Christmas Evil - 1980

Reviewed by Sammi




Year: 1980

Director: Lewis Jackson

Starring: Brandon Maggart, Jeffrey DeMunn

Synopsis: Ready for this? Kid sees his Dad, dressed as Santa, coming on to his Mom. He grows up and decides that he's Santa. Gives good kids presents, terrorizes bad kids, kills grownups.

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Review: Whew...this one just gets better every time I see it! It's not a slasher, as much as others like to label it as such. It's more along the lines of "Maniac" or "Don't Go in the House". Basically it's a character study of one man's descent into madness. It's not terribly violent, and when it does hit a moment of violence, it's not too over the top on the gore...for the most part. The scene outside of the church kind of comes out of left field, but the rest is pretty tame.
The thing about this movie is that you actually feel for this guy. He's a bit of an anti-hero and really does just want people to be good. His methods may be a tad bit unorthodox, but whatever works for him, right? He does do a number of really nice things though. Like stealing a bunch of toys from the factory he works at and dropping them off at a children's hospital and leaving kids in his "Good" book presents under their trees.
Two of my favorite parts are: when he leaves one kid, who he caught reading Penthouse, a large sack of dirt; and when an angry mob is chasing him with torches. Really? People in 1980 had torches just laying around in case they needed to have a good lynching? I was four in 1980. I remember some things from when I was four...torches aren't one of those things. My parents must've felt really stupid whenever someone, in the neighborhood, needed to be hunted down and mobbed.
The one thing I'll give the torch chase is that it brings a "Frankenstein" kind of feel to the film, and that's kind of how you feel about Harry. It's not his fault he's batshit crazy, it's definitely a culmination of things (seeing your parents play "Naughty Girl on Santa's Lap" could do that to a fragile mind). He's kind of like the monster, more misunderstood than evil.
Add to this an ending that leaves you wondering if you just missed something. It took me a couple of viewings to get what the director was trying to get across. I think it really just comes down to bad timing, but it's cool. I've seen a lot worse.
Overall, this film is gold. I wish more people knew about it, and that it had a larger following. Harry tries so hard to get people to believe in Christmas and what it stands for. Good people have no reason to worry around this guy...it's the "bad" people that need to worry, and you really can't get much more "Christmas Spirit" than that.

Score: 8.5/11

Trivia: Not too much on this one, except for Jeffrey DeMunn. TV fans may know him as Professor Norman Rothenberg of "Law and Order". Horror fans definitely know him as Sheriff Herb Geller from the 1986 remake of "The Blob"...if you're a horror fan who doesn't like the 1986 remake of "The Blob", then you should just go become a Dave Matthews fan.

Availability: Amazon has DVD copies starting at $9.00 used. This film has been released multiple times by multiple companies, so it shouldn't be too hard to find.

House on Sorority Row - 1983

Reviewed by Sammi



Year: 1983

Director: Mark Rosman

Starring: Kathryn McNeil, Eileen Davidson, Janis Ward

Synopsis: Katie and her sorority sisters simply want to have their graduation party at the sorority house. The problem is, their housemother has different plans, and wants them out of the house. So, they do the only thing they know how...they pull a prank on her.
When the prank backfires, and their housemother dies, they have to hide the body before the party starts. While the party rolls along, the body count starts to rise!
Did the housemother really die, or is she still alive and stalking the guests?

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Review: The reason I started working on this page is because I had become weary of looking up films online. There's a ton of "critics" out there who reduce the films I love to pointless drivel. This film is a prime example of this.
Allow me to quote the main user comment from the IMDb. "O.k., lot of alot of elements here! (scream, i know what you did last summer) but in early 80's fashion." Really? Could it have something to do with "Scream" and "I Know What You Did Last Summer" being films that were based on films like "House on Sorority Row"? How the hell does this film have elements of films that were made over 10 years later?! This film was part of the original line of slashers. Scream is tweenie schlock which attempts to satire the genre.
Whew...anyway...back to the film. I love this movie!! I've probably watched this film well over ten times and it never gets old. "House on Sorority Row" isn't original, whatsoever, and I'll admit that. But, how many slashers, post 1982, were? What this film is, though, is an absolute blast!! The plot's simple, and really easy to keep up with. The effects are decent, the killer's final outfit is mind-blowingly goofy, and there's a head in a toilet! What more could you ask for?!
If you want an intelligent film, don't look here (Hell, you probably shouldn't even look at this page!). If you're looking for a basic 80's slasher with an odd little hallucinatory ending, then you're in the right place. This film delivers basic slasherness in all of it's bloodstained glory!
Do yourself a favor, find a copy of this film, and expect to be entertained.

Score: 8.0/11

Trivia: Ummm...the director later did a number of episodes of "Lizzie McGuire", and this movie is being remade for 2009?! Will it ever end? Seriously?

Availability: Elite released a DVD of this, awhile back, and it's readily available. I've seen it new for as low as $9.99. Amazon has new and used copies starting at $15.88.

One Dark Night - 1983

Reviewed by Sammi



Year: 1983

Director: Tom McLoughlin

Starring: Meg Tilly, Elizabeth Daily, Adam West

Synopsis: I'll try to be as concise as I can. A famed occultist dies mysteriously and his corpse is laid to rest in the local mausoleum. His daughter finds out he was a psychic vampire and was draining energy from teenage girls that he was abducting.
Meanwhile, Julie is trying to become a "Sister" (a trio of popular girls in school who all wear matching purple jackets). Carol, leader of the sisters, wants Julie to fail because Julie is dating her ex, Steve. So, she decides that Julie's final test is to spend a night in, of all places, the mausoleum!!
So, Julie gets locked in the mausoleum and takes what she thinks is sleeping pills, but is actually Demerol. Carol and Kitty sneak into the mausoleum to scare her. What none of them realize is that the occultist isn't quite ready to lay down yet...

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Review: This was a fun little film. I didn't notice 98 minutes pass, which is always a plus. There were definitely some drawbacks, though. The animated dead looked like dolls being pushed around, there was practically no gore, except for a neat effect at the climax, and it almost seemed like too much plot. Fortunately, McLoughlin is a solid writer/director and he's able to hold it all together.
The acting is some of the best you can get in a low budget film from the 80's. Seriously...Adam West, Meg Tilly, and Elizabeth Daily? I have nothing more to say about that.
This is basically a ghost story. McLoughlin loves gothic horror, this much is obvious. Between this and "Jason Lives", he's gone out of his way to show the world this very fact. The downside is, the corpses...did they all have to look like they were just being hung from wires or stuck on poles? The end was pretty ridiculous, as well, but that's fine. I didn't realize it until later. At the time it made sense, I guess.
You do get to see a girl get killed by being smothered with corpses, though. That scene, alone, is worth watching the film. How many times do you get to see a girl die because corpses keep falling on her? Not often enough.
I'm going to say, if you can find a copy used, or for rent somewhere, pick it up. I don't think it's worth paying full price for new, though. This feels like a "watch once every year or two" type of film. You may want to see it more than once, but it's too story driven to be just thrown in whenever you need something on screen.

Score: 5.0/11

Trivia: Tom McLoughlin's first film, he later wrote and directed "Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives" as well as a number of episodes of both "Freddy's Nightmares" and "Friday the 13th: The Series".
Elizabeth Daily went on to play Dottie in "Pee Wee's Big Adventure" and was the voice of Mrs. Incredible in "The Incredibles". Horror fans may also remember her as Lana from "Bad Dreams".
Meg Tilly's following role was Mary Loomis in "Psycho 2".

Availability: Amazon has used and new copies starting at $10.

The Kindred - 1987

Reviewed by Sammi and Belial



Year: 1987

Director: Stephen Carpenter and Jefferey Obrow

Starring: David Allen Brooks, Rod Steiger, Amanda Pays

Synopsis: A scientist, named John, is told by his dying scientist mother that he has a brother he never knew about. She explains to him that he needs to go and take care of "Anthony" and to burn her journals. He gathers a group of his colleagues together to go to her secluded house and figure out what exactly she was trying to tell him. Who's Anthony? Where are these journals? Where's the dog?! Tentacly monstery chaos ensues...

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Review: So, Belial and I were determined to watch something that would surprise us as actually being a good movie (our last couple of attempts didn't turn out so well, but will be reviewed at a later time, as soon as the idea of it doesn't make me nauseous). We popped in "The Kindred", which I had vaguely remembered from when I was young, and all I can say is that we got so much more than what we had anticipated!!
When you expect a movie about a monster test tube baby, and you get people turning into fish and hybrids and a monster big enough to flip a car over....what the hell more do you ask for?! There wasn't much gore, the film was more squishy than splattery, and no nudity (I know...horror without boobs? In the late 80's?) but it didn't matter. The effects were brilliant, the creatures were beyond imaginative looking, and all in all, this film looked and felt more Lovecraftian than most films that are actual adaptations of his work.
All in all, I was thrilled with this film. The pacing was great, it definitely held your attention through it's duration. The story wasn't anything innovative, but was executed very well. I even started to care a little about the characters. It wasn't one of those cases of one solid character and a plethora of monster fodder. This film is definitely fun for repeat viewings with friends. Not only do I recommend this film...I demand you find yourself a copy!

Score: 8.0/11

Trivia: Jefferey Obrow and Stephen Carpenter had actually worked together many times before, having already made Pranks (The Dorm that Dripped Blood) in 1982 and The Power in 1984. Carpenter went on to later make a film that was so horrible, it's actually become a bit legendary for it's ineptness, Soul Survivors (2001).

Availability: As far as I can tell, this film has never been released on DVD, but Amazon does have used copies listed starting at $3.70.