Publication Date: 06-27-2025

Jeepers Creepers (2001) review

Dir. Victor Salva

By: Steve Pulaski

Rating: ★★★½

Victor Salva’s Jeepers Creepers appears to be a stronger cultural touchstone for millennial/Gen Z horror fans than I would’ve anticipated. Many of my peers, even those who aren’t as in love with the horror genre as myself, hold the film in high regard, and for a variety of different reasons. Some appreciate the grotesque, unsightly appearance of the infamous Creeper. Some remember the ominous use of the folksy, silly Paul Whiteman song. And then there are those who just enjoy the unpredictable, slowburn narrative.

There’s no correct answer, and frankly, my answer for why I love Jeepers Creepers would be the metaphorical “D” option: all of the above.

Here’s a wonderful, chilling, and also bravely emotional creature feature that takes inspiration from a number of classics all while confidently blazing its own trail. Borrowing from the conservative plotting of Alfred Hitchcock, while capturing set-pieces directly inspired by Steven Spielberg’s Duel as well as Creature from the Black Lagoon, Salva’s story revolves around a pair of siblings, Trish (Gina Philips) and Darry (Justin Long), traveling home from college on spring break. They’re cruising the mostly barren Florida countryside until they encounter a maniac driver of an old rust-bucket truck who angrily tails them while blaring his ear-piercing horn. It’s an encounter that lasts all of 30 seconds, but the panic and adrenaline brought on by the instance might as well have been an eternity. Before disappearing down the long road ahead, Darry takes note of the license place: “BEATNGU.”

Sometime later, they notice the driver (Jonathan Breck), donning a trench-coat, dumping what looks like bloodstained bedsheets into a subterranean pipe near a church. That prompts another chase with Trish and Darry being forced off the road. A move that can only be described as a combination of fearlessness, stupidity, and horror movie-logic, Darry demands they circle-back to the church to see where the pipe leads. Darry winds up falling down the pipe and encounters a horrifying tapestry of human corpses stitched together, lining the walls and ceilings. It’s a discovery so horrifying that when he finally reunites with his sister, he’s left in a catatonic state for a significant amount of time.

The remainder of Jeepers Creepers revolves around Trish and Darry debating on what to do with this information. Directors with more impatience and less tact would’ve felt compelled to reveal who/what the driver of the aforementioned truck was, surely upping the body count for entertainment purposes in the process. Instead, Salva takes a very glacial approach to the storytelling, with significant stretches of the film showing Trish and Darry arguing and actively plotting their next move. They make a pitstop at a diner. They inadvertently scare the dickens out of an old cat lady (Eileen Brennan). Oddly enough, when they meet a woman, played by Patricia Belcher, who seems to provide them with answers to the horrors they witnessed, they respond with intense skepticism, even cruelty.

Salva makes this uniquely reticent flick worth your while by slowly revealing details about this largely unseen villain, played valiantly by Jonathan Breck in a role that would become his tour-de-force three times over. Breck’s character, known as “The Creeper,” is the personification of nightmares: a large, lurching monster with scaly green skin, jagged teeth, and bat-like wings that would look large on an elephant. Equally revolting as his appearance is his backstory. If you haven’t seen the film, the lyrics of the aforementioned Whiteman ballad from 1938 will provide faint context of how he gets his peepers, limbs, and other vital organs.

In some ways, Jeepers Creepers has a lot in common with Joy Ride, another one of my favorite horror films, from the very same year (the latter released less than two months later). Both films lack a substantial body count. They also prioritize slowburn terror and increasing dread over carnage. For large stretches — in the latter’s case, the entire film — they leave the villain vague and indistinguishable outside of the vehicle they drive.

However, the upper hand Jeepers Creepers might have over its contemporary is the way Salva captures events and otherwise minute details so tragically. Details of specific scenes, be them the old lady’s protectiveness over her cats or the way she helplessly asks our leads, “what the hell did you bring into my house?,” Trish’s legitimate concern for Darry and her willingness to sacrifice herself for him, and even the way Darry reacts with shock and dismay when he discovers whatever is hunting him and his sister now knows his name, are all hallmarks of a writer who understands the secret sauce to making horror films resonate beyond a level of shock and fright. The secret ingredient has always been emotion with a dash of empathy.

My review of Jeepers Creepers 2
My review of Jeepers Creepers 3
My review of Jeepers Creepers: Reborn

Starring: Gina Philips, Justin Long, Jonathan Breck, Patricia Belcher, and Eileen Brennan. Directed by: Victor Salva.