (no medic either?) out for a rescue mission in horrendous weather & just leave them there with no radio contact except what was available at Arebus (what if it was broken?), I don't think so...Director Berk does an OK job here & there is some decent atmosphere & tension. The Antartic is a great place to set a horror film & makes for a harsh, cold, desolate, unforgiving & isolated location. I don't know why more horror films aren't set in either Pole, perhaps it's the technical problems associated with filming in the conditions. Forget about any blood or gore as there isn't any but the film relies more on atmosphere & story for it's effectiveness.With a budget of about $2,000,000 Sometimes They Come Back... for More is technically a very solid film, it's far from spectacular but since it was actually shot in Antartica, according to the IMDb, it has a definite chilly feel throughout. The acting was pretty good although I wasn't to impressed with leading man Rohner.Sometimes They Come Back... for More started well & showed promise but it's almost as if the filmmakers didn't know where to go with the set-up & it all ends rather lamely with a weak climax. Worth a watch but don't expect a masterpiece. The third in the Sometimes They Come Back... series of films this has no connection with the previous two & in fact is also known as Frozen & Ice Station Erebus & I wonder whether this was even conceived as a sequel or a stand alone film?

Well, first of all, not a regular Stephen King. But, reasonable anyway. The ending lets you hanging and the cast could be a lot better.