The film opens with narration about Jack the Reaper. Apparently RR accidents have their own special reaper. A group of high school kids on a field trip encounter a bus accident at a RR crossing. There is a nearby carnival where they go for help, but end up playing games as the carnival is deserted. Jack shows up and the carnage begins. The "twist" we already have figured out. Tony Todd has a minor role.This slasher doesn't bring anything new to the table. Harold's grandmother was a hoot, but outside of that, the character were simply okay with jocks, a fat kid, a picked on albino, an oriental girl, a blond floozy with her deaf-mute cousin, plus a girl with daddy issues. There are too many characters to develop them all, so we are given quick intros as they load the bus.It is a so-so slasher with the mute girl screaming when she gets hit with a pick.Parental Guide: F-bomb. No sex or nudity. It appeared on TV as a Movie Channel extra.

It's interesting that this movie has such generally low numerical ratings here, but also several rave reviews. OK, given what a little-seen, low-budget effort it is, the rave reviews COULD have come from friends and family of the production itself (which was my initial suspicion), but having seen the movie, this phenomenon makes a little more sense now.There is indeed nothing particularly new here. I won't give the "surprise" ending away, but it's one horror-movie fans have seen A LOT of, from ever since a certain low-budget film was made in Kansas in the early 1960's. The story involves a group of disparate students who have to go on a bus tour of a railroad town with their teacher after they failed to turn in a paper (OK. . .). The students are the usual types--the obnoxious jock, the black best friend, the outcast, the slutty girl, the homely girl, the overweight kid--but right away there are some off-beat elements. The fat kid has a hilariously profane grandmother (a cameo by Sally Kirkland, who also produced the film), who tells him to take no sh*t from the popular kids as she drops him off. The homely girls seems to have a strange, perhaps incestuous, relationship with her father. The girlfriend of one of the jocks tells him she's pregnant right before he leaves. The slutty girl rather than being the stereotypical "high-school slut" is actually kind of a sweet, troubled girl who has been taken advantage of by the jocks at her school (maybe some shades of reality there). There are also TWO black guys, and, rounding out their numbers, a deaf girl.They stop at a visitor's center and meet curator Tony Todd who does his usual thing in an extended cameo and warns them of the legend of "Railroad Jack". Soon after they're involved in a bus crash and their teacher disappears. They take refuge in this this strange deserted carnival sideshow that is out in the middle of the desert for some reason where they are stalked by the creepy, eyeless "Railroad Jack". This is the other strength of the movie (besides the more interesting than usual teen characters),the deserted carnival is genuinely creepy. This is the rare modern-day horror film that actually relies on ATMOSPHERE as opposed to CGI gore and silicone breasts. True, some of the acting is awful (the performance of the actor playing the overweight kid is especially egregious). I never miss CGI effects, but a lack of female nudity can't really be considered an asset to a horror film either. But given there is only one particularly attractive girl here (Hope Jaymes, who plays the vulnerable slut) and she obviously has real breasts (only women with silicone breasts ever seem to do nude scenes in modern-day horror movies) the movie at least doesn't tease you with the promise there will be any.There is some ill-conceived narration at the beginning and the end, and the end doesn't entirely work. Still, I found this to be refreshingly old-fashioned and off-beat and interesting in places. It's much better than the numerical reviews would suggest if not quite deserving perhaps of some of the more hyperbolic raves. It's worth seeing anyway.

Jack the Reaper is very simple, almost minimalistic teenage horror / slasher. The exposition is somewhat long, but overall it is very good flick.Expect no complexity - just eery atmosphere of deserted carnival in the middle of the desert. The simple pure decadence of the place is definitely worth watching, especially if you do love ghost town stories or Wild West horror stories. The only lighted place in totally dark desert, scary, chilling, "behind the line". It was both beautiful and freaky. I loved the setting, seriously I loved that! Surprisingly enough there are even some lovely details that might be easily overlooked. Remember that little girl at the museum that looks at the photograph and said "I have seen that man"? Remember that they say "you are dead if the Jack has eyes on you"? And have you noticed that the policewoman told "This is the second crash this night?" Lovely, isn't it? The plot is not that revolutionary but it is acceptable and surprising enough as well - and the Jack is seriously scary. The special effects are very good for such minimalistic concept and the gore is enough to grab a beer and just enjoy the evening. I would definitely recommend that - it is not revolutionary, but very classic in the best sense of the word!

So I just watched this movie. It wasn't particularly great, but I guess the short time Tony Todd is in the movie makes it worth it. Basically these high school kids get stuck on a Saturday morning field trip to make up for a writing assignment that they didn't do. None of them are particularly happy about it, but they don't want to repeat the grade. We're treated to quick introductions as to these "troubled" kids and their plights(Which on the by and by are never really used in the film, or even brought up later). Anyway, the kids end up going to this railroad museum which is where we get a small dose of Tony Todd and his wonderful creepiness, but alas it does not last. After leaving the museum the kid's bus crashes and they are suddenly alone the broken down bus in the middle of nowhere, when they see a carnival. Of course madness follows. The film is pretty predictable, has average to crappy acting, and all the effect budget pretty much goes into one thing(You'll know it when you see it). I have to admit the idea was good, but the lack of budget and poor execution brought the thing as a whole down. If you have nothing else to watch, or just watch pretty much any horror movie that comes out(I'm guilty of this) it may be an all right way to kill some time. Otherwise you may want to skip this one.