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The Slumber Party Massacre

The Slumber Party Massacre

List Price: $9.98
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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A cheesily enjoyable slasher.
Review: ...There's not much plot, not that we really need one. Basically, there's a madman on the loose. His name's Russ Thorne and he's stalking and slashing a group of girls who are having a slumber party. The girls are part of a high school basketball team and the one holding the party is Trish (Michelle Michaels) There's also the girl next door, who's sort of a teacher's pet, and a weirdo neighbor who's obviously just there for the body count.

Yeah, that's about it for plot. But what part of what makes Slumber Party Massacre enjoyable schlock is the fact that it's written and directed by women, feminists no less. And the movie they've crafted is really no different than anything a male director would have come up with. Most of the female cast are damsels in distress (there are a few exceptions), there's gratuitous nudity, and typical genre cliches that rely mostly on characters acting extremely stupid.

But that's expected in a slasher, and as long as the movie's entertaining and not that poorly made, than it's passable, which is the case here. Heck, there are even a few suspenseful moments here and there, amazingly enough. I can only imagine that the attempted scares would have probably been more effective if the killer were given a mask of some sort (seeing his face dampens any effect of terror) or if he used a weapon other than a lousy drill... The stalk and slash scenes are nothing spectacular. Halloween or even Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter this is not. But they're reasonably effective for what they are, thanks to tons of blood and gore and some good jump-in-your-seat shocks. The movie runs at a pretty fast pace, and at 76 minutes, runs quick without being too big a waste of time. Slumber Party Massacre isn't a good movie, but I know I sure had a good time.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Classic...
Review: a must for the collection, if you are a true slasher fan.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Tons of fun, and tons of nudity and gore!
Review: At a time when many horror films are without nudity its always refreshing to watch one filled with nuditorial aspects. This 1980's slasher flick did of course come out at the time of the Halloween series, Friday The 13th series etc. but I don't bash it as a rip-off or anything, I look at it as fun horror entertainment. When the flick opens we get cool music, and cool shots that lead to a house with a girl who gets nude for a moment, telling us we're watching the right movie. The radio tell us a maniac has escaped from a looney-bin, and is now out killing every bimbo and boy in town with a three-foot long drill. Giving him the name : The Driller-Killer! Of course there's a large body-count including the poor 'ol pizza dude! And one of the babes actually eats pizza while going threw the hell, to calm herself. Plenty of dead bodies, gore and breasts to please horror buffs like myself.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Typical Early 80's Slasher Flick!!!
Review: First and foremost I'd like to say if you're looking for a movie with a deep plot and good acting then you need look elsewhere. However, if your a fan of the typical 80's slasher films (partying teens, a little T & A, some bad acting and a maniacal killer on the loose) then you've got yourself a great movie.

By looking at the cover and the title of the film you may think that there is a lot of nudity and sexual scenes. In actuality, there really isn't as much as you might think. As one reviewer before me said there are really only four scenes.

Other than that, there is a pretty high body count and some decent killing scenes, all and all it's not a great horror movie but I've certainly seen worse. If your looking for a good time invite a couple of the guys over, pop open a 12 pack of brew, check out Slumber Party Massacre and enjoy.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Hysterical, but I have to rate it as a horror flick.
Review: Five teenage girls have a slumber party. The 'nice girl' from across the street opts not to come. A few horny guys show up. Then a power-drill wielding lunatic shows up, and he proceeds to stick a drill through everyone in sight. Credits. As a big fan of the early-80's slasher movies, I can often see the hidden charms of a movie like Slumber Party Massacre. Unfortunately, it's simply too much of a rip-off of other rip-offs! Plus this movie is so cheap, I think my Bar Mitzvah party probably cost more. Followed by two equally retarded sequels, Slumber Party Massacre is only for those freaky people who love cheap, brainless gore movies. Like me. And for those still interested, YES, there are bare boobies in this movie. But unless you're a really sick individual, like me, then don't buy. What am I saying, just buy it, it is one of the funniest films you will ever see!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best slasher flic of the 80's!!!!!!!!!!
Review: From it's cover it may look bad,But it isn't.This movie had lots of nudity.The movie is about a escaped mental patiant who targets a slumber party ful of girls.One by one he kills them with portable drill.This movie is sort of scary.It has lots of gore,But one thing is for sure that this guy is the ultimate driller killer!!!!!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: KILL YOUR DVD PLAYER!
Review: Here is a terrific flick in my collection (I only review what I own) that I wanted to review. So lets get down to it!

Trish Devereaux invites her basketball teammates over her house for a slumber party one evening. The party is crashed by Neil and Jeff, two horny 17-year-olds, However, little does she know, mass murderer Russ Thorn has escaped from a mental institution and has decided to crash her party as well...with his oversized "crotch-like" drill (You know what I mean!). Like what a total creep! For sure! (Sorry, I had to use my 80s lingo). Well, their only hope for getting out alive is by going across the street to laughing stock, teammate Valarie's house. (She denied the invite when she heard some of the girls teasing her) The thing is, each of them is starting to die quickly and if they don't get out alive, their weekend is going to be a total bummer. (Here I go again).

Needless to say, SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE is a fantastic film. The idea of using a portable drill is great and the fact that the killer actually talks is a breath of fresh air from the "quiet, stalking, killing" murderer. Filled with enough humor to fill a whole 'nother movie, SPM rocks. Pure and simple, it rocks. Valarie may be a joke to some, but it's her who has to save the girls....

RECCOMENDED TO FANS OF:
Halloween (1978)
The Fool Killer (1968)
Party Crasher (1994)

CAST
Michelle Michaels.....Trish Devereaux
Robin Stille...............Valerie Bates
Michael Villella..........Russ Thorn
Debra Deliso...........Kimberly Clarke

THE MOVIE: 4/4

THE PICTURE QUALITY: 9/10 It's in widescreen-letterboxed and has been digitally remastered. There are some minor specs and grain but nothing too overbearing.

THE AUDIO QUALITY: 10/10 2.0 Stereo was a fantastic change from what I thought was going to be Mono. Kutos to the audio!

THE SPECIAL FEATURES: are the original trailer which is a load of fun, cast bios and some previews of other New Concorde flicks.

SUBTITLES: none

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This film is actually kind of scary!
Review: I bought this movie fully expecting nothing but T&A and maybe a little gore. It delivered on those two expectations, with enough of the cheesecake to keep it interesting but going surprisingly light on the gore, with some of the killing actually taking place off-screen. Of course character development is given low priority, which hardly comes as a surprise.

But you can imagine my surprise when, halfway through, this thing actually turned out to be scary! Yes, the whole atmosphere of the film was done quite nicely, and it worked well enough to make me a bit uneasy. While watching it, my cat was sitting in the window, and he suddenly jumped back and ran out of the room - so I went over and somewhat cautiously closed the window and locked the door! LOL.

Overall, if you're looking for a nice slasher flick with all the things teenage boys most enjoy, or maybe you just want to relive those memories of drive-ins in the early '80s, you'll probably be quite satisfied with this little gem.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Pay attention, this really is a "feminist" splatter flick
Review: I first watched "The Slumber Party Massacre" on cable because I happened to catch that women both wrote (Rita Mae Brown) and directed (Amy Holden Jones). I am surprised that many reviewers criticize this 1982 splatter flick for not reflecting feminist sensibilities, but I have to say that my immediate reaction to the film was that it was different from the tradition being established by "Halloween," "Friday the 13th," and their host of immitators. Yes, early on in the film there is a shower scene and this provides a perfect opportunity to figure out which one of these young women is the "good girl" who is going to be alive at the end of the film. However, all those who enjoyed how "Scream" both honored and subverted the rules of this particular genre should appreciate that this film does the same thing. In fact, I am going to go way off on a sociological limb and argue that "The Slumber Party Massacre" is indeed a feminist splatter flick.

We all know that the supposed sub-text of slasher films is that those who have unsafe sex are (literally) risking their lives. Laurie Strode remains the icon good girl, who survives in the original "Halloween" because she is a virgin and therefore not sneaking around with her boyfriend while a killer is in the house (forget for a minute the "Halloween II" revelation that Laurie and Michael Myers are siblings). Even though she is a straight-arrow of the group, she is part of the group. Here friends hold out hope for her getting a date (remember Ben Craemer?). Her girl friends die because they are preoccupied with sex.

However, in "The Slumber Party Massacre" the good girl is much more than a virgin. Yes, Val Bates (Robin Stille) has the requisite purity to survive the coming massacre (she drinks too much milk, the others complain), but she is also the new girl in town and ostracized by the rest of the girls because she is a better basketball player than any of them. Consequently, the girls at the slumber party are guilty of turning their backs on the one person who could keep some of them alive by the end of the movie. I do not want to give away too much, even when talking about a predictable slasher flick like this one, but look at not only who is alive at the end of this film but why, and what they do to be the ones standing. Look at that and tell me that at least on same level there is not a message on the inherent strength of sisterhood somewhere at the side of that pool.

As the title indicates the idea here is that a bunch of senior high girls are throwing a slumber part just like the ones they enjoyed when they were younger. The party is at the house of Trish (Michelle Michaels), whose parents are away. The house is right across the street from where Val is taking care of her kid sister, Courtney (Jennifer Meyers). To this mix we add two guys (David Millbern and Joseph Allen Johnson) who want to crash the party and play some tricks on the unsuspecting scantily clad girls, and an escaped mental patient, named Russ Thorn (Michael Villella), who has followed the girls home from practice and has a tool box. This particular toolbox is full of tools, but this guy really, really likes his power drill.

Pointing out that this film has bad dialogue, lousy acting, gratuitous nudity, and most of the killing scenes are too dark to really see anything, seems well beside the point. Those are relatively standard fare in splatter flicks, especially in the decade of the 1980s. The point is that all things considered "The Slumber Party Massacre" is an above average slasher movie, which is not saying much until you remember how made the average slasher film was during the gory days of the genre. Besides that, I have to say that in the absence of a concrete idea of what truly "feminist" splatter flick would be like, there is a decidedly different "message" built into this film that does make it stand out from its contemporaries.

There are two more films in this series as it heads quickly downhill. Some of the characters from this one pop up in "Slumber Party Massacre 2," although played by different actresses (such as Crystal Benard), but basically they are low-grade films that spend more time on the "Slumber Party" parts of the title than the "Massacre." "Cheerleader Massacre" is supposedly the fourth film in the series, but by that point the people making these movies have pretty much forgotten they are supposed to be splatter flick and are trafficking in softcore porn. Watch this one if you are so inclined and then move on to better things. They are hard to find when you are talking splatter flicks, but they are out there.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Pay attention, this really is a "feminist" splatter flick
Review: I first watched "The Slumber Party Massacre" on cable because I happened to catch that women both wrote (Rita Mae Brown) and directed (Amy Holden Jones). I am surprised that many reviewers criticize this 1982 splatter flick for not reflecting feminist sensibilities, but I have to say that my immediate reaction to the film was that it was different from the tradition being established by "Halloween," "Friday the 13th," and their host of immitators. Yes, early on in the film there is a shower scene and this provides a perfect opportunity to figure out which one of these young women is the "good girl" who is going to be alive at the end of the film. However, all those who enjoyed how "Scream" both honored and subverted the rules of this particular genre should appreciate that this film does the same thing. In fact, I am going to go way off on a sociological limb and argue that "The Slumber Party Massacre" is indeed a feminist splatter flick.

We all know that the supposed sub-text of slasher films is that those who have unsafe sex are (literally) risking their lives. Laurie Strode remains the icon good girl, who survives in the original "Halloween" because she is a virgin and therefore not sneaking around with her boyfriend while a killer is in the house (forget for a minute the "Halloween II" revelation that Laurie and Michael Myers are siblings). Even though she is a straight-arrow of the group, she is part of the group. Here friends hold out hope for her getting a date (remember Ben Craemer?). Her girl friends die because they are preoccupied with sex.

However, in "The Slumber Party Massacre" the good girl is much more than a virgin. Yes, Val Bates (Robin Stille) has the requisite purity to survive the coming massacre (she drinks too much milk, the others complain), but she is also the new girl in town and ostracized by the rest of the girls because she is a better basketball player than any of them. Consequently, the girls at the slumber party are guilty of turning their backs on the one person who could keep some of them alive by the end of the movie. I do not want to give away too much, even when talking about a predictable slasher flick like this one, but look at not only who is alive at the end of this film but why, and what they do to be the ones standing. Look at that and tell me that at least on same level there is not a message on the inherent strength of sisterhood somewhere at the side of that pool.

As the title indicates the idea here is that a bunch of senior high girls are throwing a slumber part just like the ones they enjoyed when they were younger. The party is at the house of Trish (Michelle Michaels), whose parents are away. The house is right across the street from where Val is taking care of her kid sister, Courtney (Jennifer Meyers). To this mix we add two guys (David Millbern and Joseph Allen Johnson) who want to crash the party and play some tricks on the unsuspecting scantily clad girls, and an escaped mental patient, named Russ Thorn (Michael Villella), who has followed the girls home from practice and has a tool box. This particular toolbox is full of tools, but this guy really, really likes his power drill.

Pointing out that this film has bad dialogue, lousy acting, gratuitous nudity, and most of the killing scenes are too dark to really see anything, seems well beside the point. Those are relatively standard fare in splatter flicks, especially in the decade of the 1980s. The point is that all things considered "The Slumber Party Massacre" is an above average slasher movie, which is not saying much until you remember how made the average slasher film was during the gory days of the genre. Besides that, I have to say that in the absence of a concrete idea of what truly "feminist" splatter flick would be like, there is a decidedly different "message" built into this film that does make it stand out from its contemporaries.

There are two more films in this series as it heads quickly downhill. Some of the characters from this one pop up in "Slumber Party Massacre 2," although played by different actresses (such as Crystal Benard), but basically they are low-grade films that spend more time on the "Slumber Party" parts of the title than the "Massacre." "Cheerleader Massacre" is supposedly the fourth film in the series, but by that point the people making these movies have pretty much forgotten they are supposed to be splatter flick and are trafficking in softcore porn. Watch this one if you are so inclined and then move on to better things. They are hard to find when you are talking splatter flicks, but they are out there.


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