Tag: 1981

Directed by Herb Freed [Other horror films: Haunts (1976), Beyond Evil (1980), Graduation Day (1981)]

When I first saw Graduation Day, I found it underwhelming, but quickly forgot about it. I can’t say that I’ll remember it much better with this revisit, but I can at least say that it’s somewhat watchable, though far from a good movie.

One thing I did particularly enjoy about this one is the sheer amount of potential suspects. There’s a lot of characters here, and while the answer to who’s behind the killings isn’t an overly creative one, at least they had potential to do more with it.

What’s mildly more impressive is the amount of performances that I actually liked. It’s not just Christopher George (Pieces, Mortuary, and City of the Living Dead) and Patch Mackenzie (who was kick-ass in her moderately short screen-time); we get some decent acting from E.J. Peaker, Michael Pataki (of Grave of the Vampire; also worth mentioning, one of his scenes just cracked me up), Denise Cheshire, all along with a semi-early appearance of Linnea Quigley (Night of the Demons, Silent Night, Deadly Night, The Return of the Living Dead, and hundreds of others). It’s true that E. Danny Murphy’s performance falters at times, but even so, he was still at least okay.

Also, somewhat surprisingly, some of the sequences here were filmed in somewhat interesting ways. The first five minutes of the movie seem like some sports documentary, what with all of these impressive sporty things (pole vaulting, track-and-field type stuff) and concluding with a traumatic death during a run. There’s also a few other scenes, such as Cheshire’s character doing bar-hopping (I’m not remotely a sports guy – there’s these two elevated bars, and she’s jumping from one to the other in impressive fashion) or a juxtaposition toward the end of Mackenzie’s character running from danger to the opening death of her character’s sister. These are just small touches, but they do feel special, especially in comparison to the rest of this movie.

What isn’t impressive, and this is certainly problematic, are the kills. While there’s a decent body count, there are only three kills I’d personally label decent, and one is just barely counted, being a somewhat weak decapitation. There was a character stabbed through the throat with a fencing sword, though, that looked pretty decent, and another character who practices some pole vaulting and lands on some cleverly-placed spikes. None of the kills here are great, though, which is a damn shame, as the movie did have some things going in other departments.

Another problem is that the film, at an hour and 36 minutes, does occasionally feel padded. This might not have mattered had some of the kills been done better, or maybe less time was spent on red herrings (though I do personally love the cop who hides a joint in the barrel of his service weapon – quality guy), but as it stands, it just felt like it was dragging at times.

All-in-all, Graduation Day wasn’t a bad time. It wasn’t a great time, or even that good, but it was fine for a lower-budget Troma-released slasher. If you’re a slasher fan, I’d recommend giving it one viewing, but for most people, this isn’t something I’d really recommend them taking the time to see.

6/10

Directed by Sam Raimi [Other horror films: It’s Murder! (1977), Crimewave (1985), Evil Dead II (1987), Army of Darkness (1992), The Gift (2000), Drag Me to Hell (2009)]

Probably one of horror fandom’s more beloved movies, The Evil Dead succeeds in possessing a strong atmosphere and special effects that go beyond, far beyond, expectations. So of course, in typical Jiggy fashion, it’s never been a movie I’ve ever been overly fond of.

Which isn’t to say that it’s not okay. I could sort of see myself watching this one every couple of years (though at what point in my life I’ll be revisiting a movie that often, I really couldn’t say), and it definitely has enough going for it to be a movie that horror fans should at least give a shot once, but from the first time I saw it, it’s never been my particular cup of tea.

Part of this (and an admittedly small part) might be because, while I find Ash’s character development sort of interesting, he’s not a character that really stands out to me. Sure, he seems the everyman that you’d expect, sometimes too scared in tense situations to jump into action (I certainly can’t blame him there), but even when he really starts fighting back (about an hour or so into the movie), I just don’t feel much in the way of interest for him.

Another thing is that while this movie is primarily a dark story of demonic forces possessing and thus torturing the last remaining character, there are some occasional lighter elements thrown in (the demonic mocking, over-the-top violence at times). Now, this is upped to 11 in the second film, but the amusing thing is that it felt more consistent in the second movie, and I personally find myself gravitating more toward that one than I ever did this.

But like I said, none of this is to say the movie is by any means bad. It’s obviously a film that has a place in the heart of a lot of people, and I certainly respect what Raimi and Campbell were able to due with a limited budget (those gore scenes themselves, from the pencil stabbing to the epic finale, were well-worth watching the movie for), and again, the atmosphere is great.

As for the cast, the only name that really need be mentioned is Bruce Campbell, who starts off as a pretty unassuming character but, of course, over the course of the film becomes more willing to stand up and fight. Campbell was in a variety of films after this point (such as Maniac Cop, Moontrap, and Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat), and you can see why. If there was anyone else who might deserve a mention, it’d be Ellen Sandweiss, who was my personal favorite character, and it’s a shame she went the way she did (especially after that tree rape).

And speaking of that tree rape, what a disturbing scene. It’s not even all that explicit (though it does provide one of the two scenes of nudity in the film), but it is a scene that stands out and probably remains one of the more unforgettable sequences of the film.

I do admit to finding the ending a bit of a cop-out, but I won’t deny that it has an element of charm to it. Which can really be said for the whole of the film – though it’s not and never has been a movie I really cared for, it’s still charming, and it does enough right to merit it’s status. It’s just that The Evil Dead doesn’t do near as much for me as it does so many others.

6.5/10

Directed by Tony Maylam [Other horror films: The Sins of Dorian Gray (1983), Split Second (1992)]

For a long time, this has often been one of the first slashers I recommend when asked by someone who doesn’t have a background in 80’s classics, as I’ve always found The Burning a very solid film. I still do, and though it may not be spectacular, it’s very much worth a look.

It has that classic slasher feel that fans of 80’s horror would love – a pretty solid opening origin, memorable special effects (that raft scene is the most referenced sequence in this film for a reason), and a pretty good antagonist in Cropsy (and Cropsy’s choice of weapon – garden shears – was inspired).

To an extent, I do think many performances are of the more forgettable variety. True, Dave (Jason Alexander, known mostly for a long-running role on Seinfeld) was pretty solid, defending both Alfred (Brian Backer) and Woodstock (Fisher Stevens) on multiple occasions. Glazer (Larry Joshua) definitely feels like a dickish bully (I love how he tries to drown Alfred, and flaunts it to the girls on the raft), and Alfred (who amusingly reminds me of a younger David Krumholtz) is okay in his own awkward way, but everyone else is either undercooked or merely average.

Admittedly, I did like Todd (Brian Matthews), but I don’t know if he stands out that well, and it’s the same with a lot of the women, such as Michelle (Leah Ayres), Karen (Carolyn Houlihan, who graces us with one of the few nude scenes in the film). I wish I could have liked Eddy (Ned Eisenberg) a bit more, and I wish we had more scenes with Tiger (Shelley Bruce) and Sally (Carrick Glenn, who gave us a quick nude shower scene), so there was some room for improvement.

The raft scene in the film is great, with quality tensions and fantastic special effects, with fingers being cut off and the like. It’s easy to see why it stands out – while the other kills are decent, Cropsy’s massacre of five, what with the cinematography, was glorious (and of course, a lot of credit also goes to Tom Savini). This said, the ax to the face at the end is quite good also.

It might also go without saying, but the music – a sort of funky electronic style that wouldn’t feel out of place in an Italian film – is on point, especially during the opening credits.

As far as camp-based slashers, The Burning doesn’t reinvent the wheel by any means. I always enjoyed it more than Madman, but it doesn’t have the same pull as many of the Friday the 13th films. Still, it’s a solidly-made slasher that hits many of the right spots, and is definitely worth a watch if you’re a fan of classic slasher films.

7.5/10

This is one of the films covered on Fight Evil’s podcast. Listen below as Chucky (@ChuckyFE) and I discuss this classic slasher.

Directed by John Irvin [Other horror films: Haunted: The Ferryman (1974), Dot.Kill (2005)]

I have to admit that I wish I liked this one more than I do. I’ve seen it once before, but didn’t remember too much about it aside from the general idea and a few scenes. And damn it, just that alone was enough for me to consider the movie good, but after seeing it with fresh eyes and keeping my expectations in check, I need to be honest and admit that I think Ghost Story had potential but ultimately faltered.

The cast is stellar here, my favorites being the old-timers in the Chowder Society, being Fred Astaire, Melvyn Douglas, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and John Houseman. I don’t particularly know any of these actors well (Melvyn Douglas being the potential exception, as I’ve seen him in The Old Dark House, The Vampire Bat, and The Changeling), but I think they work fantastically off each other. They strike me as life-long friends, and to quote Icona Pop, “I love it.”

Elsewise, we have Craig Wasson and Alice Krige. Wasson, of course, was Neil in Dream Warriors (he looks different enough here that if you didn’t catch on to this fact, I wouldn’t blame you), and he was certainly decent in that film, but here, he doesn’t really make a huge impression (even during his extended flashback). As for Krige, I definitely dug her character in the flashback (along with feeling rather bad for her), but for most of the film, she doesn’t especially overwhelm with personality.

I think many of the film’s better scenes take place during the Chowder Society flashback in the latter half of the film, and much of what came before felt somewhat plodding, especially Wasson’s flashback, little of which really interested me (and there wasn’t much of an ommpf at the end to even make the sequence worth it). I mean, the location was great – a small, New England town enshrouded in snowfall – but the story, while occasionally atmospheric, just fell flat, and the whole subplot with the escaped asylum patients didn’t do a thing for me.

Certainly I respect the way they decided to tell the story here, what with multiple flashbacks with some tense scenes in-between during the present-day, but I can’t help but think that if we had seen a bit more of the younger Chowder Society (Ken Olin, Kurt Johnson, Tim Choate, and Mark Chamberlin), things would have maybe smoothed out a bit (not that any of those four are near as good as their older counterparts, but those sequences were still enjoyable and, near the ending, tragic). That said, it still made for a fine idea, it’s just the execution felt a bit weak.

And alas, I think that could really be said for the whole of the film. I wish I could enjoy the film more than I do, but it just runs on too long with too little content of interest, and ultimately, I think Ghost Story, while it has some strong points, ultimately ends up only of moderate interest.

6/10

Directed by Michael Wadleigh [Other horror films: N/A]

This is a movie that I’ve been aware about for pretty much as long as I can remember. I recall, the few times this film has been brought up, being warned against calling this a werewolf film (which, given the title, is certainly a reasonable assumption), but aside from that, I went into this knowing very little.

Despite the almost two hour run-time, I feel like I’m leaving much the same way.

I’m not saying that Wolfen is a bad movie, but I will admit that I left quite underwhelmed, especially given, again, that the film was almost two hours. Now, I’ve not read the novel this film was based on (written by Whitley Strieber), but the story here, while starting out interesting, pretty quickly becomes more of a grind than anything else.

It was nice to see a younger Edward James Olmos, who I know mostly from his roles in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and The West Wing, but I didn’t really get his character, and despite the explanation given, I also didn’t really get the Wolfen. Diane Venora played an okay character, but I have a hard time believing she’d be attracted to Albert Finney’s character (Finney, on a side-note, is an actor I know only from Big Fish, so it’s interesting to see him in a role like this). Finney himself gave a fine performance, but I just couldn’t get into the story, and that’s the main issue.

The setting for some of these scenes were top-notch, though. When Finney and Venora first go to that really horrible, decimated portion of New York City, it brings to mind vibes of Cabrini Green from Candyman (only this was more desolate and looked a hell of a lot worse). I lived in Gary, Indiana a bit as a child, but I’ve never seen anything as sad as that. Also, that bridge scene with Finney and Olmos was fantastic, and though there were no Wolfen in sight, I thought it was one of the tensest moments of the movie.

Alas, it all comes back to the story, which I just didn’t care for, and despite some quality scenes (such as the undiscussed yet still enjoyable sequence in which Finney and Gregory Hines are looking for the Wolfen in the ruins of derelict buildings), I just don’t think this movie was really worth the time. Perhaps if I read the novel and then came back to try the film out again, I’d get more from it, but as it stands, I can’t say Wolfen did much for me.

5.5/10

Directed by William Asher [Other horror films: N/A]

Known also as Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker (which isn’t a title I’m that fond of), Night Warning is an interesting movie that I’d not heard much about before throwing it on, which may, to a certain extent, have worked in it’s favor. The story is decent, the characters generally memorable, but I don’t know if I’d go as far as to say I actually enjoyed this one.

Performance-wise, I think both Jimmy McNichol and Susan Tyrrell did a great job (Tyrrell especially as she began losing it throughout the course of the movie). Steve Eastin brings some humanity into the film, playing a closeted gay basketball coach, and to destroy his humanity, enter the police, in the form of Bo Svenson, who played a very, very homophobic piece of shit. Svenson did a good job in his role, as I really hated his character and his bigoted viewpoints. His character had a somewhat unique (and surprising) story arc here, so look out for that. Lastly, though she wasn’t desperately important, Julia Duffy was pretty cute, and gave us a little bit of nudity to keep us going.

Which wasn’t entirely unnecessary, as the movie, while engaging enough, did occasionally feel draggy. It picked up near the finale, when the main character gets his life even more screwed up by his aunt, but it takes a bit of patience to get to that point. It’s here that Susan Tyrrell really gave a solid performance, and her lack of grasp on reality was fun enough to make the whole of the conclusion interesting. Throw in the gay coach and a homophobic cop, along with a few violent deaths and a corpse, and you’re in for a decent time.

This said, I don’t think Night Warning was quite as good as some others say it is. It has enough slasher aspects to belong to the subgenre, but the route this one takes feels quite a bit more subdued. It’s an interestingly psychological story, no doubt, and I can’t point to many positive gay characters before this point in time, but I still would have preferred something else. If anything, though, I’d definitely throw this one at least one watch, because it really deserves that much (even if you can see the ending miles before the signposts).

6/10

Directed by Jimmy Huston [Other horror films: My Best Friend Is a Vampire (1987)]

If there’s anything Final Exam did, it solidified my hate of fraternities.

This is a decently classic slasher that took me until now to finally sit down and watch, and while the kills were decent, I will admit to being disappointed by some aspects of the movie (especially in regards to the killer).

Generally, I enjoy the atmosphere here, which feels not too dissimilar from other slashers of this time period. It’s not great, but it’s decent, especially since we have a few positive characters here (mostly Lisa and Radish, but Janet was okayish also).

Cecile Bagdadi only has this movie in her IMDb credits, which is a bit sad, as I think she does decent here as the main girl, if not maybe a bit generic. Still, her conversations with Joel S. Rice (Radish) were somewhat touching, and held a bit of depth. Otherwise, there wasn’t much in the way of characters that inspired me.

The whole frat thing just bugged the hell out of me, though. I know that this is from an entirely different era, but that prank at the beginning (which was entirely beyond the pale) should have gotten them thrown in jail at the very least, and they never get better, and harassing pledges (stripping one down and tying them to a tree, while shoving ice down their underwear, is another act that should get them thrown in jail), which is done to this day, is just disgusting.

I can ignore the stupid frat guys, though, and get to my real problem, which was the killer. Having never seen this before, I was expecting something with a bit more mystery as opposed to The Slumber Party Massacre, but even that movie gave a lot more explanation of the killer than we got here. We literally got nothing – not a name, motive, nada. Obviously, if the kills are decent and the characters are fine, maybe I could let that slide, but it’s not like the movie was stellar in either of those departments.

I’m not going to go as far as to say Final Exam was a failure, just that I was expecting a slasher of a higher caliber, and this seemed to bring little worth mentioning to the table.

6.5/10

Directed by Ken Wiederhorn [Other horror films: Shock Waves (1977), Return of the Living Dead: Part II (1988), Dark Tower (1989)]

This is a somewhat well-known film that I’ve not seen until now, which is a shame, as it’s pretty good. It’s not amazing, but as a big fan of slashers, I have very little to complain about.

In many ways, I think the performances stand out more here than the gore, which isn’t necessarily common for many slasher films. Lauren Tewes does pretty well as the lead, though she’s not exactly the most exciting character. On the other hand, though, John DiSanti does a fantastic job as the sleazy, rather disturbing antagonist. We never really learn why DiSanti’s character has the psychosis he does, but that didn’t bother me much. His character is brutal, efficient, and pretty enjoyable to watch despite his atrocious acts.

Better than both DiSanti and Tewes, though, and the real stand-out in the film, is Jennifer Jason Leigh. She later went on to appear in both The Hitcher (1986) and the enjoyable television movie Buried Alive (1990). While this isn’t her first role, it is her first feature film, and as she plays a somewhat challenging character (someone who can neither see nor hear), she does amazingly. She feels like such a vulnerable person who, via flashback, we see had a very traumatic experience, so seeing her come into her own at the end was such a cheer-out-loud moment. I loved Leigh here, and her character is the one that you won’t likely forget after seeing this.

As I mentioned before, the gore is pretty decent, though it’s not really the showcase here. In many ways, this film feels a bit more like a thriller than a horror (and from my understanding, it was originally meant to be a thriller before they decided to move more toward the slasher direction), but we definitely get some gory scenes, along with some occasional nudity (actually, for a slasher that feels a bit more classy, I was a bit surprised by the amount of nudity in the film). It may not be a highlight, but if you’re a slasher fan, I don’t think there’s much to complain about.

And honestly, while I know the movie wasn’t perfect, off the top of my head, I have no major complaints. I enjoyed the plot well enough, and the suspenseful scene in which Tewes’ character is searching for evidence in the antagonist’s apartment was definitely on point. I guess they could have added in a few additional kills, but really, we got a decent body count here, so really, I can’t complain about that either.

Eyes of a Stranger isn’t necessarily a classic, but I do think it’s pretty overlooked, which is admittedly easy to do as the early 1980’s are somewhat over-saturated with slashers. I don’t think this movie’s anything overly flashy or even special, but I don’t have any real issues with the film, and the ending was one of the most satisfying sequences I’ve seen in a little while. If this is one that you’ve missed, I’d certainly look into it. Even if you don’t love it, it’s still a great way to spend an hour-and-a-half.

8.5/10

This is one of the films covered on Fight Evil’s podcast. Listen below as Chucky (@ChuckyFE) and I discuss this slasher.

Directed by Ken Hughes [Other horror films: N/A]

This is one I’ve seen once before, and I don’t recall particularly enjoying it the first time around. Seeing Night School again confirmed, at least to me, that it’s certainly no classic of the 1980’s, but at the same time, it does have some pretty decent kills.

Putting the kills aside for the time being, Night School doesn’t strike me as that memorable a movie. The plot’s decent for a slasher flick, and we get some solid suspects and a bit of procedural detective work, but there’s not a lot here that strikes me as inspired.

The main character (Leonard Mann) was fine, as was his partner (Joseph R. Sicari), but I don’t really think many other cast members stood out, save for Drew Snyder and perhaps Rachel Ward. Annette Miller was sort of funny the few times she appeared, but really, as far as the cast goes, there’s not a lot that’s offered.

If anything puts this movie on the map, it’s the kills. The best was probably the locker room attack (which concluded with the killer throwing a severed head into an aquarium), but the diner sequence was pretty good also. When Night School leaned that way, it could be pretty suspenseful, so credit where credit is due.

Unfortunately, I don’t think credit’s due that often. The ending is about what you would expect, and while there are some good things strewn throughout the film, there’s not enough here at all to really think that highly of it overall. Honestly, while it may be worth a single watch, I don’t think Night School is worth too much more.

6/10

This is one of the films covered on Fight Evil’s podcast. If interested, listen as Chucky (@ChuckyFE) and I discuss this one below.