Tag Archives: 1980s Horror

Doomed at Camp Blood: Ranking Friday the 13th’s Deaths

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Regardless of its critical reception, Friday the 13th is one of the most influential horror movies produced. While ‘Camp Blood’ didn’t create the slasher subgenre, it certainly crystallized the distinctly 80’s approach to horror. Sequels and remakes spanning three decades, cross-over media, a video game, and fan-made movies – few horror franchises can claim this impact.

One of the franchise’s hallmarks is the inventive approach it takes to its death scenes. Like Bay of Blood and the 1970’s Italian Giallo flicks, Friday the 13th is known for how it dispatches of its characters. Courtesy of effects wizard Tom Savini, the original Friday the 13th set the standard for its sequel and the subgenre. In this edition of The Chopping Block, I rank Friday the 13th’s deaths from worst to best.

Steve Christie – Camp Blood Manager of the Month

Chalk it up to budgetary constrainsts, but several deaths in Friday the 13th happen off-screen. Most slasher movies do it. A character says they’ll ‘be right back’, and later in the movie, ‘The Final Girl’ discovers their gruesome body. It’s hard to compare the ‘off-screen’ deaths as they all unfold in the same way. A big tease, shock edit, followed by ambiguity. Really, the value in these deaths lies in the shock value of the body’s later appearance. In this regard, Steve Christie’s death is the least interesting in the movie. Christie is a pretty transparent red herring. While his inevitable ‘appearance’ produces a good jump scare, it doesn’t register much beyond that jolt.

Brenda’s Just a Fool in the Rain

Slasher movies love foreshadowing. When Ned played that prank on Brenda at the archery range, you just knew it couldn’t end any other way. The build-up to Brenda’s death is what separates it from Steve Christie’s off-screen demise. If you’re watching Friday the 13th for the first time, the scene actually contributes a little mystery to the curse of Camp Blood. The appearance of Brenda’s body in the final act, however, is so-so at best. It’s a weaker jump scares, and it doesn’t help that you can kind of see the actress still breathing.

Bill – He’ll Be Right Back

So what exactly happened to Bill? Aside from Paul’s ambiguous fate in the sequel, is there any other question more pressing than what happened to poor Bill? Another pesky off-screen murder, but the later reveal is by far the best of the lot. Even though you know it’s obviously coming, Bill’s bloodied body appearing still shocks. It’s the combination of the practical effets and surprise of seeing him on the other side of the door. Of course, Bill’s death raises another question – just how did one person manage to get him up on that door?

Ned Double-Bunks at Camp Blood

Ah Ned, we hardly knew you. Every slasher movie needs the practical joker to deliver a few fake jump scares. Ned may be, by far, the most tolerable of the character trope. When Ned follows the mysterious figure into the cabin and never comes out … that makes for decent mystery. But did you expect to see him up in that top bunk while Jack and Marcie are making love. It’s shocking and, well, kind of gross. Add in the lightning and Harry Manfredini’s score and you have the best off-screen kill reveal in movie.

Barry and Claudette Break a Cardinal Slasher Movie Rule

This is where it all started. In contrast to what would follow, Camp Blood’s first murders almost feel a little quaint. Not surprisingly, director Sean S Cunningham doesn’t give away too much of the movie’s practical gore effects. Instead, he focuses on the suspense generated from shock of Barry’s murder and the stalking of Claudette. While it doesn’t feature the inventive kills that define the movie and the franchise, the scene’s final close-up does serve up the lurids thrills that would become very familiar.

Annie Never Makes It To Camp Blood

Annie’s death is the first death scene in Friday the 13th’s present timeline. The extended chase scene really does’t do much other than fill time between kills. In addition, you could argue the set-up is a little clumsy. Who just stands there and lets someone kill them? So clumsy, yes. Notwithstanding the awkward execution, Tom Savini’s throat-cutting practical effects are still shocking. In fact, I’d suggest that a lot indie horror movies today still feel like they’re a step behind.

Marcie Has An Axe to Grind

Like Annie’s death scene, Marcie’s on-screen kill feels a little awkwardly staged. Standing still, screaming, and watching while an axe hurtles towards your face doesn’t seem very proactive. But it’s the shock value of what’s put on screen that compensates for everything else. Horror fans probably weren’t expecting anything quite that visceral when they walked into theatres. And like all the other effects, Tom Savini convinces you that there really is an axe lodged into the character’s face.

Mrs. Voorhees Loses Her Head

On one hand, Mrs Voorhees may be one of the worst final act reveals in horror. But who really cares. Friday the 13th is a fun horror movie, and Besty Palmer makes for a great horror antagonist. The ‘cat and mouse’ stalking in Friday the 13th’s final act set the template for not only its own sequels, but countless imitators. But few of the imitators get the build-up and pay-off right, like Cunningham does. With Harry Manfredini’s score, the slow-motion, and Tom Savini’s practical effects, Mrs Voorhee’s death is as operatic as slashers get.

Jack Breaks Two Cardinal Slasher Movie Rules

Six degrees of Kevin Bacon! Jack’s Friday the 13th death scene isn’t just the best in the movie, it’s one of the best in the series. You know it’s coming after Cunningham shows you poor Ned’s body in the bunk above. But that’s all part of the suspense. And Jack’s death milks suspense, offers misdirection, and still manages to deliver a great jump scare. In fact, it’s probably the second best jump scare in the movie. Tom Savini’s practical gore effects are top notch here. You could get picky and argue that the uncut version exposes some of the effect’s limitations. Nevertheless, Jack’s death is a testament to old-school horror DIY innovation. Even after nearly 40 years, this scene still shocks.

Sleepaway Camp: Camper Slasher With A Twist

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If the 1970’s is horror’s ‘prestige era’, then the 1980’s is best classified as the genre’s ‘guilty pleasure’. By and large, the 1980’s was the slasher movie era. Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Child’s Play, Hellraiser – each of these franchises began in the 80’s. Just below these A-listers were a series of B-level slashers, like My Bloody Valentine, competing for audiences. Horror fans frequently cite Sleepaway Camp as one of those B-level slasher classics. Without a doubt, Sleepaway Camp has one of the most shocking, if not controversial, endings in horror film history. But is Sleepaway Camp a genuine hidden slasher gem? Or is it a cheap, derivative knock-off that benefits from a memorable conclusion?

Two Parts Derivative Slasher, One Part Exploitation Flick

Following Friday the 13th’s box office success, slasher movies went camping over and over again. Derivative ‘camping’ slasher knock-off’s ranged from the ‘good’ (The Burning), to the odd (Madman), and to the outright awful (Don’t Go In the Woods). Somewhere in between all these movies was Robert Hiltzik’s Sleepaway Camp. On the surface, Sleepaway Camp was even more derivative than the movies listed above. Bullies and ‘mean girls’ pick on on social outcast Angela. Each bully meets a horrific end at the hands of an unseen killer. Is it Angela? Or is it her overprotective cousin, Ricky?

But where Sleepaway Camp separates itself is its tendency to embrace an uglier approach to the material.

Red herrings, one-by-one ‘stalk and slash’, and ‘creative kills’ abound. All of this unfolds in what’s essentially a craftless movie lacking much in the way of scares and suspense. Slasher fans also shouldn’t expect any ‘Tom Savini-level’ special effects in any of the kills. But where Sleepaway Camp separates itself is its tendency to embrace an uglier approach to the material. It’s a slasher narrative merged with a 70’s exploitation violence. Don’t expect much in the way of the explicit gore a Rob Zombie or Eli Roth would reves in. Sleepaway Camp was released amidst the MPAA’s crackdown on horror movies. But some of Hiltzik’s implied violence is no less grimy and nasty.

Sleepaway Camp A Tonally Odd Slasher Movie

Another way in which Sleepaway Camp distinguishes itself is with its occasional idiosyncratic beats. Hiltzik, who also wrote the screenplay, includes some downright weird elements. Desiree Gould’s ‘Aunt Martha’ seems to be acting in a completely different movie. It’s either a case of an actor’s performance veering way off course or an uneven screenplay. There’s an obscene child sex offender as the camp cook. And then there’s the wildly inappropriate relationship between a teen camp counsellor and the camp owner. In the background, horror fans can marvel at the ‘time capsule’ of awful 80’s fashion.

Unforgettable Ending Haunts and Offends in Equal Measures

For an hour and 15 minutes or so, Sleepaway Camp is pretty unremarkable stuff. All of that changes in the movie’s closing moments. What Sleepaway Camp delivers in its climax is one of horror’s biggest twists. It’s not just the narrative reveal that Angela is in fact a boy. As much as Sleepaway Camp lacks any real craftsmanship, its climax is a genuinely disturbing and haunting moment. The inexplicably guttural growl, dramatic score, and Felissa Rose’s crazed expression make for unnerving horror.

As much as Sleepaway Camp lacks any real craftsmanship, its climax is a genuinely disturbing and haunting moment.

Of course, horror fans not frightened by the ending may find themselves offended by the movie’s dated sexual politics. Sleepaway Camp wasn’t the first horror movie to deviantize homosexuality and/or transgendered persons. Psycho, Dressed to Kill, and, to a lesser extent, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre are all guilty. But Sleepaway Camp’s clumsy story draws some rather blunt connections between gender identity, sexual orientation, and later violent behaviour. Intentional or otherwise, flashback scenes along with ‘Aunt Martha’s’ decision to raise ‘Angela’ as a girl are framed as ‘causes’. This may in part explain Hollywood’s reluctance to remake this slasher movie.

Sleepaway Camp A Forge

Take away that ending, and Sleepaway Camp is a derivative, forgettable slasher movie. It’s always cheap-looking and poorly acted and, often times, a mean-spirited movie. In fact, even if you keep the ending, Sleepaway Camp is still an ugly movie. It’s stuck somewhere between 70’s exploitation trash and 80’s slasher movie sensibilities. But it’s ending is haunting. Offensive or otherwise. And regardless of its flaws, this ‘camper’ slasher taps into that inherent watchability of exploitation movies.

FINAL VERDICT: SO BAD, ITS GOOD

Night of the Creeps: The Perfect Love Letter to 50’s B-Movies

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Do you love vintage 1950’s monster B-films? Maybe you loved Them, The Blob, or The Thing From Another World. If not, you know who loves these movies? Director Fred Dekker, the man who gave us The Monster Squad. His 1986 monster movie, Night of the Creeps, is a ‘love letter’ to the era of drive-in monster movies. Part zombie movie, part alien invasion movie, Night of the Creeps was criminally unappreciated upon its release.

Synopsis

In 1959, alien parasites crash land on earth, infecting an escaped ax murderer. Flash forward to 1986 where college student Chris Romero crushes on sorority girl, Cynthia Cronenberg. With the help of best friend, J.C. Hooper, Chris pledges a fraternity to impress Cynthia. But an initiation ritual goes horribly wrong when Chris and J.C. inadvertently release the cryogenically frozen ax murderer from a college science laboratory. Now alien slugs that turn their hosts into zombies are crawling across Corman University.

Night of the Creeps Pays Homage To Its Source Material

Fans of vintage 1950’s B-horror movies will find lots to appreciate in Night of the Creeps. Straight out of the gate, director Fred Dekker references classics like It Came From Outer Space and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Though it mixes zombie and slasher narratives, Night of the Creeps is wrapped in ‘50’s alien invasion conventions. Aside from some minor quibbles, Dekker fuses these divergent styles quite well. Yes, some of the raunchy ’80’s sex comedy bits don’t always work well with the movie’s hokey style. But this is an 80’s horror movie, and Dekker doesn’t allow these elements to overtake the tone. In many ways, Night of the Creeps is a meticulously crafted postcard of a bygone style of moviemaking.

Astute horror fans will also revel is all the shout out’s to genre legends.

Astute horror fans will also revel in all the shout out’s to genre legends. As a filmmaker, Dekker clearly both knows and loves the horror genre. First, Dekker coins his college, Corman University, a nice reference to B-movie master Roger Corman. Nearly all the main characters are named after horror movie directors and personalities. There are references to George A. Romero, David Cronenberg, Steve Miner, John Landis, and Sam Raimi. Sidekick J.C. Hooper’s full name – James Carpenter Hooper, a nice mix of John Carpenter and Tobe Hooper. These little ‘Easter Egg’s are nice, small touches in a movie that effectively balances competing styles.

Dekker Mostly Balances Humor and Horror

If Night of the Creep’s nostalgic tone doesn’t turn off some horror fans, its jokey approach may not be to all tastes. While Dekker balances humor and horror better than a lot of movies. Be forewarned – Night of the Creeps leans more on its humor. Unlike The Evil Dead or Drag Me To Hell, Dekker doesn’t throw quite as much blood-spurting gore at the screen. But there’s still enough oozing slug action and splitting heads to entertain horror fans. Keep in mind that this is a lower budget movie that intentionally trades B-movie aesthetics. As such, the practical effects have a hokey feel that immediately peg them to 80’s horror.

…Dekker frequently slows things to allow his characters and their relationships to take centre stage.

Arguably, Dekker most clearly distinguishes his movie with its surprising emotional core. Contrary to expectation, Dekker frequently slows things down to allow his characters and their relationships to take centre stage. No, Night of the Creeps isn’t a sweeping drama. But for a horror-comedy infatuated with 50’s B-movies, you may be surprised to find yourself invested in the characters. Horror fans more accustomed to contemporary music video-style editing may find the movie takes too much time to get where it’s going.

Night of the Creeps Finds Character Tom Atkins in Fine Form

Detective Cameron: I got good news and bad news, girls. The good news is your dates are are here.

Sorority Girl What’s the bad news?

Detective Cameron: They’re dead.

If you’re a horror movie fan, you know Tom Atkins. The veteran character actor appeared in several John Carpenter movies including The Fog, Halloween III, and Escape From New York. He’s also turned up in Maniac Cop and the My Bloody Valentine remake. Though the rest of the cast is perfectly fine, Night of the Creeps is clearly Atkins’ show. In a fun movie, Atkins is clearly having a blast with the material. He balances macho bravado with deadpan delivery, making his Detective Cameron a criminally underappreciated horror protagonist. Atkins gets the best dialogue and makes it even better. In many ways, it’s a career-defining role for the character actor. And it’s a performance that elevates what’s already a fun movie.

Night of the Creeps a Deserving Cult Classic

Upon its release, Night of the Creeps failed to make much of an impression in a crowded 80’ horror market. Yet genuinely good movies always manage to find an audience. VHS and now re-mastered Blu-ray releases have helped Fred Dekker’s nostaglic horror-comedy find new fans. Older horror fans can be forgiven for missing out on Night of the Creeps, but it’s never too late to see this cult classic out.

THE PROFESSOR’S FINAL GRADE: A-

The Dead Zone: A Chilling Blend of Supernatural and Human Drama

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Stephen King week continues here with another blast from the past. Though it wouldn’t be accurate to characterize The Dead Zone as underrated, this 1983 film adaptation has maybe been forgotten in the shuffle of all the Hollywood treatments of King’s work. But it’s David Cronenberg and Stephen King and Christopher Walken. That’s a lot of pedigree crammed into one little horror movie. Not surprisingly, The Dead Zone is still one of the better Stephen King adaptations to come out of Hollywood.

Synopsis

High school English teacher Johnny Smith’s life is upended after a horrific car accident. After five years in a coma, Johnny wakes up to find his job gone and his girlfriend married. But Johnny soon discovers he’s awoken from a coma with a gift. When he physically touches another person, Johnny catches glimpses flashes of that person’s past and their future. Initially reluctant to embrace his gift, Johnny’s chance encounter with an ambitious politician sets him on an irreversible crash course.

The Dead Zone Finds the Human in the Supernatural

In spite of its supernatural roots, The Dead Zone doesn’t rely much on traditional horror. In fact, Cronenberg’s adaptation downplays jumps and jolts in favour of thehuman story at the core of King’s novel. Much of The Dead Zone focuses on Christopher Walken’s “Johnny” dealing with what he’s lost while adjusting to the ‘gift’, or ‘curse’, he’s gained. Cronenberg paces his adaptation well, economically using early scenes to humanize Johnny. His scenes with former girlfriend, Sarah, are heartbreaking. Later scenes with Johnny drawing a student of his shell emphasize not only is humanity but his struggle to find where he fits in the world. It’s these quiet moments that make Johnny’s choice to finally embrace his gift all the more tragic. As a result, The Dead Zone’s supernatural premise feels believable because it’s an organic part of the story rather than a contrived element driving it.

…Walken convinces you that the tragic car accident cursed ‘Johnny Smith’ with psychic abilities.

Of course, Christiopher Walken’s performance gives Cronenberg a huge assist in this regard. For some viewers, Walken is the guy from the Fatboy Slim video, Weapon of Choice. Other audiences may think of Walken from the various celebrity impressions that have cropped up over the years. But look no further than The Deer Hunter if you need a reminder of Walken’s talent. In The Dead Zone, Walken gives an electric performance. He takes Johnny from sullen and morose to galvanized in the blink of an eye. Most importantly, Walken convinces you that the tragic car accident cursed ‘Johnny Smith’ with psychic abilities.

The Dead Zone May Be Cronenberg’s Least Cronenberg Movie

Today, David Cronenberg’s name is synonymous with body horror. Watch his early work – Rabid, Shivers, or The Brood – and Cronenberg has a distinct style. Dino De Laurentiis and Paramount released The Dead Zone in between Videodrome and The Fly. Both of those movies are clearly Cronenberg films. With The Dead Zone, Cronenberg crafts an effective chiller that exhibits a lot of restraint. Johnny’s psychic flashes, particularly his first one, are both haunting and unnerving. There’s clear film-making craft in these scenes or touches of innovation. Putting Johnny in the middle of his own visions jolts the audience. It’s a creative choice that puts the audience in Johnny’s place. No, it’s not the body horror of The Fly. But it is an exercise in restraint that matches the story’s tone.


Yet at the same time, Kamen’s work in The Dead Zone never overpowers the movie. It takes on an omnipresent role in the movie, present and creeping, but not distracting.

Once again, however, composer Michael Kamen assists Cronenberg with a fantastic musical score. Following The Dead Zone, Kamen would go on to create memorable scores for ’80’s action staples like Die Hard and Lethal Weapon. His score for The Dead Zone is distinct – it plays a significant role in building the movie’s tension. Yet at the same time, Kamen’s work in The Dead Zone never overpowers the movie. It takes on an omnipresent role in the movie, present and creeping, but not distracting. Horror fans may even see traces of horror DNA that Kamen would resurrect for his work on Event Horizon.

The Dead Zone is a Top Tier King Adaptation

The Dead Zone is a King adaptation that’s maybe gotten lost in the shuffle. Horror fans will quickly cite The Shining, Stand By Me, Misery, or The Shawshank Redemption as favourite adaptations of King’s work. Likewise, Cronenberg fans may quickly rattle off Videodrome, The Fly, or Crash as among their personal picks. To some extent, The Dead Zone has slipped into anonymity. But make no mistake about it, The Dead Zone is a chilling supernatural story with a very human element to it. It remains one of the better Stephen King adaptations out there and is worth re-discovering.

THE PROFESSOR’S FINAL GRADE: A

April Fool’s Day: Get in on the Joke

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By 1986, the ‘golden age’ of the slasher movie was coming to a close. Sure the major franchises, like Friday the 13th and Halloween, kept pushing out more sequels. And the occasional independent slasher film would sneak into theatres. But the peak of the glory years had past. April Fool’s Day was one of the last slasher films released by a major studio in the 1980’s. Though it was just a minor success at the time, its reputation has grown over the years. Today, over 30 years later, critics and fans alike consider April Fool’s Day to be a fairly clever entry to the subgenre. It’s a standout that anticipated the post-modern humour of later horror films.

Synopsis

College student Muffy St. John invites several school friends to her rich family’s island home. She promises an April Fool’s day weekend of drinking and reminiscing. But harmless fun and pranks seemingly take a nightmarish turn when one guest, Kit, thinks she sees a dead body. Initially dismissed as a prank, guests continue to disappear. Meanwhile, Muffy’s behaviour becomes increasingly erratic. With phone lines cut and the ferry not due to return for days, Kit and boyfriend, Derek, find themselves in a fight against an unseen killer.

April Fool’s Day Pranks A Familiar Narrative

Director Fred Walton had some experience before sitting behind the camera for this late slasher. Previously, Walton helmed ‘Babysitter-in-peril’ flick, When a Stranger Calls. Not surprisingly then, April Fool’s Day adheres closely to the slasher formula. First, the film borrows the slasher tradition of adopting another calendar holiday. Red herrings abound throughout the movie. Is the killer the ferry employee gruesomely injured by a prank gone awry? Or is the killer be the strange Muffy? Guests disappear one after the other, clearly referencing Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. And the final act is a cat-and-mouse game complete with the best Final Girl in slasher movie history – Amy Steel from Friday the 13th Part II. [SPOILERS FOLLOW]

…April Fool’s Day adheres closely to the slasher formula.

April Fool’s Day may seem derivative on the surface, but it was ahead of its time. Specifically, it’s the movie’s twist that sets it apart from other 80’s slashers. At its conclusion, Kit discovers that the killings are just an elaborate April Fool’s Day joke. Hostess Muffy orchestrated everything from the pier accident onward as the ultimate prank. As each guest became a ‘victim’, they joined the hoax. Walton took an early stab at the same self-aware humour that Wes Craven would later attempt with A New Nightmare. Watching April Fool’s Day today with fresh eyes makes its first two-third seem more cleverly orchestrated than just a cheap rip-off.

Looking for Gore, The Joke’s On You

Perhaps April Fool’s Day’s most surprising twist, however, is its lack of gore. Following the box office success of Friday the 13th, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) slashed away at the slasher movies released in the ensuing years. Nearly as much film was left on the cutting room floor as body parts for much of the early and mid-1980s. But there wouldn’t have been much for censors to cut in April Fool’s Day. Aside from quick flashes of some bodily injuries, the death scenes largely occur off-screen. In fact, Walton keeps most of the focus on suspense, which is consistent with his previous slasher effort, When a Stranger Calls. However, diehard slasher fans may ultimately be disappointed with April Fool’s Day.

Nonetheless, Walton crafts a fun, light thriller with a better-than-average cast that capably delivers the goods.

Its lack of gore and more traditional jump scares keep this movie from hitting the same heights as other slasher films. Nonetheless, Walton crafts a fun, light thriller with a better-than-average cast that capably delivers the goods. While there are no ‘stars’ in the movie, 80’s film fans will recognize several familiar faces including Deborah Foreman (Valley Girl, Real Genius), Thomas “Biff Tannen” Wilson (Back to the Future), and Deborah Goodrich (Just One of the Guys). As the movie’s ‘Final Girl’, Amy Steel carries the more traditional horror beats of the movie’s last third. In her return to the slasher genre, Steel again demonstrates why she is one of the all-time best ‘Final Girls’

April Fool’s Day a Late 80s Slasher That’s a Cut Above Most of the Rest

April Fool’s Day and its lack of gore and inventive kills may understandably deter many slasher fans. However, its methodical pace, above-average acting, and clever twist make it one of the better slasher entries from the 1980’s. Over thirty years after its release it’s much easier to appreciate the film’s clever conclusion particularly when you consider the films it preceded. It’s never easy breaking new ground, but there’s much to like about April Fool’s Day.

Scream for Help Hit Blu-Ray Shelves Last Month

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This is the first edition of the Blu-Ray Bin, a new column I hope to post once each month. My goal here is to provide some quick bullet-reviews of horror films recently released on Blu-ray. The column will serve as a round-up of what’s been released each month. Since this is the first edition of the Blu-Ray Bin, I’ll be going back a little further than the previous month.

Curse of the Cat People

Available: June 18 2018

Distributed by: Scream Factory

A sequel in title only to Jacques Tourneur’s The Cat People, Scream Factory released Curse of the Cat People this past June. Robert Wise directed the sequel and DeWitt Bodeen returned to pen the story. Curse of the Cat People is the rare follow-up that dared to take its story in a different direction. Aside from returning main characters and including the daughter of the original film’s ‘cat person’, the sequel is a haunting psychological thriller that foregoes animal curses. This is the type of classic horror thriller that illustrates the effectiveness of black-and-white filming. Its a haunting and beautifully photographed film that proves that sequels don’t have to recycle a story to be good.

Worth Buying: Yes

Daughters of Satan

Available: April 24 2018

Distributed By: Scream Factory

This cheap 1972 thriller was one of several horror films that cased in on public fascination with the occult at the time. A young Tom Selleck plays a married man who buys a painting that depicts three witches being burned at the stake. He becomes obsessed with the uncanny resemblance between one of the ‘witches’ and his wife. As he delves into the mystery of the painting, his life becomes jeopardized by malevolent forces.

Daughters of Darkness is almost low-budget enough to make you think it’s a made-for-television film. A few scenes of lurid nudity and casual xenophobia substitute for scares.

Worth Buying: Only for diehard collectors or fans of occult films.

Deep Rising

Available: August 21 2018

Distributed By: Kiko Lorber

Deep Rising was a belated entry to the sea monster craze that included movies like Leviathan and Deep Six Rising. Director Stephen Sommers shows flashes of the filmmaking that would turn The Mummy remake into a hit. On the other hand, Sommers also shows a few hints of the director who would go on to make Van Helsing. Nonetheless, Deep Rising includes an excellent cast and decent monster effects. It may not necessarily be a classic, but’s still a fun B-film monster mash.

Worth Buying: Yes

Scream for Help

Available: September 18 2018

Distributed By: Scream Factory

God bless Scream Factory for digging up this 1980’s British horror film and giving it a Blu-ray release. Is it a good movie? Not really. But it’s bad in a wonderfully idiosyncratic way that only ’80’s films could achieve. To its credit, Scream for Help tells its formulaic story in a completely non-formulaic way. There’s plenty of casual nudity and awful dialogue to go around. It’s not necessarily a hidden gem, but Scream for Help may be that one ’80’s horror film you missed.

Worth Buying: For ’80’s Horror Fans, Yes. Everyone Else – No.

The Barn Offers Fun VHS Horror Nostalgia

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Can you remember walking videostore aisles and scanning the top shelves for the cool-looking Rated-R horror covers. If so, The Barn may be just the movie for you. A B-film that’s garnered a lot of love at smaller genre film festivals, Justin M. Seaman’s homage to VHS horror films was finally released yesterday on most streaming platforms.

Synopsis

Sam and Josh are high school seniors and best friends who love all things Halloween. Facing pressures to ‘grow up’, the friends decide to have one last Halloween blast on ‘Devil’s Night’. On their way to a concert, Sam and Josh meet up with some friends and take a detour to an abandoned barn. Local legend says that three Halloween demons reside inside. The demons – Candycorn Scarecrow, The Boogeyman, and Hallowed Jack – have slept beneath the barn for year. But the teens foolishly knock on the ‘barn’ doors and say Trick-or-Treat three times, awakening the legendary evil again.

DIY Low-Budget 80’s Horror

Writer and director Justin Seaman lovingly re-creates all of the aesthetics of low-budget 80’s VHS horror films.

Writer and director Justin Seaman lovingly re-creates all of the aesthetics of low-budget 80’s VHS horror films. Everything from the studio logos to the synth music score feels like the 1980’s. It’s an aesthetic and vibe that may remind older horror fans of grade school sleepovers. You always watched those cheap horror films that were still left on the video store shelf later in the evening. The picture quality is grainy and a few scenes looks choppily edited to with VHS quality sound. Seaman clearly has an affection for the decade and, as a result, The Barn feels like a time capsule.

Of course, The Barn doesn’t just look like a low budget horror film, it is a low-budget horror film. This is the classic definition of DIY filmmaking. Fortunately, Seaman knows what he can and can’t do with his budget. Most importantly, Seaman’ story is clearly intended to be a little tongue-in-cheek thereby aligning it well with his limited budget. Truth be told, the creature effects are also a bit of a mixed bag and unlikely to elicit any real scares. But the makeup and visual effects teams pull off some impressive moments on their shoestring budget. Additionally, the ‘Halloween Hootenanny’ massacre scene is a triumph of what a little innovation can accomplish on a tiny budget. It’s a bloody fun horror moment. Though it never reaches the dizzying heights of an Evil Dead film or Deathgasm, it still registers as a highlight.

Don’t Expect Great Performances

Not surprisingly, the acting is pretty stilted. Sam and Josh, played by Mitchell Mussolini and Will Stout, are a little stiff. Fortunately, they  have just enough charisma to pass off as believable. Sam’s love for Halloween tradition and the screenplay’s attention to their friendship adds some unexpected depth. Not much is expected from the rest of the cast. Lexi Dripps’ ‘Michelle’ is pretty much wasted as the love interest. No one else in the cast delivers a performance that rises above ‘wooden’.

Seaman Spins a Fun Halloween Story

If The Barn has an appeal aside from it’s 80’s vibe, it’s the fun Halloween mythology Seaman weaves into his movie. Much of the humour and laughable dialogue is unintentional. In addition, The Barn’s yarn about its demons feels somewhat convoluted. Yet in spite of these strikes, there’s an amicable tone that abounds throughout the movie. At its heart, The Barn embraces the childhood love for everything about Halloween. Even with budgetary limitations, the climax is rousing and fun. It works in large part because you believe in Sam and Josh’s friendship.

Hokey Halloween Fun

The Barn is an ultra-low budget, DIY horror film that wears its love for all things 80’s and Halloween on its sleeve. Not everyone is going to appreciate Seaman’s VHS aesthetics; I wouldn’t recommend this film to someone without knowing their preferences. But for horror fans who love 1980’s sensibilities, or just generally appreciate cheesy films, The Barn might just be an ideal ‘sleepover’ movie.

THE PROFESSOR’S FINAL GRADE: B-

If You Go Out to the Outback Today: Razorback (1984)

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Welcome to the first week of spring! With the ground thawing and nature awaking from its slumber, horror fans know that there’s more than allergies waiting outside for you. Natural or EcoHorror films have been warning audiences about our mistreatment of nature and its consequences for decades. Godzilla preached to 1950s filmgoers about the dangers of atomic energy. More recently, films like Splice and Black Sheep have cautioned against genetic modification and scientific interference with nature’s design.

This week we’ll be taking a look back at some of our favourite EcoHorror films. Our first EcoHorror film review is an example of what some film critics have coined Ozploitation. Razorback (1984) is a pretty obscure title; I remember seeing the VHS cover as a kid visitingthe local video store.

Synoposis

An Australian farmer, Jake Cullen, is babysitting his two-year old grandson when his house is attacked by a giant razorback boar. The toddler is carried off into the outback; Cullen is charged with the boy’s murder but ultimately acquitted. Two years later, an American reporter investigating kangaroo poaching goes missing after running afoul of two local poachers. Her husband arrives to find his missing wife but instead stumbles across Jack Cullen and the myth of a giant razorback that may still be terrorizing the outback.

Serious Tone

Russell Mulcahy directed this Ozploitation horror thriller. To date, Mulcahy’s most famous directing credit still remains sci-fi-action hybrid Highlander. Prior to working on feature films, Mulcahy directed several high profile music videos in the 1980s. With this first feature directing effort, Mulcahy shows a surprising amount lot of restraint and inventiveness. Razorback’s premise could easily have led to a silly, eye-rolling joke of a movie. Yet Mulcahy keeps the tone serious and manages to put together an effective chiller.

For example, the razorback’s initial appearance and “abduction” of the toddler could have inspired laughs. Instead Mulcahy keeps the scene largely shrouded in shadows, relying on sound effects to inspire mood. The sound of the child screaming off in the dark distance plays as chilling not cheesy. While there isn’t much in the way of blood or gore in Razorback, there are a few good jump scares lurking in the film. The razorback’s attack on a car offers some creepy imagery, a good jump, and holds up remarkably well.

Lurking in the Shadows

Razorback takes a page from Steven Spielberg’s Jaws playbook, keeping its monster hidden for most of the film. There’s little doubt that this Ozploitation flick was a low-budget, B–creature flick. Mulcahy gets around inevitable concerns with creature designs by only giving the audience either quick close-up glimpses or long-distance shots that emphasize the razorback’s size. Both approaches work very for the most part. Jake Cullen scanning a herd of razorbacks through binoculars before catching a quick glimpse of one that looms over the others offers a fun jolt.  Most of the close-up shots zoom on the razorback’s head and immense tusks; the effects largely hold up.

Like Jaws, the screenplay for Razorback also wisely opts to avoid over-explaining its mutant razorback. No silly expository dialogue is dumped on audiences. One character talks about odd behaviour changes in the local razorback population but no concrete explanation is ever offered. In fact, the real monsters for most of Razorback are the local poachers who prey on the Outback wildlife. With its human villains, the giant razorback can just simply operate as a nice metaphor for nature striking back.

Surprisingly Fun B-Level Monster Film

Most of Razorback still works after over 30 years. It’s a surprisingly well made B-monster movie. No one was ever going to get a Best Actor nomination for starring in a film about a giant killer boar but Razorback’s performances all get passing grades. There’s no stilted or over-baked performances of which to speak. Even with a silly premise, the giant Razorback still looks good, proving that practical effects are still preferable to CGI in the horror genre. If you’re a fan of natural or EcoHorror you’ll want to check out Razorback.

THE PROFESSOR’S FINAL GRADE: B