Friday, October 14, 2011

VHS HALLOWEEN - DAY FOURTEEN: "THE SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE" TRILOGY (1982 - 1990)

Today's entry is going to have to be short and sweet. I got hit by a pile of work. To make up for it in my brain I figured I'd do a triple-shot on "The Slumber Party Massacre" trilogy.

The original "Slumber Party Massacre" is a lot more complex than most might give it credit for being. It was written as a total satire, but shot like a straight horror film. It has quite a few feminist nods throughout, and it's a funny film, but still a very effective mood piece at the same time. Altogether, it's a super fun movie that most people overlook as cliche'd drek. It's actually far better than most films of this nature though. Also has a GREAT score and Brinke Stevens!


Written and directed by Deborah Brock, "Slumber Party Massacre II" is a direct sequel to the original film, featuring the sibling of one of the first film's main characters. It's also completely fucking insane. It's hard to extract exactly what's going on here, but it's an incredibly fun ride. Some all-girl band gets together in a suburban house, with the sister of one of the survivors of the first film among them. Eventually, a leather-clad Ricky Nelson type killer toting a sick guitar with a drill bit powered by shredding emerges to terrorize and bump the girls off in typical slasher fashion. We sort of get the impression that the killer is a figment of the main character's imagination, and yet he seems to do real harm. It's utterly nonsensical, but completely unforgettable at the same time. The trailer makes the film seem much cornier than it actually is.


I own a copy of "Slumber Party Massacre III", though I have never actually seen it. Sacrilege, I know. This doesn't appear to have any formal connection to the other two films. In fact, it appears to be something of a remake of the first film. I've heard mostly positive things about this movie. One of the coolest things about this production is that it continues the trend of featuring script and direction by women.



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