FRIGHT NIGHT(1985) ***1/2 out of ****Written & Directed by Tom Holland. Starring Chris Sarandon,Roddy McDowell,William Ragsdale,Amanda Bearse,Stephen Geoffreys,Johnathan Stark,Rated PG-13,106 minutes,Released by Columbia Home Video
Since next month, a big budgeted remake of this classic 1980's horror spoof is set to be released in US theaters and this weekend,a newly restored theatrical 35mm print of the original FRIGHT NIGHT film will be screened this weekend at midnight at NYC's Landmark Sunshine Theater,it's just as correct to do a review of the original FRIGHT NIGHT film and it's immediate sequel,FRIGHT NIGHT PART II.The original FRIGHT NIGHT film was the creation of writer-director Tom Holland who was then famous in the 1980's for his horror and action scripts for THE BEAST WITHIN(1980),PSYCHO II(1982), CLOAK AND DAGGER (1983) and CLASS OF 1984(1984) and was making his directorial debut with this film which was Holland's homage to Hammer vampire films and horror film TV hosts,especially in the creation of the film's TV horror host and vampire killer expert Peter Vincent which was a direct homage to horror movie icons Peter Cushing and Vincent Price and wonderfully played in the film by Roddy McDowell(PLANET OF THE APES, THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE) The movie followed in the footsteps of other 1980's horror comedies such as RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD(1984),NIGHT OF THE COMET(1984),NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (1985),THE REANIMATOR and most especially,GHOSTBUSTERS(1984) in it's plot of a teenaged horror movie fanplayed by William Ragsdale, who discovers that his new next door neighbor is a 200 year old vampire Jerry Dandridge played with great wit and menace by Chris Sarandon. Since no one believes him especially his girlfriend played by Amanda Bearse(TV's MARRIED WITH CHILDREN) and his best friend Evil Ed played by Stephen Geofreys in a scene stealing performance,then the teenage must enlist the reluctant help of former horror movie star and TV horror film host Peter Vincent to help him kill the vampire. Both Ragsdale & McDowell make a great screen team of vampire killers greatly helped by the marvelous makeup and visual effects by Steve Johnson and Richard Edlund(GHOSTBUSTERS, STAR WARS) Unfortunately this Columbia Home Video DVD release of the film only has an anamorphic widescreen version of the film with no audio commentaries by cast or crew,neither are there special features like featurettes,deleted scenes or photo galleries and just only a trailer of the film. Let's hope that with the release of the new remake of the film, Columbia Video will release the original FRIGHT NIGHT in a Special Edition BluRay release soon.
FRIGHT NIGHT PART II(1988)**1/2 out of **** Directed by Tommy Lee Wallace,Starring William Ragsdale,Roddy McDowell, Julie Carmen,Traci Lind, Merrick Butrick,Brian Thompson,Ernie Sabella,Jon Gries,Russell Mays, Rated PG-13,104 minutes Released by Artisan Home Video
After the tremendous critical and popular box office success of the first FRIGHT NIGHT film back in 1985, then three years later the studio decided to make a sequel.Unfortunately writer/director Tom Holland was not involved with this sequel since he was busy directing the first Chucky film, CHILD'S PLAY(1988).Therefore Tommy Lee Wallace who was a protege of cult director John Carpenterwas assigned the direction of the sequel and screenwriters Tom Metcalfe and Miguel Tejada Flores who had written the scripts of the popular teen comedies REVENGE OF THE NERDS(1985) and it's sequel, together with director Wallace wrote the script for this FRIGHT NIGHT sequel.The plot occurs three years after the events of the first film in which Charley Brewster is in college with his psychologist girlfriend (Traci Lin) having forgotten about the threats of the vampires.But a sultry female vampire named Regina played by the sensuous Julie Carmen who is really the sister of vanquished vampire Jerry Dandridge,arrives in town to have her revenge against both Brewster and Peter Vincent once again played by Roddy McDowell for being both responsable for her brother's fatal demise.Her plan is to vampirize Brewster and make him her slave in order to punish him . Therefore it's up to Peter Vincent and Brewster's girlfriend to save Charley from Regina's vampiric clutches and destroy her and her minions. Unfortunately Wallace's direction and the film's script is not up to the same great and entertaining standards and qualities that Tom Holland's direction & script of the first FRIGHT NIGHT film had, since there was way too much emphasis on non effective campy humor than horror in this film.Although the sequel did benefit once again from the great on screen chemistry of William Ragsdale & Roddy McDowell in their original roles as well as the great makeup & visual effects appearing in the film .The greatest let down is the now out of print 2001 DVD release of FRIGHT NIGHT II by Artisan Home Video which has the film in a pan and scan version instead of the original anamorphic widescreen version with a video version quality that is quite poor similar to the 1988 VHS tape release and insult to injury, there is no special features none whatsoever on this DVD, not even the film's theatrical trailer.As I said before,let us hope that with next month's release of the FRIGHT NIGHT remake,then FRIGHT NIGHT PART II will be soon re-released on DVD & BluRay in it's correct screen ratio and with special features about the making of the film.
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