Although most of the 18-year-old girls in 1982's "The Slumber Party Massacre" do some pretty dumb and questionable things, Trish (Michele Michaels) shows perfectly sound judgment when it comes to one area: When your parents split for the weekend, THAT is certainly the time for an "open house"! Doritos? Check. Beer? Check. Maui Wowie? Check. Pizza? Check. Too bad, though, that psycho driller killer Russ Thorn has just busted out of jail and has decided to crash the party... Anyway, although my beloved "DVD Delirium" book claims that this film has not "a single moment of cinematic fat" in its 78-minute length, I would have to respectfully disagree. There are SO many instances of false alarms here (you know the kind I mean...you think the boogeyman is about to pounce and it turns out to be a cat or something) that things get rather annoying. Sure, I know that these moments, used with discretion, can add to a film's suspense, but when you string over a dozen of them together, it gets pretty old and downright frustrating. The last 20 minutes of the film are fine, though, as nutzo Thorn tries to finish his night's work with a clean party sweep. It is a little hard to believe that this film, which revels in topless shots and shrieking bimbos, was written by feminist author Rita Mae Brown and directed by another woman, Amy Jones. Still, it IS a group of women that ultimately gives Thorn a tough time, after the doofy boys fail (although it is fairly obvious who will be the last girls standing). And I just love it when Robin Stille's Val delivers that symbolic castration! Too bad that future "scream queen" Brinke Stevens has such a small role here, though; wotta looker! Anyway, this movie is fairly lame but somewhat fun. You probably know what to expect.
Review of The Slumber Party Massacre
