Day 6: The Carpenter

       When one comes across the cover image of The Carpenter it's easy to assume that you'll be dealing with another by the numbers slasher film. One doesn't expect a dreamlike slower paced psychological horror film that this really is. Even though it's not what I expected, it turns out to be a decently effective straight to video effort.

     After being released from a mental institution, Alice and her husband move into a large country home. They hire a group of laborers to renovate the house while they begin their new life. Of course, things aren't going as smoothly as they should. Alice's husband is having an affair with one of his students and these laborers are pretty much sleazeballs. But one night Alice discovers one mysterious carpenter who continues to work late into the night. But is he really what he says he is?

     Not much about The Carpenter seems well made. The kills are over the top, the gore is cheaply done, and the acting from the supporting cast is pretty eccentric. But all of these things combine with an eerie score and decent cinematography to create a dreamlike feel for the film. It's probably it's strongest trait. As it has you wondering until the second the credits roll if this is all just some hallucination Alice is experiencing.

    The characters are all interesting enough and easy to invest in. Alice's husband is a complete scumbag. He's sleeping with one of his students and treating his wife poorly all the while. The relationship between Alice and The Carpenter develops through several conversations filled with interesting handyman metaphors. And most of the townspeople are so over the top weird, that you can't help but listen to what they have to say.

    The Carpenter is by no means perfect. It's far from it. But for a straight to video horror film of the late 80's this is pretty damn good. It has a deliberate pace that never gets too boring because the characters are all easy to invest in. The only weak part of the overall writing is the ending. Which seemed a little un-creative to me. Even so, The Carpenter is an interesting horror film that's worth checking out at least once.

Bodycount:6

Side Note: Wings Hauser stars in this as the titular character. I guess he's sort of a straight to video legend. He does a good job as the charming yet dangerous antagonist.

Day 5: The Outing

      If you were to be asked about Genie themed horror films you'd probably answer with Wishmaster. Pre-dating Wishmaster by nearly a decade, The Outing has a similar premise and is more entertaining. But is that really saying a lot?

     Three completely over the top rednecks break into the home of an allegedly wealthy middle eastern woman. After discovering an antique lamp within the walls of her home, they unwittingly release an ancient evil Djinn. The lamp is donated to a museum where lead character, Alex's father works. Alex and her friends construct a plot to stay the night in the museum but soon come face to face the evil Djinn.

    Gore and creature effects are the highlight of this 80's cheese fest. That being said, most of the gore is aftermath. There are plenty of kills to go around and they are all pretty fun. But you'd think in a film where the villain is a magical entity that can basically do anything that all the kills could be incredibly imaginative. While the kills are all pretty good fun, I couldn't help but notice that I'd seen it all before. It's disappointing that the writer's couldn't come up with something a bit more creative.

    All the main characters are pretty vanilla except for Alex's ex boyfriend, Mike. This character is the definition of scum. He is so despicable that he's more unlikable than the main villain. By the films end he's compiled a list of vile acts: Trying to run Alex and her new boyfriend off the road, assaulting his ex girlfriend, pulling a knife on her new boyfriend, and raping one of her friends. Despite several run ins with police, he somehow manages to avoid incarceration until this Djinn shows him justice. Thank you Mike, for being a true villain.

    So is The Outing a bad movie? Not at all. But with a lethargic pace in the middle and kills that don't live up to the limitless potential, it treads the line of average. When, it comes to evil Genie movies though, to my knowledge there isn't anything better. The Outing can lay claim to being the greatest Evil Genie film.

    Bodycount: 12
Side Note: The tag line "Don't say see you later...Say Goodbye." has to go down as one of the most un-clever tag lines written. Okay, maybe not. But seriously?

Day 4: Curse Of The Devil

    Curse Of The Devil is the 7th film in the Hombre Lobo series of films. All of which are based on Werewolf Waldemar Daninsky and all star the "Spanish Lon Chaney", Paul Naschy (Who's name is misspelled on the cover.) Curse of The Devil ignores all the event's that take place in the previous 6 films of the franchise.

     Waldemar Daninsky is a wealthy count who is seduced by a beautiful satantic woman. After making love to her, she uses a wolves skull covered in her own blood to bite him which transforms him into a bloodthirsty Werewolf. After meeting another love interest and murdering her sister in his werewolf form, Daninsky must now hide his curse from the authorities all the while quenching his primal thirst for blood.

    Curse of the Devil is everything you'd expect from a 70's foreign B film. It's cheesy, the creature effects are laughable, and the editing is baffling. There are some strong points to go along with it though. The gore is actually quite well done, the gothic set pieces are nice and create a good setting for this type of film, and there is no shortage of action. Once the bodies start to pile up they don't stop. The ending in particular is a delight.

   I'm unfamiliar with the Hombre Lobo series. This is regarded by many to be the best and most entertaining outing of the series. Once Naschy starts turning into a Werewolf there are few moments that lack entertainment value. This isn't the film that's going to frighten you and create a tense atmosphere. But gore hounds will have a blast watching this particularly awful looking Werewolf tear apart his victims. A fun film.

Body Count:18

Side Note: The werewolf transformations in this are taken straight out Universal's Wolfman. It doesn't look nearly as impressive here.

Day 3: Deadly Dreams

    Due to the success of Nightmare of Elm Street, a huge wave of dream themed horror films were released in the 80's. Bad Dreams, Dreamaniac, and Nightmares to name a few. Kind of ironic, since most studios that read the initial NOES script allegedly didn't find it scary. Deadly Dreams unsurprisingly falls into this popular sub-genre.

   Alex is haunted by the memory of his parent's brutal murder when he was 10 years old. Now a college a student, he continues to have nightmares about the wolf masked killer, Norman Perkins (Nice Psycho reference.) After becoming romantically involved with an attractive young woman named Maggie, his nightmares start to appear more and more real. What is a dream and what is reality?

    One thing I find really effective about this film is it's blending of dreams and reality. NOES is the first film to really execute this and did it to perfection. Other dream horror films don't really blur the lines quite as effectively. Deadly Dreams had me questioning what was actually a dream and what was really taking place.

     The production, acting, and direction are all very mediocre. The characters are very simple, but I found myself invested in them. The gore is surprisingly decent though nothing spectacular takes place. Maybe a bullet wound here and there, a stab, a neck slit. While nothing will stick out to a seasoned horror viewer, everything was well executed and looked good.

     Deadly Dreams maintains interest through several dream sequences and a rather short run time. The story seemingly goes nowhere for almost an hour. But at least there is some action. Finally when the climax arrives we're treated to a not totally predictable twist.

     Despite showing promise in several areas Deadly Dreams never exceeds mediocrity. It's an enjoyable film. But it's nothing that will be looked back on as a hidden gem. Don't go out of your way to watch Deadly Dreams. If you have nothing else however, there are definitely worse films that could occupy your time.

Body Count:5

Side Note: I'm a huge fan of synth horror scores. The final chase scene has a pretty cool background theme.

Day 2:The Town That Dreaded Sundown

       1976, the concept of the Slasher sub-genre has been introduced to audiences through films like Psycho, Black Christmas, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Though bearing some of the most prominent features of the genre, it's true form wouldn't be realized until the release of 1978's Halloween. These "proto-slashers" can sometimes bring a very unique take on the concept due to their not being a full formula to follow. The Town That Dreaded Sundown falls into this category.

      The film opens with a narrative explaining it's post World War 2 setting in Texarkana, TX. A young couple has parked their car at an apparent make out point where they are met by a surprise attacker. The young couple barely survive their run in with the potato sack wearing "Phantom". After local police discover two more bodies one of Texas's best detectives is called onto the case. What follows is a mash up of a crime mystery and horror film favoring the former.

       One of the unique traits TTTDS has when compared to it's peers is the use of narration to progress the story. The films plot is almost seemingly told in chapters, each one opening with a brief narrative explaining the feelings of the townspeople and how the police plan to proceed. Adding specific dates for all the attacks helps the semi-documentary feel of the film.

      Most of the run time is spent following the police officers. Which gives it a heavy crime drama feel that overpowers it's horror elements. The scenes with Phantom are eerie, dark, and come off brutal despite minimal gore. These murder scenes are well done, but take up very little of the overall film. Instead of building suspense towards these moments we are tasked with listening to rather dry cop characters. The only highlight of these scenes is the somewhat baffling inclusion of slapstick comedy.

    When TTTDS is doing horror, it's dark and engaging. Everything else about it seems to show it's age and becomes quite boring. The scenes that establish this as a very important and influential slasher film are all there. It's very obvious that this served as a great inspiration to the films of the 80's. But call me old fashioned, I'd prefer it if the film spent more time establishing the victims as opposed to all the officers involved in the case. The more stalk and slash, the better. And unfortunately there is very little stalk and not enough slash. I really wanted to like this more than I did.

Body Count:3\

Side Note: Literally nobody in this movie knew how to drive. The film is littered with cars swerving off the road or even flying off ledges. It's actually one of the only effective comedic elements of the film. Also the Phantom is quite OBVIOUSLY the inspiration for Jason Vorhees' design in Friday The 13th Part 2.

Day 1: Killer Party

 
     You'd think combining the party sequences of a teen sex comedy with a slasher film would be an easy combination. The two genre's almost go hand in hand. Sex, drugs, drinking. These are the things that slasher villains seem to base their victims on. These are the things that drive any good party scene in a sex comedy. It's these very reasons that I have always wanted to watch Killer Party.

      The film starts with a very Thriller-esque movie within a music video (By the very entertaining embodiment of Hair Pop Metal, White Sister!) within the movie that we're actually watching. It's a pretty long introduction to the movie and it all ends up being irrelevant to the actual overall plot. We find Jennifer, Vivia, and Pheobe all preparing for their initiation to a sorority. As pledges, (or goats as they're referred to) the girls are tasked to help set up an April Fool's Day party. Unfortunately for the party goers, supernatural forces appear to be at work here. One by one, the drunken attendees are butchered.

    So does Killer Party live up to supernatural sex comedy slasher party it claims to be? Not so much. While there are plenty of entertaining antics, a good portion of the film covers the setting up of the party. And the party scene isn't even very long. The kills are all cutaways and are pretty devoid of gore. But do you really see many slasher villains clad in antique scuba gear?

    The production values and direction are both surprisingly good. While the acting isn't exactly among the genre's best, its a far cry from the worst you can get when delving into these kinds of movies. The writing is what really holds this film back. Supporting characters aren't exactly notable and some are all but forgotten by the script at it's close. There is a extremely elaborate prank that one of the main characters sets up at the party that doesn't even fully take place. Most of the kills are all jammed into the end of the film with no build up or suspense.

     Killer Party, despite its shortcomings, manages to be an entertaining way to spend 92 minutes. But one has to wonder what could have truly been had the strong points of both genres fully been displayed here. Great title, great artwork, but it falls just short on delivering  what I truly want out of a sex comedy and a slasher film.

Body Count:8

Side Note: White Sister is an absolute riot. Though we only see them in the opening moments of the film, they steal the show!

   

The Hunt: Day 10

No particularly notable tape stops today. But VHS Collecting Legend, Dan Kinem and I decided to stop and hang out in a cave for a bit.

After experiencing what life is like a mile beneath the earths surface, we proceeded to the first hip hop show I've ever attended. Kevin Gates.

And B.O.B

Not a fan of either artist but hip hop shows appear to be every bit as fun as I thought they'd be. I would love to go see a rapper I actually like in the near future.

Still Searching:

Deadly Prey

555

Woodchipper Massacre

Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark (Big Box)

Dark Night Of The Scarecrow

The Town That Dreaded Sundown

Samurai Cop