Giallo July: Tenebre (Dario Argento, 1982)

I've been meaning to get back to Italy and the giallo properly on the blog for over six months now. During that time I've had the pleasure of discovering countless gems I'd previously never seen and sometimes never heard of... and during the process I accumulated a shit ton of notes. In fact, it got to the point where it was hard to know where to start in terms of writing it all up. As a result, I decided (probably against my better judgement) to have a bit of an impromptu giallo blogathon this month. Now, this won't be a daily thing or anything but the intention is to cover as many gialli as time and circumstances allow before July is through. 

To kick off, I could think of no movie more appropriate to talk about than the first giallo (if we don't count Suspiria and other titles from the supernatural giallo sub-genre) I ever saw, which is Tenebre (or Tenebrae as it was released over here).

Generally regarded as one of Argento's greatest films, it arguably rivals Deep Red as the director's finest giallo. Both represent high watermarks as far as the genre goes but personally, if forced to choose between the two, I'd take Tenebre any day of the week. I'm not sure which I'd say is superior (or if such an argument could even be made either way without resorting to hair splitting) but there's just something about the atmosphere of an early '80s Argento film that makes Tenebre overtake its older brother for me. But I am admittedly biased by nostalgia, this being such a formative giallo for me and all...

A quick synopsis for the uninitiated: popular American mystery writer Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa) visits Rome to promote his latest book (also called Tenebre) but soon ends up playing detective when a murderer, inspired by his work, starts wreaking bloody havoc across the city.... and that's really all you need to know. 

The set-up outlined above is deceptively simple and acts as a springboard for what arguably became the most acutely self-aware and deliciously subversive thriller of Argento's career. What I mean by the former should be obvious enough, even to those who haven't seen the film and have only heard about it, but regarding the latter I can only say so much without giving the game away. For now, let's just say this is pretty far removed from the routine as far as gialli go...

Aside from inverting and playing with the conventions of his early '70s gialli, Tenebre is also a dramatic departure from his two previous films Suspiria and Inferno, which were both supernaturally based, shot in sumptuous, psychedelic colour schemes, generally set at night and overflowing with an atmosphere reminiscent of your trippiest nightmares. This film, by comparison is set in the "real world" (though Argento claims it was meant to be the near future) and is, for the most part, filled with light. If memory serves, this was supposedly done to contrast against the internal darkness (or shadows, to translate the film's title) festering within the film's characters. 

This difference of aesthetic was probably the main thing that stopped me from loving this film earlier than I did, being as enamoured as I was of the Technicolour delights of Suspiria... but over time I've certainly come to appreciate Tenebre's look for what it is. While not as obviously ravishing to the retinas as those earlier films, it's still a pretty stunning affair visually. Working again with Suspiria's cinematographer Luciano Tovoli, Argento employs a much more restrained colour palette this time around, which while lacking the more immediately apparent dazzle of their earlier work, still provides the backdrop for some astonishing set-pieces... and perhaps none more so than a climactic scene where red meets white in spectacular fashion.

Like probably all of Argento's earlier films, there's also some serious technical showboating on display for all to enjoy, the case in point scene obviously being the few minute long crane shot that climbs up, over and back down a house, all to the groovy strains of Goblin (credited here as Simonetti-Morante-Pignatelli... I'm guessing they'd all fallen out by this point). Now one could accuse this as being a completely gratuitous piece of directorial show-offerery (i.e. "Look at my fancy new toy!")... and you'd have a point... but this would also arguably miss the point... Argento being one of those visually dynamic directors who is enamoured with the possibilities presented by the camera for exploring the worlds of his films.

About the cast: Anthony Franciosa is decent enough as protagonist Peter Neal and plays him in a way that makes him walk on a razor's edge between likeable and unlikeable for me... though let's face it, almost all male giallo protagonists can be guilty of acting like dicks on occasion. Daria Nicolodi appears as Neal's assistant Anne and is a joy to watch as always, though of course one wishes she were given more screen time. Also reappearing from Inferno is the otherworldly Ania Pieroni, who proves she really is the Mother of Tears when she kicks a oversexed wino in the nuts. And she's another lovely lady who is underused in this, her being the film's first victim and all... sorry, belated spoiler alert! Also of note to genre fans are the two Johns... Saxon and Steiner. The former I'm sure needs no introduction to anyone reading this, but the latter is probably only familiar to Italian horror junkies. He appears, funnily enough, with Daria Nicolodi, in Mario Bava's superb, underrated possession movie Shock and Ruggero Deodato's cheesetastic summer camp slasher Body Count. And last but not least is someone I'm not familiar with but whose performance in this I very much enjoy... Giuliano Gemma, who plays Detective Germani. The actor was apparently a veteran of many Italian films (especially westerns it seems) and plays one of my favourite giallo policemen here... it's hard to pin down exactly what it is, but I find the guy to be very likeable. 

One last cast related caveat: I'm not sure if this is true or not, but according to IMDb's trivia page, Christopher Walken was considered for this, presumably for the starring role. Now while I'd certainly love to see that version, I think it perhaps worked out for the best that he wasn't in it... for reasons that will probably be obvious to anyone who has seen the film... 

As far as behind the scenes goes, we already mentioned the top drawer cinematography by Tovoli and the Goblin score, which is undoubtedly one of their catchiest... but two other names also leapt out at me as the credits were rolling... Lamberto Bava and Michele Soavi, who were the 1st and 2nd assistant directors respectively.... and anyone who has seen any of their movies can probably detect some shared DNA between those and Tenebre. Both men would go on to make some excellent Italian horror films themselves, with Soavi especially being the seeming new hope for the next generation of Italian horror, until the industry died and the director also had to start spending more time caring for his sick son. 

For anyone who hasn't seen it and is generally uninitiated as far as Italian horror and the giallo goes, I think Tenebre is a damn fine place to start. Audacious, entertaining and of course, jaw droppingly gory, it's arguably never dull and should even grip the attention of those unacclimatised to foreign genre films of this vintage. And to everyone else I'd say go and re-watch it if you haven't in a while... you know you won't be sorry... in fact you'll be sorry if you don't as Argento will have to don his black gloves and come over and kill your ass! Y'all have been warned...

1984 Turns 30! A Retrospective: Friday the 13th Part IV - The Final Chapter (Joseph Zito)

Released in U.S. theatres on Friday the 13th of April a whole 30 years ago, Friday the 13th Part IV - The [Far From] Final Chapter is (after revisiting the film last night) my current favourite entry from the franchise (barely dislodging Part II off its pedestal). And considering what day it is today, it seemed an ideal time to take a look at what is one of the better regarded entries from the series.

Picking up straight after the climactic carnage of the previous film, Part IV opens with an excellent piece of camera-work that winds in and out of police and paramedics as they attend to the scene of said slaughter. This sequence both sets the mood of the film very nicely and also assures us that we're in the hands of a more than capable director... and that'd be Joseph Zito of the underrated and hugely atmospheric slasher The Prowler AKA Rosemary's Killer (1981)... and funnily enough, that film and this both have superlative (and occasionally jaw-dropping) special effects from Tom Savini... but I digress... During this opening scene, we see Jason (who is presumed dead) popped on a stretcher and  taken away to the hospital morgue. At the hospital, the sexy shenanigans occurring between two staff members, the perpetually horny Axel (Bruce Mahler) and nurse Robbie Morgan (Lisa Freeman), seem (perhaps unsurprisingly) to be enough to resurrect the dead Jason, who quickly dispatches the couple and then heads off on his merry way... 

Following this scene of post-coital killing, we're introduced to the Jarvis family and some fresh meat for the grinder, ahem, I mean holidaying teenagers, who are renting the house next door. The family includes single mum Mrs Jarvis (Joan Freeman), daughter Trish (Kimberly Beck) and younger son Tommy (Corey Feldman)... and it has to be said, they seem pretty tight as a unit... plus, Mrs J seems to be a rather relaxed sort of mother, having no qualms about a bunch of partying teens temporarily moving in next door. Said group of teens are, as is invariably the case with these things, a mixed bunch of folk... and while some are more memorable than others (especially the double act of Crispin Glover's Jimbo and Lawrence Monoson's Ted), most have their moments and seem relatively (i.e. in slasher movie terms) real and three dimensional.  

Like all the best films from the franchise, Part IV is both a good fun time party movie but is also highly effective on the horror front. The former is largely thanks to the chemistry between the uniformly game cast but also no doubt due in part to some choice one-liners delivered by screenwriter Barney Cohen... well, assuming some of these dialogue gems weren't improvised of course. And kudos to Zito and his DP João Fernandes for conjuring up some thick, dread-laden atmosphere. Some of the murder set-pieces in this film are arguably up there with the best the series has to offer, especially one set at night on the lake and another involving film itself. Also, regular composer Henry Manfredini returns, further adding to the air of foreboding hanging over proceedings. And speaking of music, Crispin Glover's crazy dancing to the tune of "Love is a Lie" by Lion (dubbed in after the fact... apparently it was AC/DC's "Back in Black" on set) is perhaps worth the price of admission alone. 

As usual, I feel like I've forgotten to mention something, but I'll leave it there for now.

So, if you're in the market for such things, tonight is obviously an ideal night (being not only the eponymous day but also a full moon apparently) to pull a Friday the 13th movie or two off the shelf... I'll be re-visiting the original (which I haven't seen in a few years) and Part V - A New Beginning (which I've only seen once) myself. 

However you choose to spend it, I wish you all a very Happy (and hopefully not unlucky) Friday the 13th!

1984 Turns 30! A Retrospective: Gremlins (Joe Dante) & Ghostbusters (Ivan Reitman)

Today marks, if Blogger is informing me correctly, my 84th post... and therefore it seems highly apt that I should be using it to say a few words about two perennial favourites from 1984 which were released in U.S. theatres a whole 30 years ago today.

I'm assuming practically everyone and their dogs and cats are well familiar with both films so I'll skip the usual plot summaries, trivia etc. as I'm sure there's very little new I can add on those fronts. Instead (and as this is very much an 11th hour post), I'll simply take this opportunity to very briefly give y'all my tuppence on the two...

I enjoy Gremlins (and practically every Joe Dante movie I've seen) quite a bit but it's never been a favourite... though if I'd first encountered it a few years earlier than I did, I imagine this may have been different. On the other hand, I frickin' love me some Ghostbusters... As I've said elsewhere (I reviewed the film a couple of years back and probably said most of what I have to say about it there), Ghostbusters is the film I've seen more than any other... and it never, ever gets old. Horror, humour, action, buddy comedy shtick, screwball comedy shenanigans, the film practically has it all... in fact so much so that one can easily understand why it was such a smash hit.

Both movies are arguably great gateway titles for introducing kids to the horror genre... scary in small parts, sure... but still generally light and action packed enough that the darker stuff doesn't seem to be much of a problem for most... even for many young kids... of course, one has to be careful though, as some can be much more sensitive than others.

Aside from having a much longer history with the film than with Gremlins, I think another reason I prefer Ghostbusters is the humour. Sure, Gremlins has its share but it's not quite as consistently funny to me over repeat viewings... plus, the whole movie has a Spielbergian borderline saccharine quality about it (which should come as no surprise I suppose) that I have to be in the right mood for, where as I can never not be in the mood for Ghostbusters... scientists have even proved it to be so!

I can't really think of anything else to add for now (though if anything does occur to me, I'll add a postscript), so I'll simply say that if you're in the mood, tonight would be an ideal time to revisit one or both of these... and if you watch Ghostbusters, do raise a belated glass in honour of the late, great Harold Ramis while you're at it... As many said when news of the man's death first came out, his contribution to and influence on the last generation of American film comedy (and the current one) can't be overstated... and needless to say, he was an integral part of the Ghostbusters, both on-screen and behind the scenes.

Finally, a random, but somewhat related sidenote... I recently noticed that the 15th anniversary DVD edition of Ghostbusters is now (and this won't surprise anyone who is even half awake) a whole 15 years old... holy shit, I can't believe some of my DVDs are teenagers, so to speak... and while we're at it, where the hell did the last ten years go?!? Damn I'm getting old!

Guest Post: Demons 6 - De Profundis AKA The Black Cat @ The Moon is a Dead World for Mayoween!

Alas that Halloween comes but once a year... well, officially that is. For some folks, and especially horror fans, every day has the potential to be a bit like Halloween... heck, it's sure as shit a more low maintenance affair than Christmas is in certain ways! But all that aside, there are thankfully many fine people out there who help to keep the horror torch burning during the months of the year that unfortunately aren't October... and Ryne Barber, of the excellent blog The Moon is a Dead World is one of them... 

I met this fine gentlemen via the horror section of Reddit (known as Dreadit), and not long after shooting the shit back and forth about that perennial favourite of mine, The House by the Cemetery, he was kind enough to ask me to contribute to a month long blogathon he's doing called Mayoween. As the name no doubt makes clear, this is essentially Halloween, but in May... the logic for choosing this particular month being that it marks the half way point between last year's Halloween and the one coming this October. 

Ryne allowed me to pick any movie I wanted, so I decided to go for this obscure late 80s Italian gem from Luigi Cozzi, which I'd just seen a few days prior to this invitation to guest post. 

I run through the production history of the film and offer my own thoughts there as well, but if anyone is confused by the title(s) and is wondering what the hell this movie is, all you need to know before digging deeper is that it was initially planned as unofficial sequel to Suspiria and Inferno and later mutated into more of a homage to Dario Argento. 

Here's the link y'all: http://www.themoonisadeadworld.net/2014/05/mayoween-simon-wright-reviews-demons-6-de-profundis.html 

Thanks again to Ryne for asking me to contribute and be sure to check out the rest of the ongoing Mayoween celebrations at his blog... I forgot to mention this above but basically the way he's working it is to alternate between posts he's written himself and ones from guest bloggers. I've only had chance to have a brief peruse so far but I've thoroughly enjoyed what I've read... for one thing it's always great to see such a wide range of films being covered and furthermore from a diverse range of people.

1984 Turns 30! A Retrospective: Firestarter (Mark L. Lester)

Released in U.S. theatres a whole three decades ago today, Firestarter sees a pint sized, pre-pubescent and post-E.T. Drew Barrymore blessed (and cursed) with the power to set things alight by will alone... and as the poster no doubt tells you loud and clearly, she could have lit all sixteen candles on Molly Ringwald's birthday cake while having an afternoon nap... Oh yes, this little girl will be frying much bigger fish as the film unfolds...

Drew plays Charlie McGee, an eight-year old girl who is on the run with her father (played by David Keith of Donald Cammell's dazzling giallo-esque thriller White of the Eye) as they are being perpetually pursued by shady government agents who are apparently being led by Martin Sheen (playing a somewhat similar character to the one he portrayed in another King adaptation from the previous year, The Dead Zone). Perhaps unsurprisingly, the agency (known as "the Shop") are hell bent on capturing the pair so they can channel Charlie's power for their own nefarious ends. However, the young lady is rather reluctant to use her gift, which is somewhat understandable, considering that she accidentally burnt her mother once (who was later killed by said agents) while having a tantrum during breakfast. Worry not though pyromaniacs of the world! Charlie will, for reasons unfortunately beyond her control, have to make much use of her power before the story reaches its conclusion...

I'll say no more regarding the plot as I'm sure you can pretty much see where it's headed and of course I wouldn't want to give everything away. I'd never seen this in its entirety until recently and I must say I quite enjoyed it. I can't see myself returning to it over and over as it's perhaps a bit over-long and also seems to a bit confused tonally speaking (though the jury is still out on that one until I see it at least once more), but it's certainly worth a look...

The cast are uniformly excellent, with Barrymore and Keith proving to be likeable and sympathetic protagonists and Martin Sheen and George C. Scott playing a pair of slimy bastards you'll no doubt love to hate, with Scott perhaps stealing the entire movie as a psychopathic Native American assassin who worms his way into the captured Charlie's confidence; there are a couple of moments involving his character which I found to be borderline bone-chilling. And if all those names weren't enough, we also have an superb bunch of supporting players including Heather Locklear, Freddie Jones, Art Carney and Louise Fletcher.

While we're on the subject of casting, here's a couple of could-have-been trivia tidbits... Firstly, Martin Sheen apparently stepped in to take the role originally meant for Burt Lancaster, who had to drop out to undergo heart surgery. Also, Jennifer Connelly was supposedly considered for the title role, which I find very interesting as there were a couple of moments while watching this that I though "I wonder if Dario Argento saw this before making Phenomena?"... and what I mean by that is the whole "little girl uses special powers to defeat evil" plot line, the similarly synth-tastic scores and all the shots of said girls' hair blowing dramatically in an apparently self-summoned tempest that always signposts the fact that some psychic, supernatural shit is about to go down. Finally, it's also worth mentioning that John Carpenter was originally down to direct but was removed from the project due to the critical and commercial failure of The Thing (I know, I still find it hard to believe it wasn't an instant classic too).... needless to say, I'd love to visit the alternate reality where his version was released, as I'm sure it'd be interesting...

The man who did end up taking the directorial reins in the end is Mark L. Lester who made a film called Class of 1984 (from 1982) funnily enough, but is probably best known for directing the Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Commando the year after this... and during Firestarter's explosive climax you can certainly tell it's the same dude calling the shots... in fact, you might almost suspect Lester was testing out some of his pyrotechnic effects here for that later film, with the fireballs Drew ends up generously firing off sometimes looking like flaming rocket propelled grenades. Admittedly this epic ending gets crazy to the point of being borderline cartoonish and seems a little at odds with the feel of the rest of the film, but having said that, it certainly didn't bother me while watching... in fact for me it's pretty much the highlight of the movie and well worth the price of admission alone. I tried to take some screenshots of this set-piece but they really didn't do it justice, so you'll have to trust me on this one. All I will say is this: if flaming, flying, screaming henchmen are your particular cup of tea, then you're gonna enjoy the shit out of this sequence.

So while it's not exactly a maligned classic or anything, Firestarter probably deserves to be better known than it seemingly is. And as far as Stephen King adaptations generally go, it's undoubtedly above par.

1984 Turns 30! A Retrospective: Sixteen Candles (John Hughes)

As I'll be turning 30 this October, I decided (perhaps against my better judgement) to try something a bit ambitious (given my work ethic... or lack there of!)... yup, you've guessed it... I'm going to try and watch and review as many films as I possibly can from 1984. And furthermore, I'm going to try and time my posts to coincide with the theatrical release dates of said films. Now, I'm sure you're thinking, "Hold on a minute Simon, it's May already and you're just starting this now?!?"... and yes, you're right... but worry not, I'll be attempting (that being the operative word) to catch up with some of the ones I've missed as the year progresses. So then, on to the first film, which, as I'm sure you've gathered by now, was released a whole 30 years ago today...

Given the context, it seems appropriate that the movie that's kicking off these birthday blogging shenanigans should be one set mostly on a birthday... and furthermore, it seems highly apt that this first film of the retrospective should also be a director's debut feature. 

Prior to writing and directing Sixteen Candles, John Hughes had written for National Lampoon, which would lead to him scripting a couple of pictures for them; the disastrously received Class Reunion (which is apparently a slasher spoof) and National Lampoon's Vacation, which was a big hit. The success of both the latter and another Hughes written film, Mr. Mom, led to a three picture deal with Universal, of which Sixteen Candles was the first. 

Samantha Baker (played by Hughes' muse Molly Ringwald) is having the sixteenth birthday from hell... her sister is getting married tomorrow, meaning her family have completely forgotten about her own big day... but this is only the start of her misfortunes. She manages to lose a rather personal piece of paper where she not only mentions the name of the guy she has the hots for (Jake Ryan, played by Michael Schoeffling), but also reveals that she's a virgin and is saving herself for him. And unbeknownst to her, said high school hunk ends up picking up this very piece of paper! But wait, that's not all! Sam has effectively been evicted from her room due to her grandparents staying over for the aforementioned wedding and they've also brought with them a wacky foreign exchange student, called Long Duk Dong (played by Gedde Watanabe)... yup, you heard that one right. And finally, despite being a near non-entity to Jake (though he soon starts showing signs of interest), Sam does have an eager (make that over-eager) admirer... she's perpetually pestered by the almost preternaturally confident Ted, aka Farmer Ted, aka The Geek (played by another Hughes regular Anthony Michael Hall). Can the day possibly get any worse?

No points for guessing how this one turns out folks! Admittedly, one could outline the plot on the back of a postage stamp, but this is really besides the point. And in lesser hands, this could have become something of a soppy cringe-fest, but thanks to Hughes' superlative ear for dialogue and his consistently three-dimensional characterisations (ably assisted by his excellent ensemble of actors), it all feels very true to life. I suppose one could accuse the film of being a bit contrived on a narrative level... but again, this is a movie and such criticisms would be missing the point entirely; the fairy tale ending speaking very much to the youthful optimism the movie is infused with. And this being a John Hughes film, it manages to be sentimental without seeming mawkish or saccharine... probably because it's both very sharp and very funny... I've only seen this once, but already there are lines of dialogue etched into my brain for eternity.

While still feeling very fresh a whole three decades after its release, Sixteen Candles also functions as a delightful time capsule, with both its mid-80s fashions and a packed soundtrack (featuring enough material to easily fill a double album) featuring the likes of The Stray Cats (who perform the title song), AC/DC, Paul Young, Spandau Ballet, Oingo Boingo, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Vapors, Billy Idol, David Bowie and many more.

The film has drawn criticism because of the Long Duk Dong character and admittedly they'd probably never even attempt such a comic stereotype today, let alone get away with it. But as the movie is generally so good-natured, this is something even a fairly "PC" modern audience will likely forget about pretty quickly... maybe because said character proves to be so damn funny at times... despite and perhaps because of his broad characterisation.

Although I'd heard very good things about it, I really wasn't expecting to enjoy this as much as I did, mistakenly assuming I wasn't in the "target demographic", so to speak. But as Hughes fans will well know, this really was an erroneous assumption on my part, as his films have something for pretty much everyone... and practically every character is so well rounded that every viewer will find someone to relate to... in fact, the whole bunch are so sympathetic and well-observed that you'll probably find yourself relating to all of them, even the ones vastly different from one's self.

So, if you've put off watching Sixteen Candles, or have just never gotten round to it, then today, being its 30th birthday, is perhaps to ideal opportunity to give it a go! Oh, and finally, keep an eye out for a young John Cusack and his sister Joan, who both appear in supporting roles. 

April Fool's Day and Slaughter High AKA April Fool's Day

 

Happy April Fool's day y'all! And no, this is not a joke, I am actually updating the blog for the first time in what seems like an aeon. Now I'd hoped to have time to write a more in-depth piece on these two films but alas I got called into work unexpectedly earlier today, so the clock has been against me (note to self: don't leave stuff till the last minute!)... perhaps this is for the best though... as this will be briefer than I'd ideally like you'll hopefully be spared my characteristic waffling. Anyway, enough arm-waving... onto the films!

First up is the movie that's probably the better known of the pair and the one that was actually released under the April Fool's Day title. As with most slashers the set-up is simplicity itself: a bunch of friends head to the secluded island home of one Muffy St. John (Deborah Foreman) for the weekend where they inevitably start falling prey to a crazed killer. And in case anyone reading this hasn't seen the film I won't say more than that. To be honest this is one of those movies that is kind of hard to talk about without giving too much away. All I'll say is that the makers put their cards on the table fairly early on, so I'm sure most will see where this going anyway.

While I'm still not particularly crazy about this one at present (and I should state here I'm planning on re-watching both movies this evening so this could all change very soon), I'll admit it's growing on me quite a lot with repeat viewings. And for slasher fans there's certainly a lot to love and admire. First of all, it's clear there was a fair bit of money behind this, as it looks beautiful, so kudos to director Fred Walton (of When a Stranger Calls, which criminally I still haven't seen) and DoP Charles Minsky for making the most of the budget. And speaking of cast and crew who also have slasher credentials... there's an effective score from Charles Bernstein of A Nightmare on Elm St. fame, and the film also features two lovely ladies who have both done other work in the genre. The unfortunately named Muffy is played by Deborah Foreman who would appear two years later in the supernatural sort-of-slasher Waxwork, and we also have fan favourite final girl Amy Steel from Friday the 13th Part 2. And the rest of the cast are also uniformly likeable and engaging. All I'll say for the benefit of the uninitiated who may be wondering whether to check this out or not is this: if you're after a fun slasher that shouldn't be taken too seriously, yet also does something a bit different with the formula, then this is just the ticket.

Released the same year, and originally sharing the same title until Paramount saw its potential for profit and bought it from the makers, Slaughter High is another slasher that is both arch-typically simple in its set-up but also somewhat unique. And what I mean by the latter is that it has a bit of a different vibe to many American examples of the genre... and that's probably because it was filmed in Britain. Co-directed and co-written by a team of three, and featuring actors from both sides of the Atlantic (though mostly from the UK, if I'm not mistaken) the film attempts to present itself as being set State-side (like another movie from Slaughter High's producers Steve Minasian and Dick Randall funnily enough, which is 1982's gloriously gory and unhinged giallo-slasher Pieces), and this sort of works... but you can certainly sense something is a bit off... which I actually quite like... it gives the film a bizarre, slightly unreal atmosphere... which may actually be more appropriate to it from a story standpoint than is apparent at first glance.

Like April Fool's Day, the film has it's own slasher credentials. As everyone and their dog has observed, scream queen Caroline Munro (from Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter, Maniac, Jess Franco's Faceless among many others) is obviously way too old to be playing a high school student... but frankly who cares... for me it's simply one more factor that adds to that delicious undercurrent of unreality the film has. And also the movie has not one, but two connections to the Friday the 13th franchise, in the form of the aforementioned Steve Minasian and composer Harry Manfredini, who contributes a unique, almost annoyingly catchy score, which while something of an acquired taste I'll admit, I enjoy quite a bit... especially the cheese-tastic, rockin' theme song. The rest of the cast are all decent enough, but no one particularly stands out for me... though they all have their share of amusing moments. But while talking about Slaughter High I would be seriously remiss if I didn't briefly mention the contribution of Simon Scuddamore as Marty, the nerd who is humiliated and later scarred in a prank gone awry during the film's first reel. This was the actor's only credit, owing to a severe drug problem that led to an intentional overdose not long after the making of the film. And once you're aware of that tragic fact, it makes it hard to watch without feeling a slightly eerie frisson hanging over the whole thing... which for me makes it all the more effective and affecting. All that aside the guy should be commended not only for being so game about portraying Marty's initial ordeal in the girl's locker room, but also for generally playing the role with a degree of gusto... though the stereotypical nerd shtick may be a little broad for some tastes. Which is all a long-winded way of saying that it's indeed sad that the man didn't get to make any other films than this. 

Despite this admittedly sad subtext haunting the film, it's still a lot of fun and somewhat on the sillier side of the slasher spectrum. Also, it's even a little bit creepy in parts, due mainly to the decaying building it's largely set in (which might even have been an old asylum if memory serves correctly) and the iconic jester mask, which is actually quite unsettling. 

Basically, if you're in the market for a fun but off-beat slasher or two this evening, then I'd highly recommend both of these. Finally, as a slight caveat to all this, I should mention there's another movie from 1986 that was also originally called April Fool's Day and was re-titled as Killer Party (cheers for the heads up Brad!). I've yet to see it but will make it my mission to acquire it in time for next year's April Fool's Day shenanigans!