#1,024. Poltergeist III (1988)

Directed By: Gary Sherman

Starring: Tom Skerritt, Nancy Allen, Heather O'Rourke





Tag line: "Trapped in the limbo between life and death, there are only two ways out"

Trivia: Lara Flynn Boyle's film debut







Despite having very few films to his credit, director Gary Sherman's resume is quite impressive. Aside from the ultra-gritty 1982 exploitation flick, Vice Squad, he also helmed the spooky Dead & Buried, as well as Wanted: Dead or Alive, a 1986 action movie starring Rutger Hauer (an overlooked gem, in my opinion). But, unfortunately, not even Gary Sherman could save Poltergeist III.

As the movie opens, Carol Ann (Heather O'Rourke) is living in Chicago with her aunt Pat (Nancy Allen), who's new husband, Bruce (Tom Skerritt), is the manager of the high-rise apartment building they call home. The three live in a luxury suite with Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle), Bruce's teenage daughter from a previous marriage. To help her come to terms with the events of her past, Carol Ann is being counseled by Dr. Seaton (Richard Fire), the psychologist at the school she attends. Convinced she has psychic abilities, Dr. Seaton forces Carol Ann to talk about her ghostly experiences, and in so doing, unwittingly helps the evil Rev. Kane (Nathan Davis) track her down. Aided by her old friend, Tangina (Zelda Rubenstein), Carol Ann faces off against Kane, who's even more powerful than he was before.

Poltergeist III isn't a total failure. Along with its solid cast and a few creepy scenes involving mirrors, the movie also has some decent special effects. Unfortunately, the negatives outweigh the positives. For one, the theory put forth by Dr. Seaton, that Carol Ann is somehow "hypnotizing" people, causing them to see what she sees, is laughably ridiculous. Never once did I buy that a psychologist, professional or otherwise, would suggest something so ludicrous. In fact, from start to finish, his character is completely unbelievable, a problem I attribute more to the script than Richard Fire's performance. This same script also lets down Zelda Rubenstein's Tangina, one of the two performers (along with O'Rourke) to appear in all three films, giving her nothing more to do than utter Carol Ann's name about a hundred times.

But the real issue I had with Poltergeist III was its basic premise. As I mentioned in my review of Poltergeist, part of that film's charm was how it made you care about the family at the center of it all, a feeling that carried over (though to a lesser degree) to Poltergeist II. In both movies, the Freelings were a tight-knit family, with the parents (played by Craig T. Nelson and Jobeth Williams) willing to do whatever it took to keep their kids safe. Poltergeist III asks us to believe these same loving parents suddenly decided to send their youngest daughter, who's already been put through hell a couple of times, to live with relatives. Based on the first two movies, this is something they simply would not do. To top it off, this "new" family unit isn't particularly close. Nancy Allen's Pat, the only true blood relative Carol Ann has, isn't happy to have the troubled girl around, and though Tom Skerritt does a good enough job as the kindly father figure, Bruce, Poltergeist III never establishes why he cares as much as he does (Bruce doesn't share nearly enough screen time with Carol Ann to suggest there's a strong bond between them). By trying to re-write the very formula that made Poltergeist a great film and Poltergeist II an entertaining one, Poltergeist III fails to deliver any of the emotional punch of its predecessors, and, as a result, we don’t give a damn about its characters.

#225. Raw Meat (1973)

DVD Synopsis: When a prominent politician and a beautiful young woman vanish inside a London subway station, Scotland Yard's Inspector Calhoun (Pleasence) investigates and makes a horrifiying discovery. Not only did a group of 19th-century tunnel workers survive a cave-in, but they lived for years in a secret underground enclave by consuming the flesh of their own dead. Now the lone descendant of this grisly tribe has surfaced, prowling the streets of London for fresh victims...and a new mate.

In recent months, I've come to admire the films of director Gary Sherman; whether horror (Dead & Buried) or action-packed thriller (Vice Squad, Wanted: Dead or Alive), his movies have never failed to entertain me. Needless to say, I happily jumped at the chance to check out Sherman's directorial debut, a 1973 horror film titled Raw Meat, and while I definitely found it to be a good outing, this movie does, unfortunately, have its share of problems as well. 

A young couple, Alex (David Ladd) and Patricia (Sharon Gurney), who have just arrived at the London Underground's Russell Square station, spot a man lying on the ground, apparently injured. They report what they've found to the police, who promptly investigate. However, when the police return to the scene, the man is nowhere to be found. As it turns out, the now-missing man was one James Manfred (James Cossins), an important government official, and Inspector Calhoun (Donald Pleasance) of the local constabulary launches an investigation into the disappearance. What none of them realizes is that someone is living in an abandoned tunnel behind the Russell Square station, a Man (Hugh Armstrong) who has spent his entire life underground. He's the one behind Manfred's disappearance, as well as a slew of other missing persons reported in that area over the years. Far from any source of food, this Man has managed to stay alive by kidnapping passengers of the underground, and then eating them. 

Having spent the better part of his career playing shifty, dark characters, Donald Pleasance is here given a more comic, lighthearted role; his Inspector Calhoun is forever cracking jokes, usually at the expense of whoever he happens to be talking to at the time. While questioning Alex about the Manfred disappearance, Calhoun tries to rattle the young man by accusing him of planning the abduction himself, and then further antagonizes Alex as he's walking out the door by telling him he should 'get a haircut'. It was a nice change of pace for Pleasance, and he handled the humorous aspects of his character very well.  But Raw Meat isn't all fun and games. Shortly after the scene in which Calhoun questions Alex, we're taken deep below ground, to the abandoned tunnel that the cannibalistic “Man” (as he's referred to in the film's credits) calls home. In one long, uninterrupted shot, the camera slowly glides along the ground, revealing rats crawling over bloody body parts, which are strewn everywhere. Then Manfred comes into view, lying on the ground, where he seems to be in a state of shock. More bodies, in various states of decomposition, are revealed as the action shifts to another room, where the “Man” is kneeling next to the near-lifeless body of a woman (June Turner), who is obviously his mate. With the woman's agonizing groans echoing throughout the tunnel, the camera moves further down the way, finally coming to rest in front of a large mound of corpses, piled one on top of the other. It is a brilliantly choreographed sequence, and all at once we're introduced to the hell that exists behind the walls of the Russell Square station. 

Unfortunately, we don't get enough of these glimpses behind that wall, and Raw Meat definitely suffers as a result. Aside from the wonderful sequence I just described, the movie doesn't give us much of a chance to learn more about the “Man”. Instead, we follow Inspector Calhoun as he confers with scientists and colleagues, and sits at his desk, going over papers (he's investigating a disappearance in the underground, yet he never so much as visits the site until the end of the film). We also check back in several times with Alex and Patricia, the young couple from the opening scene, even though they have little to do with the story as it develops (again, until the ending). Much of the time Raw Meat spends above ground would have been better spent below it, giving us more insight into the “Man” and his isolated existence. As it stands, we get a quick glance now and then at what his life is like, but not enough to answer all of our questions, and I found myself, at times, growing impatient. For me, the real story was in that tunnel, and I definitely feel that Raw Meat missed a golden opportunity by not taking us there more often. 

If you're looking for the definitive Gary Sherman horror film, I would recommend checking out the excellent Dead & Buried. While Raw Meat is certainly not a bad film, it doesn't quite measure up to some of the director's later work.

#144. Wanted: Dead or Alive (1986)

DVD Synopsis: Nick Randall (Rutger Hauer) is an urban bounty hunter, a lethal professional who collects society's garbage for a living. Malak Al Rahim (Gene Simmons) is an international terrorist with a plan to turn Los Angeles into a bloody battlefield. But when the CIA uses Randall as bait to trap the madman, the hunter becomes the hunted. And when the violence hits Randall's home, the bounty becomes a mission of very personal vengeance. Robert Guillaume, William Russ and Mel Harris co-star in this action-packed thriller which features a final showdown that critics and fans alike called one of the most explosive climaxes of the decade.

Thus far, during this little experiment of mine, I've watched two films directed by Gary Sherman, Dead & Buried and Vice Squad, and was impressed enough by each of them to want to delve into some more of this clearly talented filmmaker's work.  With Wanted: Dead or Alive, Sherman once again delivers the goods.

A crime thriller with plenty of action. Wanted: Dead or Alive co-stars Gene Simmons, a founder and guitarist of the rock band KISS, who's very convincing as the middle-eastern terrorist who brings his deadly game of cat-and-mouse to U.S. soil.  But make no mistake; this movie belongs to Rutger Hauer, an absolute bad-ass in the role of bounty hunter Nick Randall (a supposed descendant of the character Steve McQueen played in the 50's television western of the same name). Hauer has always been an actor of exceptional abilities, especially when playing slimy criminals. In Wanted: Dead or Alive, he's on the right side of the law, but you'd never know it by watching him; he chases down some pretty rough scumbags in this film, yet none are as tough as he is (at one point, after getting the jump on a cop-killer wanted by the FBI, Randall puts the cuffs on the guy, breaks his arm, and throws him in the trunk of his car). 

If you ever get a chance to do so, I strongly recommend setting aside a weekend afternoon to watch this trilogy of Gary Sherman films: Dead & Buried, Vice Squad and Wanted: Dead or Alive. I guarantee you won't be sorry you did.

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#107. Vice Squad (1982)

DVD Synopsis: Season Hubley (Hardcore) stars as Princess, a loving single mom turned Hollywood hooker who can provide any depraved pleasure for the right price. But when a volatile cop (Gary Swanson) uses her to trap a sadistic killer, Princess becomes the prey of a psychotic pimp known as Ramrod (a mind-blowing, take-no-prisoners performance by Wings Hauser). Tonight, the neon jungle of Los Angeles will explode in an orgy of vengeance and violence. And the only outlaws more desperate than the hustlers, whores and freaks that rule the streets are the Vice Squad.

Vice Squad takes place on a single night along Hollywood Boulevard, where the cops battle it out with pimps, prostitutes, pushers and freaks of all kind. A thrilling crime / action / drama, Vice Squad is well-paced, well directed (by Gary Sherman, who also was at the helm of the entertaining Dead & Buried), and very well-acted. 

Season Hubley turns in an impressive performance as a mother forced to work the streets to get by, but it's Wings Hauser who delivers Vice Squad's juiciest turn, playing her psychotic pimp, Ramrod. Ramrod is a real terror; he beats up women for kicks, and has absolutely no fear when confronting the cops (at one point, he even manages to escape custody while handcuffed and sitting in the back of a police car). Ramrod is one of the all-time great movie villains, and Hauser's wild-eyed performance is the reason why. 

Also keep an eye out for Nina Blackwood, one of the original Veejays on MTv when the channel launched in 1981. In her big screen debut, Blackwood plays Ginger, the first of Ramrod's many victims.

#57. Dead & Buried (1981)

DVD Synopsis: Something very strange is happening in the quiet coastal village of Potters Bluff, where tourists and transients are warmly welcomed... then brutally murdered. But even more shocking is when these slain strangers suddenly reappear as normal, friendly citizens around town. Now the local sheriff (James Farentino of The Final Countdown) and an eccentric mortician (Oscar winner Jack Albertson in his final feature film appearance) must uncover the horrific secret of a community where some terrifying traditions are alive and well... and no one is ever really Dead & Buried.

Its movies like Dead & Buried that make being a film fan so worthwhile, a new discovery that hits you from out of the blue, then blows you away. 

There are a number of disturbing scenes (the first of which involves a body in a burned-out vehicle), and Jack Albertson is great as the town’s egotistical mortician, but what I loved most about Dead & Buried was how it just dropped me into the middle of a bad situation, and then challenged me to keep up with it all. The film is essentially a horror mystery, and as such spends no time whatsoever in establishing a back story. It's a puzzle; a grisly, gruesome puzzle splattered with blood, but a puzzle nonetheless and I had a great time trying to piece it all together.

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