Rocktober Blood (1984) User Reviews

Rocks hard, but sucks worse

[yourmotheratemydog715 · 4/10 · 19 October 2016]

ROCKTOBER BLOOD, one of the myriad of glam metal horror flicks from the mid-to-late-'80s (BLACK ROSES, ROCK 'N' ROLL NIGHTMARE, HARD ROCK ZOMBIES, etc.), is possibly the worst out of all of them. It's a D-level slasher with only one saving grace: the rockin' soundtrack.

Basically, the set-up is the singer of a hair metal group goes nuts and kills some people (only two on-screen, but later on, they say 25??). He gets sent to the electric chair, and the singer's ex-girlfriend starts the band back up again. Only trouble is, the '80s-handsome singer is still out to get her... even though he's dead! The acting is painfully bad, especially the mumbling, uncharismatic killer character. 45 minutes in the middle consist only of a woman swearing Billy "Eye" is back from the dead and people telling her she's crazy. No other characters do anything the entire film, and the body count is surprisingly low. The first 70 minutes are honestly really hard to get through.

If you make it to the end, you're treated with a killer performance scene by Sorcery (better known for STUNT ROCK), some fun kills and some catchy hair metal tunes. But ten good minutes out of ninety is not enough, and I would recommend all but the biggest '80s metal/horror fans give this one a hard pass. Check out TRICK OR TREAT or ROCK 'N' ROLL NIGHTMARE to see this sub-genre done right.

He's back from the dead with a message from Hell!

[Hey_Sweden · 6/10 · 1 October 2017]

Filmmaking couple Ferd and Beverly Sebastian tap into the then-hot idea of combining heavy metal and horror, with fair results. Tray Loren stars as "Billy Eye" Harper, leader of a band who goes on an insane killing spree. The testimony of his lover / backup singer Lynn Starling (Donna Scoggins) helps get him convicted and executed. Two years later, she's now the leader of his band, and she believes that he's returned from the grave to kill all of his former associates. Naturally, nobody believes HER, thinking that it's time for her to return to psychiatric care.

"Rocktober Blood" has a good title, but it's basically adequate at best. Obviously done on a limited budget, it doesn't look or sound great. The acting is passable right across the board, although some of the sexy ladies do get undressed for the camera, and Loren does look like he's having fun as the psycho antagonist. Director Beverly builds up some okay atmosphere, but the pacing is overall on the plodding side, and this goes on longer than it really should. The theatricality of the band is generally amusing, and the gore is decent if not spectacular. The ending is not terribly satisfying.

On the plus side, the songs are actually pretty good. If you're a fan of the metal genre, you may catch yourself banging your head in appreciation.

This is not one I would recommend you go out of your way to see, but it yields okay entertainment for any slasher completist.

Six out of 10.

ROCKTOBER BLOOD/The music made it!

[[e-mail] · 6/10 · 3 April 2003]

The movie is filled with plot holes and not easy to follow. The acting leaves alot to the imagination as far as talent goes. The best part of the picture is the music, played, in part

by the rock band "Sorcery". Released as a lp back in 1984. Now, the soundtrack is a collectors item!! It's almost impossible to find anywhere. I recently saw an ROCKTOBER BLOOD lp(not vhs) available on e-bay that went for$89!!! Great music, movie ok......

Full metal meets average slasher flick

[horrorbargainbin · 10 July 2002]

At the movie's best scene the killer is stabbing dancing girls on stage with a sword/mic stand. He even cuts off a girl's head and throws it into the crowd! Unfortunately this action comes after a lot of dull and not scary stalking. The most unexciting and unoriginal moments include a series of phone calls with no one on the line and the obligatory digging up the killer's grave in the night to see if he lives.

The rock music is great and full songs are played several times. If the viewer does not go for power metal or 80's rock videos, they may not be wild about this flick. In a creative scene, the hero is chased by an unseen menace while metal music is played backwards on the soundtrack.

A great movie for metal fans with patience for mediocre horror.

Rock Legends supply the music

[edeighton · 2/10 · 18 October 2016]

This movie was bad in the beginning, awful during the tedious middle and then AMAZING for most of the last 17 minutes before finally coming to a clunky and unsatisfying finish (and no it was not a biopic of my sex life). Oh the promise contained in those last seventeen minutes of the film...oh how that promising concept was squandered. The female lead singer (Lynn) is the only one that knows that there is a "Killer On The Loose"! Awesome! The band is playing through a metal/gore concert not knowing that someone is actually killing the cast on stage. Fascinating! Lynn is singing her trademark "Rainbow Eyes" while a disguised Billy Eye stalks her across the stage with a real sword mic stand. Gripping! - - But then, as much as I wanted to, I could no longer suspend disbelief once Billy/John takes off his mask and NOBODY reacted appropriately or even realistically. This reaction to the revealed John/Billy ruined the very promising concept of a horror rock show with a real killer. Come on! Why in the hell would the band start playing "I'm Back" instead of trying to rescue their lead singer, Lynn.

Overall the music was the best part of this movie. The band Sorcery played the instrumentals and the actor, Nigel Benjamin, was the dubbed over singing voice of Billy Eye. Nigel Benjamin played the manager (Chris Keane) but Nigel is also a legitimate hard rock/metal singer. Nigel Benjamin, was, at one time, the lead singer for Mott the Hoople which famously performed the song "All the Young Dudes". Later, in 1980, Nigel Benjamin was shortly the front-man/lead singer of the LA club band London. Two very famous metal musicians were also in the band London with Nigel Benjamin for short periods of time: Nikki Sixx the bassist for Motley Crue and Izzy Stradlin, the rhythm guitarist for Guns N Roses.

The director of Rocktober Blood is Beverly Sebastian and she has a real knack for making movies a family affair. Her husband, Ferd Sebastian was the Producer/Camera man/ utility manager for the movie. Her oldest son, Ben Sebastian, played the effeminate Head of Security. Her youngest son, under the stage name, Tray Loren, played Billy Eye and John Eye. Beverly Sebastian made a few low budget horror movies in the 1970s (Gator Bait) and each one prominently displayed the efforts of her family.

Why all of the Lens Flare? Every ten minutes there was an intentional star shaped lens flare effect.

Suprisingly Good!

[shawnblackman · 5/10 · 16 April 2018]

A true 80's slasher classic with all the trimmings. The over the top absurd kills (an iron held to the throat) with lots of nudity and even aerobics in leotards. It doesn't get any better than this.

If you watch the DVD version there is a part after the movie which shows how the director and his wife rescue Greyhounds now.

My God, This Boy Sure Can Wail. The Best Scream Queen Ever.

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 5/10 · 18 September 2022]

Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of Rocktober Blood; here's the breakdown of my ratings:

Story: 0.50 Direction: 1.00 Pace: 1.00 Acting: 1.25 Enjoyment: 1.50

TOTAL: 5.25 out of 10.00

As "Leave your brains at the door" movies go, Rocktober Blood is one of the better ones. And it comes down to a single simple reason - the Rock'N'Roll man! The Rock'N'Roll!

Regrettably, everything else is forgettable folderol. The tale the writing team of Ferd and Beverly Sebastian tell is that of Rock God, Billy "Eye" Harper. After the opening credits roll, we watch as Billy slaughters the help at the recording studio. The peculiar thing is he doesn't kill anyone of import. It would've been excellent if they could've added some backstory to this character. He appears to be your stereotypical Music Daeva. Then he's all stabby-stabby - why? Well, forget the reasons because the Sebastians don't proffer this information. But don't worry because he gets his just deserts for these dastardly deeds and is summerily tried, judged, and executed. But as with most films of this ilk, death is far from the end, and two years later, as Rocktober Blood prepare for their concert, Billy slashes his way back on stage. I liked this concept, but it needed more weight to its characterisations. Most individuals are a tad above two-dimensional, but you're not empathetic towards them. The story feels cobbled together to push the band and the record label - owned by The Sebastians (unless I misread the end credits).

It's Beverly who then takes the director's chair. And though her direction isn't terrible, it is on the average side. When you think the end segment of the movie is a rock concert, I would've considered handing over the reins to a Music Video director. Some of those guys and gals possessed a decent imagination and creativity, but most of all, they were adept at the quick cut to boost up the pace of the video. And that is the one noticeable downside to Rocktober Blood; the tempo is too slow. It needed to be fast and exciting, like the music the band blasted out - and slower for the stalking scenes. Otherwise, she makes good use of her sets, locations, and lighting. And the final shot is a pure money shot.

The cast is average. None are outstanding, and most rest on the verge of going wooden. But when Trey Loren as Billy "Eye" Harper opens his mouth and wails, angels' ears bleed. That's if it's Loren who's singing. Another plus is The Band. Because if Loren can sing, The Band can play.

On the whole, this Dark Thriller isn't too thrilling until The Band Plays On. As such, Rocktober Blood is a film for 80s Metal Heads - of which I can proudly say, I Am One. So it's no wonder this flick has found a place in my Rock'N'Roul soul. But I can understand it's not everybody's cup of cha.

Bill-y, Bill-y, Bill-y, Bill-y. I'm glad you're back, but before you carve your signature across my chest with that mike stand, take a look at my IMDb lists - Killer Thriller Chillers and Guilty Pleasures and see where I rated Rocktober Blood. Okay, Billy! Carve away!

Take Care & Stay Well.

The music is the only good thing in the movie(spoiler warning)

[lthseldy1 · 3/10 · 1 April 2002]

That song keeps humming in my head. Not the greatest song, but it's the 80's. This movie is about a lead singer who "supposebly" gets killed while being accused of murders as he stalks his girlfriend who sings backup vocals in his band. The lead singer whos name is Billy "Eye" (yeah, right) is dead after two years and his band comes back for a concert only the backup vocalist is the lead singer this time. Billy stalks her and eventually goes around killing all these people and terrifying the girl and makeing people around her think theres something wrong with her and that shes imagining things. She finally decides to go to a cemetary and dig up his grave to see if he's still there. She sees that he's dead but still see's and hears his voice. During the end of the movie we find out the reason behind all of this, Billy has a brother named John (right again) and John admits that he was jealous of his brother and that he killed all those people to get back at him and place the blame on his brother and then take his girlfriend and terrorize her because she called him crazy. The ending is very cheezy and the acting is very lame and wooden. But.... I like it anyway. I watch it for the song. I wish I had it.

Rocktober Blood

[a_baron · 4/10 · 24 June 2015]

If this film looks more than a little familiar, think "A Nightmare On Elm Street" etc, or simply slasher. A year after his execution, a serial killer rock musician returns from the dead to continue where he left off. There is a slight twist on the usual non-plot in that he decides to haunt rather than murder one of his former associates, and she decides to prove he is not really dead by digging up his body. She tries to persuade others to help her, but they think it is all in her head, so she decides to do it on her own. She goes to the cemetery with another woman, and they are joined by a third person, one of the male crew. As she opens his casket, Billy Harper opens his eyes and lunges for her, but she is the only one who sees this, the other two see only a rotted corpse; at this point the viewer might begin to wonder if it really is all in her head. No, it is not, but is this really a supernatural killer or a terrestrial one putting on an act?

So what does "Rocktober Blood" have to offer? Well, to begin with, it is one of a series, but don't bother to collect the set. On the other hand, if you are partial to a spot of mild but tasteful nudity, you might find something here. And the soundtrack is not bad, although if you think you recognise two of its titles: "Killer Without A Cause" and Rainbow Eyes", they are probably not the songs you were thinking of.

There is a fair amount of gore, but it is difficult to credit this was actually banned.

Blood on the guitar.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 7/10 · 22 September 2010]

Billy "Eye" Harper is a hard rocker who killed 25 people and was later sentenced to death and executed.The only survivor of Billy's rampage is a part-time singer Lynn Starling.Two years ago Lynn wants to go with her new band Headmistress on Rocktober Blood tour.But Billy is not dead and he starts killing people around her..."Rocktober Blood" is one of the better heavy metal/slasher movies of 80's.There is a bit of tension and some lines are priceless for example ""I want your hot steaming pussy blood all over my face".The killings include eviscerations,a nasty impaling and a pretty good decapitation.The acting is terrible,but I must say that I enjoyed hard rocking soundtrack of "Rocktober Blood".7 out of 10.

Cheese can't help this one...

[markovd111 · 5/10 · 7 February 2020]

Movie is so cheesy, you could make a cheesecake from it. But that doesn't mean anything when story is boring, acting bad and technique of filming even worse. Half of the movie is so dark you can barely see what's happening. Music is kinda cool and ending scene is a real cheesy fun, but the scares are nonexistent (except 1 jumpscare which got me, but to call being surprised being scared is wrong) and nudity shown doesn't help all that much. I was happy when the movie was finally over and I don't recommend it to anyone, except to my fellow horror movie fans on a quest of watching all horror movies and some curious fans of 80-s rock music. It's not the worst thing you can watch, but it doesn't have anything more going for it than what I already mentioned. 5/10, avoid it (if you can even find it) !

Gloriously ludicrous 80's heavy metal horror trash

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 6 July 2017]

Deranged rock singer Billy "Eye" Harper gets executed for killing twenty-five people. Two years later Billy returns from the dead to commit a new series of murders.

Boy, does this enjoyably absurd howler completely nail the sleazy decadence and outrageous excesses of the 1980's hard rock scene: We've got hideously massive overpermed hairdos, skintight leather pants, herky jerky break dancing, sweaty aerobics, coke snorting, lots of gnarly head-banging hard rock songs blaring away on the soundtrack, and, best of all, an uproariously ridiculous climatic concert which degenerates into a crazed bloodbath. The slack (non)direction by Beverly Sebastian, gaudy cinematography, extremely variable acting, a silly story complete with a groan-inducing surprise twist, and tacky gore all further enhance this flick's considerable deliciously cheesy charm. As a yummy plus, foxy brunette Donna Scoggins takes her clothes off twice in order to bare her attractive slender body. A total schlocky hoot.

The first film to fuse slasher horror with heavy metal

[Wuchakk · 6/10 · 18 September 2022]

A Los Angeles metal band loses its vocalist after he goes mad in the studio. Two years later the new group is successful with a female singer (Donna Scoggins), but the specter of the former vocalist haunts them... literally. Could it be that he's still alive and their lives are in danger?

"Rocktober Blood" (1984) mixes horror and heavy metal in the mold of the great "Trick or Treat" (1986), the entertaining "Shock 'Em Dead" (1991) and the decent "Black Roses" (1988). It's not quite as good as those, but it's the first of its kind and definitely superior to Jon Mikl Thor's "Rock 'n' Roll Nightmare" (1987) (which has to be cut some slack since it only cost a paltry $53,000).

The opening 25 minutes and ending 25 minutes are quite entertaining for this type of flick, but the entire midsection - about 40 minutes - needed better writing/suspense to keep the viewer's interest. As it is, it's just boring stalking scenes in the woods or in a house with a phone ringing, not to mention the obligatory dig-up the grave sequence.

The singer of the band is actor Tray Loren, who looks like Mike Reno of Loverboy. He lip-syncs songs written by the real-life group Sorcery, the members of whom appear as drummer, bassist and two guitarists of the fictional band Headmistress. Sorcery can also be heard/seen in the 1978 flick "Stunt Rock," but I think their material for "Rocktober Blood" is superior to their older stuff, at least the songs "I'm Back" and "Killer on the Loose," which are top-of-the-line for this style of early 80's hard rock/metal.

The Pat Benatar-like Donna Scoggins is not only the protagonist, but also the focus of the camera in regards to feminine allure with the exception of her two aerobics work-out pals. She's a'right (and appears nude a couple of times), but IMHO she's easily the least appealing of the three.

While this isn't quite on the level of "Trick or Treat," "Shock 'Em Dead" or even "Black Roses," it's decent enough if you're in the mood for colorful early 80's slasher meshed with 80's metal. It's way superior to "Rock 'n' Roll Nightmare" and must be given props for being the first of its kind. Just persevere with the tedious midsection.

The movie runs about 1 hour, 30 minutes, and was shot in Hollywood and Lake Tahoe.

GRADE: B-

Rocktober Blood is a somewhat average addition to the horror genre

[kevin_robbins · 5/10 · 16 April 2024]

I recently watched Rocktober Blood (1984) on Shudder. The storyline follows a rocker who loses control and kills people at one of his shows. His witness testifies against him, leading to his conviction and sentence to death row. Years later, the witness, now a rock singer trying to move on with her life, is faced with a chilling dilemma when a serial killer emerges who mysteriously resembles the killer she thought was dead...

This picture is directed by Beverly Sebastian (The Hitchhikers) and stars Tray Loren (Gator Bait 2), Donna Scoggins (The Despaired), Cana Cockrell (Last Detour), and Renee Hubbard.

Rocktober Blood offers a unique premise and maintains the classic 80s horror feel with its circumstances and situations. The acting is passable, capturing the essence of the era with its dialogue, attire, and iconic hairstyles. While the horror elements vary in effectiveness, there are some memorable kills along with classic horror nudity, including a great throat slash.

In conclusion, Rocktober Blood is a somewhat average addition to the horror genre. I would score it a 5/10 and recommend giving it a watch at least once.

Formula horror-on-tour pic

[lor_ · 15 March 2023]

My review was written in October 1986 after watching the film on Vestron video cassette.

"Rocktober Blood" is a 1984 horror picture, now available in home video stores, that fits into the unsuccessful genre of films that tried to combine this genre with rock music (e.g., "Terror on Tour", "Blood Tracks").

Tray Loren portrays Billy Eye, a rock star in the KISS vein, who goes on a bloody rampage one night at the recording studio and is executed for his murderous crimes. Two years later, his protege Lynn (Donna Scoggins), who testified against him in the muder case, is a successful rock star with the group Rocktober Blood. She is terrorized repeatedly by a mysterious figure who she thinks is Billy Eye back from the grave. Mystery is resolved on stage at the climax of the group's' tour.

Pic is standard slasher fare, with a diverting music track, the usual flow of blood and little in the way of originality. Made by the filmmaking team of Ferd and Beverly Sebastian, "Rocktober" has Beverly taking a solo directing credit, which they usually share.

Rocktober Blood Film Music

[ddr78759 · 7/10 · 15 May 2010]

This is just another horror film that is really no better or worse than most of them made in the 70's,and before. What makes this film interesting is the MUSIC done in the "on stage concert scenes and in the recording studio scenes" and not the acting or dialog or the production value. This is actually some of the best Horror film music I've heard,and I have heard a lot of it. The soundtrack to this movie was hard to find, BUT..I did locate one on E-Bay and it was well worth it. The musicians are professional on the LP,as they were apparently some L.A. studio guys from back then. It's no surprise that the best part of the picture is the music done by professional players. After all...most movie soundtracks are done by pro players. Yes...The music on the LP does contain some movie filler tracks,but the concert scenes music in the picture are also included which makes this worth having. I felt the songs "I'm Back", "Rainbow Eyes", "Killer on the Loose" and "Watching You" are really better than the picture. That is why the "7"rating. The film alone is a "3"

Head banging horror fun.

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 23 January 2014]

Two years after heavy rock star Billy "Eye" Harper is executed for the murder of twenty five people, his ex-girlfriend Lynn Starling, now lead singer of Billy's old band, finds herself stalked by a man she believes to be the dead rocker.

If you want a film that is the embodiment of cheesy '80s horror, look no further than Rocktober Blood, a silly slasher that couldn't be more '80s if it were wearing day-glo legwarmers and playing with a Rubik's cube. From the opening scene, in which Billy "Eye" Harper (Tray Loren) belts out his new number 'I'm Back', to the ridiculous rock gig finalé, the film is a total hoot, a not-in-the-least-bit-frightening melange of gaudy fashion, body popping, break dancing, big-hair heavy metal, hokey gore, gratuitous nudity and sexy aerobics routines.

The plot is pure nonsense, the direction lacks finesse, and the performances range from the mediocre to the downright awful, but it's almost impossible not to have a good time with a film that features not one but TWO nude scenes from its lead actress (in her one and only screen role, Donna Scoggins takes both a naked jacuzzi and a bubble bath), includes several half-decent songs in their entirety, incorporates a ridiculous twist into the story, and ends with a handful of grisly murders being performed on stage in front of a cheering crowd of rock fans unaware that the killings are real.

6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for the hilariously bad freeze-frame ending.

Fast forward to the end to see the rock band Sorcery.

[DbOD · 3 November 1998]

This film has one good thing about it, the rock band Sorcery did the sound track and appears at the end of the flick.

Because of you and all the rest, I would up in a grave

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 20 October 2017]

1984's Rocktober Blood starts with Billy "Eye" Harper singing "I'm Back" while his girlfriend and backup singer Lynn Starling watches. Billy tells her off, telling her he's going out on a date with someone else. Before he leaves, he tells her he wrote the song "Rainbow Eyes" for her. Everyone in the band leaves except Lynn, who tries to record some of her own tracks before turning down the recording engineer's come on and going to the jacuzzi upstairs alone.

Billy returns, only to kill the engineer while he's playing pinball by slicing his throat. Then, he impales the engineer's assistant (he must have hated the mix) before smoking some drugs in a metal one hitter while looking like Larry Sweeney. Lynn has no clue any of this has transpired, but she soon finds out that he's killed both of them. Billy wants to make sure his message is coming through as he begins laughing like a villain. Lynn discovers the assistant's body as Billy continues to laugh and menaces her with a knife, demanding that she sing. A passing security guard saves her life and we cut to two years later and the Rocktober Blood Release party.

Billy was captured, tried and executed while Lynn and the remaining band members changed their name to Headmistress. VJ Rick Righteous stops by, does some coke and interviews Lynn about Billy's murder spree and having to finger Billy, which led to his conviction.

Then, while the bands are playing and everyone is dancing and getting their faces painted and smoking cigarettes and break dancing, a mysterious figure appears and tells Lynn she needs to meet with her manager. It's all a ruse, because it's Billy — back from the grave, just like he said he would be. Lynn is left crying in the corner, emotionally decimated by whatever Billy said to her.

I really have to note that there is way too much break dancing for a heavy metal movie. In my experience, these worlds never played well together.

Lynn goes away to a cabin, but Billy's music follows her everywhere she runs, so she tries to aerobic exorcise Billy away. There are more girls sweating in this scene than a Bruce Seven video. The phone keeps ringing, leading to an insane prank phone call (sampled on Acid Witch's "Midnite Movies" EP) that has the caller begging for "hot steaming pussy blood all over my face." The phone just keeps ringing and ringing, even when its off the hook, but look out! Billy's in the house!

Read more at http://bit.ly/2innLVH

Wait for the end

[Groverdox · 6/10 · 25 May 2019]

The movie opens with a typically awful, generic pop-metal type band in the studio. They finish their session and one of the band members rudely dismisses a young woman in favour of some other girl he plans to meet. You almost don't blame him, though: judging by her hair and attire, I thought she was a boy at first.

Predictably, one of the band guys gets his throat slit in a pretty lame scene, while another girl, whose lack of nudity is a waste, gets hung up on the wall like a side of beef. Less predictably, the boyish girl gets naked in a hot tub while the murders happen.

Slashers always begin with murders, and obviously this one is no exception. But the movie then reveals the killer's identity to be that of the a-hole musician from before. The girl he rebuffed comes onto him, realises what he's done, and is then menaced by him with a knife, slicing at her clothes. He is apparently just as interested in her sexually as he is in the colour of her blood.

They are surprised by a policeman, or a night watchman, or some such person - why would they be in a recording studio? - they don't have a gun, so the killer chases them out of the room, laughing.

Cue opening credit sequence.

As far as first scenes in slasher movies go, this one was pretty lame, though at least it was stupid in a funny way. And it had nudity.

We then see a man on a small stage wearing a monster mask doing mime and breakdancing, while the host does a little cocaine out in the open, and introduces a party that's going to happen at the venue - which will be named Rocktober Blood.

What's the bet the cokehead gets sliced and diced? No one does drugs and survives a horror movie.

He does an interview with a young lady - possibly the mannish one from before, now looking more feminine - and name drops "Billy Eye", apparently the killer from the opening scene, who is described as having killed twenty five fellow band members and been executed following the mannish girl's "fingering" of him. Funny we only saw him kill two people. Twenty-five? How big was this guy's band, anyway?

The cokehead's name is "Rick Righteous", and he works for "MVTV", a analogue of MTV so closely named I thought he actually said "MTV" the first time.

The man-girl wanders off and is frightened by a man in a mask. He takes his mask off and reveals that yes, he is the killer from before, who had supposedly been executed. The girl tells another guy who looks like a cross between Fabio and Taylor Negron about this, but he doesn't believe her.

I was starting to think that the whole movie would be set in the venue the Rocktober Blood thing is happening in, which apparently has the requisite isolated corridors for the slasher to do his thing, but the movie cuts to the next day, with the mannish girl in the great outdoors. I'm going to start calling her the protagonist now, because that's apparently what she is.

SHe is menaced by a voice telling her "he's coming to get you" and runs away, into the woods, coming across two aerobics girls who are exercising to the same awful pop-metal the movie has made us listen to twice already.

The protagonist is in gym clothes too - though she didn't seem to be before - and knows the other aerobics girls. She tells them she saw Billy Eye, but of course they don't believe her.

The protag and her aerobics-oriented buddies live in a house on the lake. The killer is shown, from the knees down, walking around the property. One of the friends gets killed when she is pulled into a hottub.

The protagonist disrobes again, showing us breasts and butt.

The killer finally makes an appearance, without a mask, but wearing distinctive, harlequin-like makeup. A lengthy and tedious scene of cat-and-mouse ensues as he chases one of the girls around.

We go back to the venue from before, where the protagonist is setting up for what I assume is going to be a performance by an awful generic '80s pop metal band... and I have the horrible feeling the movie might make us sit through it.

The Taylor Negron/Fabio guy has an English accent. The protagonist fails to convince him that Billy Eye has risen from the grave. She goes to the cemetery where he's buried: "There's nobody in that grave. He's gotten away somehow."

They dig him up and find a skeleton. His eyes are still apparently intact, though.

Phew! So now she can relax and get back to the coming party. You'd think the sight of decomposing skeleton would actually disturb her even worse, but nevermind.

But of course we know he's not really dead and buried, as the movie reminds us with the lamest kill scene yet: Billy Eye attacks a woman while she's doing her ironing, pressing the iron to her throat, which makes blood flow as though it's sharp, or something?

The movie attempts a truly lame revelation about the identity of the killer, which at least explains why there's a skeleton in the coffin. It totally comes out of nowhere with no foreshadowing at all, so it's not accurate to call it a "twist".

He's waiting for "Rocktober Blood" as well.

Finally that starts, and you know what? The music isn't as bad as I expected. Neither is the climactic concert scene, which features a pretty decent looking decapitation scene on stage, under the cover of shock rock.

The ending comes out of nowhere and doesn't really end anything. It's just over, you find yourself watching the credits roll. Whatever. I thought the climactic scene kind of redeemed what was an unspeakably lame lead-up.

laughing makes the killer and the viewer happier

[swykk · 13 May 2001]

Man,oh man did we (a friend and I) strike gold with this piece of cinematic treasure! A plot analysis (lol): Billy the rockstar decides making bad metal songs aren't enough so he kills off most of his friends, save his girlfriend who manages to escape (something I am glad I did not try to do from this film). She gets poor Billy executed for the crime and starts over.. as the new front woman of his terrible band! Of course, Billy boy returns from beyond the grave to kill again and laugh a bunch of times in a very ridiculous manner. Is there more to this than meets the eye? I don't remember-I was laughing to hard. This is definitely a movie you need to take a few alcoholic beverages in with a few friends before hand to fully enjoy, but make no mistake about it, enjoy it you will!!!

"Just play I'm Back"!

[dworldeater · 6/10 · 7 March 2023]

Rocktober Blood is my personal favorite of the wave of Hard Rock/Heavy Metal slasher movies out of the 1980's. A heavy metal singer Billy Eye goes mad in the studio and starts killing people. He gets sentenced to death and the band plays on. However, somehow dude is not dead and comes back for one final gig and for revenge. The best thing about the film is the soundtrack with excellent head banging tunes performed by the band Sorcery. The songs played in the movie "I'm Back", "A Killer On The Loose" and "Rainbow Eyes"are actually great heavy metal songs to party hard to and raise your fist and yell! The movie is rather typical slasher fare that slows down and gets boring until the band goes back on the stage. Is Rocktober Blood a good movie? Not really, it's extremely cheesy and the acting is really bad. This was clearly made on the cheap with some blood and boobies to boot. Billy Eye is a hilarious villain and is played with campy glee. Rocktober Blood is low budget trash, but I enjoyed it the best of the few 80's metal horror that were released in the cheesiest decade of all time. A guilty pleasure for sure. I could have done without the update of what the people who made this have been up to for the last 25 years. I wasted 20 minutes of my life hearing about Jesus and greyhounds. Oh, and did I mention Jesus?

A must see for fans of the dead rock star genre

[batstandards · 23 October 2002]

I found this movie by accident when I was trying to remember the name of the movie Trick Or Treat. I decided to check it out because it had a similar premise: Rock star dies and returns to seek revenge. Although it is nowhere near as good as Trick Or Treat (an overlooked masterpiece of the 80s), it is still quite funny and entertaining. (Spoilers ahead) You will no doubt notice that Billy Eye's girl does not have a scar where she was stabbed 2 years earlier. And the scene at the end where he appears to throw one of the dancer's heads in the audience could just be a wig. All the previous posts were correct in noting that the end is the best part of the movie. There is an interesting similarity between this scene and the scene in Trick or Treat where Sammi Curr appears on stage at his old High School during the dance. In both cases the crowd is surprised and pleased that the Dead Rock Star has come back to perform. Both rockers deliver "deadly" performances. Billy Eye is determined to put on a good show and he insists on hitting the last high note of the song even after being struck with an electric guitar.