Phantasm


"You think when you die, you go to Heaven...you come to us!"   - the Tall Man


release year: 1979
genre: horror
viewing setting: home DVD 3/27/23 and 2/27/00

synopsis: Something's seriously wrong at the local mortuary.

impressions: This was the epitome of low-budget horror...the kind that makes you groan in agony, yet years later you somehow remember key elements. Examples: the flying metal balls with spikes and drills...the animated severed finger that squirts yellow goo and later turns into a big fly-like thing...little hooded Jawa-like creatures successfully pulling off a carjacking of a VW Beetle. Ugh. I will say this: though the plot appeared to have been pieced together at random and with little sense of continuity, the director did get some things right: there were breasts and gore and some creepy concepts. But overall, it didn't make much sense...I mean, were certain scenes real, or just nightmares? Who was the woman with the knife and what was her relation to the Tall Man? What was the nature of the other world? How/why did the characters inside the building in the dark just appear outside, running around and separated from the other guy? And what in THE HELL happened at the end, when previous events just seemed to have been erased? Or were they a dream? We quite possibly will never know.

acting: A. Michael Baldwin is the younger brother, and Bill Thornbury is his older brother; together they tackle the weird situation they find themselves in. Reggie Bannister is their friend, an ice cream man who helps out and provides some humor. Angus Scrimm is the villain, who hurls bladed metal spheres and has unknown motivations.

final word: Mildly entertaining, somewhat original, often confusing low-budget horror film.

back to the main review page