#32 - Dreamaniac (1986)
Yes, I know I skipped a couple. (They were: #29 - The Slayer (1982), #30 - Samurai Resurrection, and #31 - Stanley Kubrick: A Life In Pictures.) I'll get back to them eventually. But I wanted to do a bit about this joyously ridiculous piece of straight to video trash.
Dreamaniac is the directorial debut of noted gay cult director David DeCoteau(I suspect he wrote it also, though the script is credited to one Helen Robinson, who has no other credits). It was issued by Wizard Video as part of their "Too Gory for The Silver Screen", not that it would ever have been released to a theater, and it's shot on video. While it is a late 80's DeCoteau, you can see some of the hallmarks of his films to come, mostly in the smooth-chested guys in their tighty whiteys and a general aversion to female nudity.
Adam is a heavy metal musician who wants to be famous. He spends most of his time sleeping late and performing Satanic rituals. His sister is throwing a party for some of her sorority girlfriends, with the help of Adam's girlfriend (played by the soon-to-be-famous-XXX star Ashlyn Gere). One of Adam's rituals works, and he summons a succubus who offers him fame and fortune in exchange for killing off the party guests (including girlfriend and sister). One by one, the succubus knocks off the party goers. To be sure, most of the kills are not in particularly "Too Gory For The Silver Screen" fashion, although a power drill comes into play at the end, more or less justifying the label. Can Adam's sister and girlfriend escape from the house?
Dreamaniac is very, very cheesy, but one thing that can be said about it is that it's never particularly boring. The dialogue varies from snappy to lame, and the acting is, well, it's what it is, but overall, it's a fun, if brief, straight to video 80's slasher.
Dreamaniac is the directorial debut of noted gay cult director David DeCoteau(I suspect he wrote it also, though the script is credited to one Helen Robinson, who has no other credits). It was issued by Wizard Video as part of their "Too Gory for The Silver Screen", not that it would ever have been released to a theater, and it's shot on video. While it is a late 80's DeCoteau, you can see some of the hallmarks of his films to come, mostly in the smooth-chested guys in their tighty whiteys and a general aversion to female nudity.
Adam is a heavy metal musician who wants to be famous. He spends most of his time sleeping late and performing Satanic rituals. His sister is throwing a party for some of her sorority girlfriends, with the help of Adam's girlfriend (played by the soon-to-be-famous-XXX star Ashlyn Gere). One of Adam's rituals works, and he summons a succubus who offers him fame and fortune in exchange for killing off the party guests (including girlfriend and sister). One by one, the succubus knocks off the party goers. To be sure, most of the kills are not in particularly "Too Gory For The Silver Screen" fashion, although a power drill comes into play at the end, more or less justifying the label. Can Adam's sister and girlfriend escape from the house?
Dreamaniac is very, very cheesy, but one thing that can be said about it is that it's never particularly boring. The dialogue varies from snappy to lame, and the acting is, well, it's what it is, but overall, it's a fun, if brief, straight to video 80's slasher.