Fans of the first installment of Skinford will remember that small time gangster Jimmy “Skinny” Skinford (Joshua Brennan) was in a spot of bother digging his own grave with a nefarious looking goon watching over him when he unwittingly uncovers a living woman, Zophia (Charlotte Best), who was buried alive. Suitably spooked by his discovery it all goes a bit awry and the goon soon unloads all of his bullets in Skinny and Zophia’s direction, but we discover Zophia can’t die, and nor does anyone who happens to be touching her.
“I’ve been dodging death for a very long time but this doesn’t make any sense. It’s like death doesn’t exist anymore,” a spooked Skinny realises. From there it’s game on.
“The first Skinford focused on Skinny’s story and was essentially a high-stakes chase as he tried to stay alive,” says writer/director Nik Kacevski. “We were essentially pushing to see how insane we could make his journey. Because of this, the pace of the film reflected Skinny’s energy and adrenaline. With Skinford Chapter Two, I wanted to approach the storytelling with a slightly more mature tone designed for character exploration. Having created these wild characters, I wanted to know more about them, and share that with an audience.”
And share that he has, as the sequel is Skinny’s mysterious new best friend Zophia’s time to shine.
Zophia possesses this mystical power of immortality and no one, not even Zophia, knows where it came from and why she has it. The only thing we do know is that she wants it gone. Skinford Chapter Two focuses on Zophia and her mission, delving into her mysterious past during the 1920s in order to find the precise moment she inherited the curse with the ambition ridding herself of her immortality. However, nothing is ever simple and now that her secret is out the members of the unsavoury underworld are out in force all wanting Zophia for themselves. Best’s emotional performance as the immortal looking for a way out makes it easy to see why she stepped off the set of this film, and straight onto the set of Australia’s first Netflix Original series, Tidelands.
The world of Skinford has been previously described as stylish gore with zombie schtick and director Nik Kacevski relished the opportunity to go back into Skinny’s world to complete the story: “In Skinford Chapter Two, the aesthetic of their modern-day world is still a grungy, dark underworld but is contrasted by Zophia’s elegant backstory set in the 1920. Charlotte Best brings the complex sensitivity to Josh Brennan’s witty, larrikin like quality, creating a film that is much more character driven.”
Guy Skinford (Ric Herbert) ups the ante as the meanest dad in town. Facing imminent death from cancer only seems to exacerbate his vengeful ways. He railroads through anyone and anything, including Skinny, in true gangster fashion to get to Zophia. It’s an impressive performance by Ric Herbert who many will fondly remember as Darrell Winters, the hapless band manager from the popular ‘80s television series Sweet and Sour.
Also returning in Skinford 2 is revenge seeking Kovak (Coco Jack Gillies), the scariest most sadistic child villain you’ll ever come across who has a penchant for sewing bombs into people’s abdomens as a signature move. Her wicked ways make for some truly fiendish cinema.
Deadrock’s Executive Producer Enzo Tedeschi has enjoyed the second helping of Skinny’s misadventures: “Nik has a really international sensibility in terms of the twisted stories he likes to put on screen. The fact that we’ve had the opportunity with Rockzeline and Blackpills to come back for a second instalment of Skinford – and so soon after the first – is a testament to that. Nik and the entire team have really raised the bar in every way to create a more mature vision for the world of Skinford.”
Mature is right, with newcomer Jess Bush burning up the screen, stealing the show with her character’s depravity and turning the franchise’s sex appeal up to 11.
“I’m particularly proud of Nik’s ability to keep pushing for amazing performances from his actors. He clearly has an eye for talent,” elaborated Tedeschi.
Skinford Chapter Two screens for one night only at Event Cinemas George Street Sydney, followed by a Q&A on 21 November 2018. Another Q&A screening will take place at Event Cinemas Brisbane Myer on 28 November, with additional screenings at Adelaide GU Filmhouse and Event Cinemas Innaloo on 21 November.
https://www.eventcinemas.com.au/Movie/Skinford-Chapter-2
You can watch the first installment of Skinford now on Deadhouse tv.
Comments
these 2 films need to be released on dvd with extras and audio commentaries one of the finest and most original Australian Horror films ever and the sequel looks just as good.
Please on behalf of all Aussie Horror film loves and collectors of Australian film dvds.