Phantasm (1979)

☆ ☆ ☆ ½

Phantasm (1979) – D. Coscarelli

Not as gory (or as scary) as I expected.  Instead, this is a very seventies-feeling low budget horror film, seen from a 13-year-old boy’s perspective.  In fact, there is a hint at the end that much of this could be a dream/nightmare (brought on by trauma).  This could explain all the surrealistic or nonsensical elements to the story, which is as follows:  A boy whose parents have recently died now has to cope with the death of a friend of his big brother’s (supposedly suicide but we “know” that it is murder).  He sees a mysterious tall man carry off the coffin instead of burying it and thus becomes interested in the funeral home which is later revealed to contain a portal to another planet/dimension.  The Tall Man (Angus Scrimm) seems to control some growling Jawa-like monsters and he’s pretty impressive/oppressive himself.  The big brother (Bill Thornbury) and his friend (Reggie Bannister) attempt to destroy the Tall Man who has also carried off some local girls.  Oh and there’s a grandmother who tells fortunes.  And sinister cars that chase our heroes.  And perhaps the tall man can morph himself into a sexy lady.  And there’s a flying silver ball that has razor blades that pop out and kill people.  Somehow it all holds together (despite the low budget, less than accomplished acting, and so on) but I’m not sure I need to see the 4 sequels, do I? I guess the fact that it does hold together despite its weirdness is what makes it a cult classic.