Trick or Treat: A Silly Premise Yields a Fun Horror-Comedy Outing (Blu-ray)
The Film:
The '80s gave us all kinds of horror flicks, from serious approaches like "The Shining," "A Nightmare on Elm Street," and "Friday the 13th," to films that mixed their material with a fair amount of levity like the first two "Evil Dead" films, "Re-Animator," and "The Return of the Living Dead," and these are just to name a few that became beloved classics. There were also a plethora that never achieved the level of popularity that these examples did, films that may be known in circles of cult film experts, but not so well to the general horror-loving public.
One of these little horror outings, which falls mostly in the latter of the two above categories, is Charles Martin Smith's "Trick or Treat" from 1986 (not to be confused with the marvelous horror anthology film "Trick 'r Treat" from 2007), a film that, like so many of its fellow horror-comedies, takes a rather silly premise and runs with it. As we quickly approach its 40th anniversary, Synapse Films is releasing the film on Blu-ray in the US for the first time, featuring a 4K restoration and tons of extras, so let's dive in and see whether it earned its obscure place in horror history or if it deserves to be on more fans' radars.
The film centers on Eddie "Ragman" Weinbauer (Marc Price), a kid who loves heavy metal music and gets bullied constantly in high school. His favorite rock star is Sammi Curr (Tony Fields), a very controversial figure who went to the same school and was recently banned from playing at their Halloween dance. After Curr is killed in a mysterious fire at his hotel, Eddie is devastated and goes to see his friend & local DJ, Nuke (Gene Simmons), who gives him the master to Curr's final, unreleased album. He immediately takes the record home, plays it, and discovers hidden messages that he believes are speaking directly to him, messages that tell him to do things like get revenge on his jock bullies. His revenge is innocent enough at first, but soon takes a turn that has Eddie fighting against a deadly reincarnated form of his beloved rock hero, who's hell-bent on taking some revenge of his own.
As mentioned, horror-comedies tend to take a rather silly premise and run with it, and "Trick or Treat" is certainly no exception, perhaps even more so than most. Here we have a vengeful rock star, resurrected via a record played backwards, traveling through electricity and killing people as revenge for the mistreatment he suffered as a young man. It's absolutely ridiculous, and yet, somehow it actually works well enough to be an entertaining little horror outing.
This is a scenario that could've easily been played up for laughs, given the absurdity of its plot, but that kind of tone wouldn't have worked nearly as well, and in fact, it's the way in which the material is treated with a fair amount of seriousness that gives it an edge. Sure, it's not as hard-hitting, and perhaps not as memorable, as the aforementioned examples of this genre blend (all of which are rather extreme outings), but as far as delivering on its wild premise, it surprisingly does a good enough job to make it a worthwhile 90-minutes for horror fans, as well as a fun experience for heavy metal fans with its rocking soundtrack and cameos from Gene Simmons & Ozzy Osbourne. What more could both groups ask for?
Video/Audio:
"Trick or Treat" comes to Blu-ray in a 1.85:1, 1080p High Definition transfer of outstanding quality. The 4K restoration, from the original 35mm camera negative and approved by DP Robert Elswit, is remarkably sharp & clear throughout, making the film look rather new again. Likewise, the DTS-HD Master Audio (from the original 2.0 theatrical mix) and the new 5.1 surround sound mix tracks are marvelous, giving you all of the dialogue, sound effects, and, of course, the music in excellent quality. Overall, Synapse Films has done a fantastic job restoring the film in both areas for its new release.
Special Features:
Audio commentary with director Charles Martin Smith
Audio interviews with writer/producer Michael S. Murphey
Audio conversation with authors Paul Corupe and Allison Lang
Rock & Shock: The Making of Trick or Treat (81 Minutes)
In the Spotlight: A Tribute to Tony Fields (15 Minutes)
Horror's Hallowed Grounds: The Filming locations (27 Minutes)
After Midnight (Original Music Video) (4 Minutes)
The Blu-ray comes with a great selection of extras that includes a director's commentary, a visit to several filming locations, and a fantastic feature-length making-of documentary, featuring tons of interviews with members of the cast & crew. Definitely more than enough material here for those looking to delve further into the film.
Conclusion:
Charles Martin Smith's "Trick or Treat" takes the absurdly silly premise of a resurrected rock star hell-bent on revenge and runs with it, delivering a fun & entertaining horror-comedy outing that both fans of the genre & heavy metal music lovers will get a big kick out of.
Score: 3.5/5
Available on Blu-ray starting tomorrow.
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