Horror Movie Review: Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)

The Tremors franchise seemed to be running out of steam way before they went back to the past with Tremors 4: The Legend Begins. The 4th movie in the series was a prequel and suggested they had run out ideas on how to move forward. Well, it only took 11 years to release Tremors 5: Bloodlines and after seeing it, they probably shouldn’t have bothered.

You can read our reviews of the entire series so far below.

1990 – Tremors
1996 – Tremors 2: Aftershocks
2001 – Tremors 3: Back to Perfection
2004 – Tremors 4: The Legend Begins

Now while I don’t think Tremors 5: Bloodlines was necessary, it’s not a terrible movie. Of course, it can’t hold a candle to the original or even the first sequel but it does have some good things going for it.

Michael Gross reprises his role as Burt Gummer, now a star in his own survivalist series. Along with his new cameraman, Travis (Jamie Kennedy) the pair are asked to go to South Africa to deal with Ass-Blasters. Burt doesn’t want too but an offer of funding for his series for a few years and on Travis’ insistence he agrees to go.

Upon arrival, issues arise as all of Burt’s guns are impounded due to South African gun laws. He is given a small collection of smuggled in guns but for a man that lives for weapons, he is far from happy.

Though that is the least of his problems as a fossilised Graboid reveals a different breed. Not only that, the Ass-Blasters are laying eggs now!

A perfectly watchable film, enjoyable while it is on but instantly forgotten. The problem lies in the overly familiar plot even if they try to mix things up by evolving the Graboids yet again. This time though it comes across half-baked and not thought out.

They’re just not that interesting anymore although the CGI on the leaping ‘Queen Bitch’ is decent!

It’s all feeling way to repetitive and even Gross’s Gummer shtick is starting to wear thin. It seems as though the writers knew this though, hence the introduction of Jamie Kennedy’s Travis. He’s probably the best thing in the film, likeable in a cheeky and charming kind of way. His relationship with Burt and their banter is often the highlights of the movie but the ‘reveal’ of just who he is at the end is so obvious. Still, it sets up future sequels with the latest, Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell released this year (2018).

If you’ve watched every film in the series so far then check it out. It pushes the story on a little bit but for everyone else, don’t bother, you’re not missing out.

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