PUMPKINHEAD (1988 - HORROR / SLASHER-MONSTER FLICK) ***1/2 out of ***** OR 7 out of 10
(Not exactly the nicest-sounding name, but very appropriate...)
CAST: Lance Henriksen, Jeff East, Cynthia Bain, John D'Aquino, Kerry Remsen, Kimberly Ross, Joel Hoffman, Florence Schauffler, George Buck Flower, Matthew Hurley, Joseph Piro.
DIRECTOR: Stan Winston
IT'S LIKE THIS: There's an old saying about revenge that goes a little something like this: "Before embarking on a mission of vengeance against someone, make sure to dig two graves: one for the person you are after - and one for yourself." In short, while it may be gratifying on one level to dispense payback on some jackass that wronged you, in the end exacting revenge on someone claims a little part of your soul. Better to forgive and go the Way of Grace, I say. Let the Universe sort things out.
Ed Harley (Lance Henriksen), the "hero" of our next "31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN" review, is not of the same mind, however. He wants bloody vengeance, right now, and quite honestly I can't say that I blame him. You see, Ed is a humble, decent sort who lives in the backwoods of some Southern state. He runs a simple general goods store that the simple folk in the surrounding rural county frequent. Oh, and he is the doting father to an absolutely adorable little boy named Billy (Matthew Hurley). Billy is basically the apple of his daddy's eye - and then some.
Then, one tragic day while Ed is off picking up some grain for some locals, Billy disobeys his dad's orders to stay inside the general goods store, and runs outside where a group of city folks out in the country for the weekend are racing their motorbikes. Sadly (truly), little Billy is accidentally mowed over by one of the bikers. Panicking, the city mice freak out and pretty much jet out of there. And when Ed returns to the store, his world pretty much falls apart when he sees what's happened to his beloved Billy.
Enraged and heartbroken, Ed consults with local farmer Wallace (George Buck Flower). Ed tells him he wants to find some mysterious chick named Haggis (Florence Schauffler) who lives deep in them thar woods. Let's just say that if this woman is named after that disgusting Scottish food, then she ain't exactly Snow White. Sure enough, it turns out Ms. Haggis is some sort of witch who can, er, summon demons from beyond the grave.
You see, around these here parts, there exists a legend about a demon called Pumpkinhead. And with a name like that, it's safe to say Mr. P ain't no supermodel. Unless you're talking for a magazine called MQ (Monster's Quarterly). It appears that Pumpkinhead is a "Revenge Demon" that can be summoned from beyond the grave to carry out the bidding of someone who wants to exact revenge upon someone else. Basically, Pumpkinhead will chase after the guilty parties like the T-2000 from TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY - until he has them cornered. Then he will kill them - a lot - and anyone else who gets in the way, in the most awful way possible. After that, Pumpkinhead will return to the beyond - until such time as someone else needs to hand out some payback to someone else. Then Haagis, acting as some sort of agent who hopefully charges at least 20% of Pumpkinhead's fees for her trouble, will resurrect him again to chase down another bad person needing a spanking.
Eventually, Ed finds Haagis and tells her he wants her to invoke Pumpkinhead to go after the city folk who accidentally killed Billy. Haagis warns him that this isn't something to be taken lightly - and that once Pumpkinhead gets going, there is absolutely no stopping him. Ed's all like: "Yes. Got that. That's why I'm here in the first place. Now, step on it, bitch." Haagis basically shrugs and goes about trying to wake up Pumpkinhead, which involves Ed having to go to some creepy-ass graveyeard even deeper in the creepy-ass woods - and bring back some buried corpse for her to use as Pumpkinhead's vessel.
Anyway, this spells some mondo bad news for our city folk who made the colossal mistake of racing their dirt bikes in the vicinity of Ed's general store. There are six of them, and they are soooooooooooo fucked: (1) Chris (Jeff East), mild-mannered leader of the pack; (2) Joel (John D'Aquino), colossal douchebag who is the one who actually ran over Billy; (3) Tracey (Cynthia Bain), tough but sensitive photographer who tries to do the right thing and save Billy but is blocked by that cock named Joel; (4) Steve (Joel Hoffman), Joel's jelly-spined younger brother who can't stand up to him; (5) Kim (Kimberly Ross), Joel's jelly-spined girlfriend who can't stand up to him; and (6) Maggie (Kerry Remsen), Steve's ultra-religious, bible-thumping girlfriend who's most lethal weapon against Pumpkinhead is to... pray (not that it does her any good - ahem).
After Billy's accident, these six walking corpses have holed up in their vacation cabin, hoping to actually still salvage something out of this vacation. As fucking if. Anyhow, they're so wound up from the accident that they can barely sit still. Fortunately, they don't have to dwell on that incident too long - because now they have an even bigger problem on their cabin's front porch. Guess who? Hint: look at the title of this flick - and think real hard.
Yes, sir... them chickens have done come home to roost - and our boy Pumpkinhead is gonna make sure they're nice and situated. Let the games begins...
So... will Chris, Joel, Tracey, Kim, Steve, and Maggie be able to escape from Pumpkinhead? Or will he knock them off one by one? Will any of them survive? And what happens when Ed sees the error of his ways, and decides to go the way of grace by calling off Pumpkinhead? What happens when Haggis pretty much laughs in his face and says she warned him that the demon could absolutely not be called off under any circumstances? How will Ed stop the vicious circle that he started?
Hint: vicious circles eventually come full circle - and Ed's going to have to make the ultimate sacrifice. Ahem.
BUT SERIOUSLY: By 1984, the Slasher Sub-Genre that HALLOWEEN and FRIDAY THE 13th spawned at the turn of the decade was starting to lose steam - and filmmakers were increasingly looking for new ways to spin the standard formula of teenagers/young adults being terrorized by a vicious killer. The Sub-Genre got a substantial shot in the arm with the success of A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET that year, with its angle of a "killer ghost" named Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund) stalking his victims in their dreams. Soon similar supernaturally-slanted slasher flicks started to emerge.
THE HORROR SHOW, PRISON, and THE FIRST POWER were a few of these movies. The best, however, remains 1988's PUMPKINHEAD because of its ability to combine supernatural horror, suspense, folklore, and surprising pathos with the established slasher template. It even manages to subvert and tweak certain sub-genre tropes, especially when it comes to the handling of its characters' fates. Director Stan Winston, who did the special/visual effects for James Cameron's classic ALIENS, makes his directorial debut here and he shows the same fluidity in managing the camera as he does with what it records.
From the warmly-hued opening shots that show Ed Harley's loving relationship with his son, Winston uses visuals and colors to tell the story. Later, when things take a turn for the sinister, the colors take on chillier tones, as if to signify the darker direction the story is now taking. In the scenes with the "witch woman" named Haggis in her cabin, Winston uses sharp red lighting to accentuate the impending "deal with the Devil" that Ed is making. Winston's judicious use of primary color lighting echoes the style of Italian auteur Dario Argento and his numerous Gialli (colorful, operatic Italian thrillers) from the 70s, 80s, 90s, and up until now.
PUMPKINHEAD also succeeds because it's rooted in a very poignant place - a father who has lost his beloved son. Revenge is often a common motive in horror films, but this is one of the few entries to actually address the fact that, ultimately, revenge doesn't help anyone. Ed's change of heart, after Pumpkinhead has been revived and started his rampage, drives home this message. Ultimately, it becomes clear that Ed has to make a hard choice to save the people he initially wanted to die. It's a refreshingly complex scenario that the script plays very well.
Lance Henriksen is solid and sympathetic as the grieving Ed Harley. Matthew Hurley is equally affecting as his young son Billy. Their relationship is the centerpiece of the film, even if we only see a snippet of it at the beginning. It's crucial that we get a sense of this strong father-son bond before it is severed, so that the chain reaction of events that it sets off becomes all the more powerful. The emotional element this connection gives PUMPKINHEAD is what elevates it above others in the sub-genre.
The actors playing the group of young city folk who find themselves in Pumpkinhead's cross-hairs are all competent and never come across as the irritating caricatures you find in many similar films. As with the original FRIDAY THE 13Th (review # 563), the characters don't easily fit into the standard slots like Slut, Brain, Jock, Nerd, Virgin, Smart-Ass, etc. It's also quite interesting how Winston and his writer toy with expectations about who will live or die. Of the young ensemble, Jeff East (who also appeared in DEADLY BLESSING and SUPERMAN 1978), Cynthia Bain, and John D'Aquino are the standouts.
PUMPKINHEAD was followed by a sequel in 1993 that doesn't come close to its predecessor. In fact, PUMPKINHEAD is actually a film that could use a solid remake/reimagining for 21st Century audiences. A larger budget would even further expand upon the movie's interesting premise and mythos. However, for a film from the late 80s, it has a timeless feel to it that still makes it feel fresh. It's a shame that Stan Winston never directed a full-length horror movie after this very promising debut. He certainly has the talent.
All in all, PUMPKINHEAD is a a solidly-good lost classic that's just waiting to be discovered again - and possibly remade? With all the questionable films being remade today, this film is one that truly deserves it.
