Tahoe Joe 2 (Indie film review)
Tahoe Joe was good, but the sequel was better
Following the conclusion to Tahoe Joe in 2022, filmmakers Dillon Brown and Michael Rock attempted to go on with their lives—Brown throwing himself in his next horror film, Ghost; Rock trying to distance himself from the backlash that came as a result of Joe’s mostly negative reception. The hate, however, wasn’t unanimous, though judging by the film, it might as well have been all-consuming.
That was the setup to their mockumentary, and I loved that they used the power of social media as a means for social commentary. I thought that was really interesting how they utilized it as (to some degree,) a cautionary tale about the ramifications that such vitriol online can have, but also as a great starting point. I love metafiction, and the dynamic duo filmmakers did an excellent job.
Similar to the original, the second installment does get bogged down a bit from significant cryptid footage, and I think they could’ve trimmed it down some, but at the same time, that footage was relevant. Despite that minor critique, the pacing seemed to move much faster than the original. Yes, the basic storyline starts off the same, but given the ambiguous ending of Tahoe Joe, there was a lot more at stake the second time around, and in almost every way, Brown and Rock delivered. Especially the last twenty, thirty minutes. All the threads came together, full-circle, and I couldn’t believe how quickly it escalated to sheer insanity. As I was watching it, completely on edge, I kept asking if what I was seeing was actually happening. Surely, it couldn’t be, right? But thankfully, I was wrong. Everything unfolding on the screen was, indeed, taking place, and it was exactly what the overall story needed. It’s what I needed, too.
However, there was the sense of them wrapping up those various threads a little too neatly, and/or resorting to a Hollywood-esque ending, but it certainly didn’t have a “happily-ever-after” type conclusion, either, because there was plenty of carnage. In hindsight, I think there’s a very fine line between an idealistic ending and one that doesn’t give you any survivors or hope or anything to hold onto. On that note, I think I might’ve been hoping (in a sadistic kind of manner,) that the cryptid—or human--would’ve taken out Dillon Brown’s or Michael Rock’s character. Is that harsh? Maybe. Weird? Definitely, but that’s just the horror fiend in me that dislikes predictability. Knowing, or assuming, that the protagonist’s are automatically safe for the sake of being safe is a pet peeve of mine. Those are entirely subjective, obviously. They probably won’t bother most viewers. Those constructive criticisms aside, they simultaneously did something right. They left just enough open to intrigue you, and I suspect they’ll use those unanswered questions as fodder for Tahoe Joe 3.
Overall, nice job, guys. It was a lot of fun, entertaining, suspenseful, and I liked it more than the original.