SLEEPAWAY CAMP (1983)

In the bloody wake of Friday the 13th came a whole summer camp full of imitators. The idea of a nutter lose in the woods during summer break is an instant hit concept for the low budget film maker. Many are forgettable or pointless. Sleepaway Camp is a something else.

It has the usual ingredients of a film of this type (hence the fairly high PO rating below). Bit this story of a shy young girl moving to her eccentric Aunt Martha's (played brilliantly by Desiree Gould) has some great touches. The death scenes arent as graphic as some of the slasher movies though they are pretty grisly at times. I'm not a big gore fan so that didnt bother me. But the way to filmakers focus on the younger kids and not the teenagers gives it a fun Goonies esque charm in places and makes the final revelation all the more shocking. And make no mistake, I had NO IDEA this film would end how it does. It totally freaks you out and is a genuinely disturbing image.

As a Christian I was left wondering about the effect adult can have on kids and how unfortunatley some choose to explote children for their own ends. Two characters in this film, the chef and the Aunt both appear as selfish users, and sadly they are not exactly uncommon in every day life.Now anyone would be think I'm talking about a cinema classic here and I'm not. This is low budget shlock - hooray! But it has enough ideas in it to make it stand out from the crowd. And with that ending, Sleepaway Camp well and truly leaves its mark.

Check out the great commentary track on the UK Anchor Bay version with Angela and the director.

Film: 6/10

PO: 7/10 (some nudity, sexual scenes and violence)

MAGIC (1978)

Ventriloquist dolls are creepy. That's just a fact of life. Especially where they shout, scream and murder people. Magic is an intense psychological thriller from the pen of William Goldman, directed by Richard Attenbourough (who some say was just doing this for the money to make Ghandi). Its the story of Corky, a nerdy magician and his stage partner Fats, a creepy dummy. But who controls who?

Hopkins is great as the disturbed main character and the film paints a excellent picture of the inner struggle to do whats right between what you want to do. But its not all good. One of the problems is that Hopkins and Fats are supposed to be funny. Countless characters fall about laughing at the funny antics of the doll, but its just not funny. Its constantly menacing looking and Hopkins "Fats" voice gets irritating after a while. Also the last shot just didnt really work for me. Still, Burgess Meredith hams it up as Corky's agent and the score by Jerry Goldsmith is fanastic (released by Varese Sarabande in a great edition but now sold out). There's also a great moment toward the end of the film when we glimpse Corky's eyes move on their own hinting at a possible supernatural element. I was glad they left it at that, but its was an intriguing little inclusion.

Catch this film for an intense and well acted study of the inner struggle, and for some great cinematography and spooky scenes. But in the end, it's not quite as magic as it could have been.

The Anchor Bay DVD edition (Dark Sky on region one) is very good with a georgeous print, decent 5.1 mix and some enjoyable special features including an original TV spot that is just downright freaky. (A close up Fats reciting a poem frantically-yikes!)

Film: 6/10

PO: 2 (features some nudity, violence and swearing).

WECLOME TO BMOVIEJESUS!

I'm aware that there are lots of Christian film review sites out there. But they all seem to have one thing in common...they review mainstream movies or very 'worthy' films. But what about all those genre flicks out there? Where's the Christian reviews of animal attack movies from the 70's, or paranoid sci-fi flicks from the 50's, or slasher movies of the 80's? That's what you'll find here. Short and sweet bullet reviews of wierdo classics from the view of a vicar. (Yes, I'm an English Church minister who loves genre films). So tune in when you get the chance and enjoy.
*One thing I'll say straight up is that some of the films reviewed may contain potentially offensive material. I'll point that out by giving a PO rating (Potential offense!)