Waxwork, A Perfect Moment in 80's Horror Cinema

"Waxwork" is simply a beautiful example of the 80's horror/comedy genre; completely charming in it's goofiness yet somehow engaging in its "scare factor." I fell in love with this movie when I first watched it at around 11 years old or so.

I know. I know. You're rolling your eyes right now because you've probably ignored or forgotten this movie all together but I'm here to shed some light on why you should give it a chance.

Actors we know and love
"Waxwork" is peppered with genre actors whom we have come to adore:

Dana Ashbrook (who would go on to star in Twin Peaks);
Deborah Foreman (fresh off of April Fool's Day);
Zach Galligan (of Gremlins fame);
David Warner (where do I even begin!? the Omen, Tron, Time Bandits, My Best Friend Is a Vampire - you name it, he was probably in it.);
John Ryhs-Davies (equally as prolific as David Warner but let's sum it up with Indiana Jones and Lord of The Rings.)

A tolerable story

Riddled with ludicrous moments, the overall story isn't a bad one: in order to bring about chaos, creepy dude "brings to life" historical (we might call them 'fictional') bad guys by "feeding" them souls. To make that work, the movie is set up in pseudo vignettes strung together around a larger story (nothing new in the world of horror.) Each of these mini stories shows one of the monsters claiming a soul. It's implied (although never explicitly stated) that each victim is drawn to a particular creature for some secret reason (hidden within their soul?)

Very sexy

If you're one of those twisted horror fans caught up in that dark place between horror and erotica, Waxwork actually has something tasty to offer you. Between the Marquis de Sade and Dracula, the ladies who enter the waxwork have some immensely sexy 'monsters' to contend with. The Marquis actually struck me as an interesting choice, not your standard horror villain; and to her credit, Deborah Foreman makes an exceptionally orgasmic victim of his whipping.

Cheesy but witty dialogue

"I'm having a private showing tonight. At midnight."

"Hmmm. Good time. After dinner but before breakfast."

I also love all of Dana Ashbrook's lines in his Werewolf story. He's this fantastic, stereotypical class-clown who has been drawn into a classic horror tale yet he's strangely believable and weirdly unruffled by the entire situation.

I love the moment when he realizes that he's not in the "real world" anymore and his first question is, "who put the acid in my drink, again?"

Staggeringly self-aware

10 years before Scream wowed audiences with it's post modern, self-referencial, genre-aware story - Waxwork laid the groundwork.

Quality gore

On this front, the Dracula story is by far my favorite. (Gruesome dinner party followed by vampire slayings in an all-white room. So good.) Followed closely by the Mummy story. (Head crushed underfoot of angry mummy? Yes please.)

Wrap up time?

The 80's were littered with tons of horror flicks in all shapes and sizes, many of which are completely forgettable.

There are quite a few gems in there though, if you know where to look, and I happily count Waxwork among them.

You can watch the stunningly amazing Waxwork trailer here:

Rebuttal: 17 Disturbing Horror Movies You Will Never Watch Again

When I'm not watching movies, I'm reading about movies. I stumble across all kinds of articles, blog posts, book excerpts, etc. in my quest to absorb as much movie knowledge as possible. Now, I'm snotty and loud-mouthed and opinionated but I'd never begrudge another human their opinion. Seriously. You're absolutely welcome to have any opinion about any thing you want. However, I must warn you, if I think your opinion is stupid, I'm absolutely going to say so. I've recently stumbled on an article completely brimming with so many idiotic opinions that I'm actually compelled to craft a response. Here's the gist of the original article: there are some horror movies out there that are so disturbing , you'll only ever want to watch them once. I've have taken her original list and refuted her claims without pulling her entire article over. You can read the original article here . Let's start at the beginning, with her opening statement

Escape From Tomorrow

I love creative people who are willing to take risks with their art. I appreciate the refusal to do things by the rules. I'm also terribly impatient with mediocrity. Enter Escape From Tomorrow . Created by a team of rogue filmmakers, the movie was shot in the video mode of high-end still cameras. Actors shared scripts and shooting locations across their smartphones. Shot on location at Disney World, the parks were completely unaware this was all going on right under their mouse ears. I wanted to love Escape From Tomorrow. More than that, I wanted to be completely taken with its ingenuity and creativity and - oh yes - its originality. And there is really a simple brilliance to their covert plan; all families are roaming around the parks, taking videos and chatting on their phones. Just blend the fuck in, act like you belong, and you won't get caught. Too bad the movie can be summed up as: ambitious but Rubbish. As you can imagine (or possibly know), there was a ton of con

The Witch (2015)

You know the drill - there's ALWAYS spoilers. Don't want the movie ruined for you, come back after you've seen it. Also - I'm still without an editor - typos and bad grammar await you! I keep hoping that the cultural obsession with zombies will end; literally every other damn movie that comes 'round seems to feature some sort of shambling, undead being bent on devouring the weak flesh of regular humans. Once upon a time, zombies have have been used as a metaphor for the blind consumerism created by our capitalist society, or the perceived depletion of resources by immigrants, or even the ravages of time and disease on our frail bodies. Now it seems that the deeper social commentary has been lost as audiences mindlessly consume "zombie fiction" in an attempt to keep up with trends. ( How very meta - a film buddy of mine commented on this assessment! ) All of this is just a sideways rant, leading up to my actual point: it seems that zombie may actually

i'm kael's ghost

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