After Tremors (1990) set the high bar, Tremors 2 (1996) was a disappointment. Tremors 3 (2001) slightly redeemed itself and I dared to hope to where the story might go next with the 4th outing. I wasn’t expecting a prequel, let alone one that takes us back to 1889. We’re in a mining town called Rejection, that should give plenty away. Quickly an ex-mining town as miners are attacked underground and everyone scarpers. The mine owner Hiram Gummer isn’t happy about this. You’ll clock that name, he’s an ancestor of Burt and played by Michael Gross, now the only remaining original cast member. Here Gross is putting on a dodgy faux English accent whilst wearing a bowler hat and carrying a cane. Like his descendent, he’s a self righteous type and rather annoying. He wants the mine back up and running and enlists remaining miner Juan (Brent Roam) to help. Soon of course, he finds out his business concerns are the least of his worries. The monsters once again have a new mutation we’ve not seen before, but thankfully end up as the Graboids that we know and love. This is pretty light on the monsters for a monster movie though. There’s more time spent with the cast pottering around town. Tecopa (August Schellenberg) erecting flagpoles, Christine (Sara Botsford) running the hotel. Pyong (Ming Lo) and his son Fu (Sam Ly) running the general store. It’s all, as it sounds rather dull and doesn’t help Hiram get his mine open. Hiram needs more help, so sends a telegram to which Black Hand Kelly (Billy Drago) responds. I’d like to say it gets more exciting from here on. It doesn’t. Drago certainly looks the part though. His trench coat looks like it was bough from Wish, but his face alone looks nasty and gnarly… well until he’s eaten. It’s trying to be a more rounded story. Building characters, filling in an origin story for Burt that doesn’t make sense and the town of Perfection, once Rejection, which at least does. It’s all misguided though and betrays the Tremors B-Movie charm. In isolation it’s a terrible film, but if like me you’re watching all the Tremors films in order, it’s just about palatable.
4/10
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