In all honesty I actually enjoyed this film.
Despite the campy 80s horror nature of the thing I think it was acted out really well, and as laughable as some of the effects were it was fun and not the worst way to pass an hour and a half.
It was kind of like Goosebumps for adults and that's fine in my book, I'd happily watch it again.
However the biggest riddle of the film presents itself before a single scene of the movie has been played.
Right at the start a message flashes up on the screen saying it is 'based on real life events' or words to that effect.
Having watched it I was perplexed. To give a VERY high level overview, the story follows a budding horror effects artist who is bullied by a few older kids (a jock, a fat kid and a stoner... hitting all the tropes!) He unwittingly summons a demon to do his bidding and ends up bearing the brunt of the consequences.
So I wondered... Was it based on a murderer that blamed the paranormal for making him do it?
Was it based on the wild claims of some poor soul troubled by a demon?
Well no, after some research I finally found the answer in an interview with director Todd Tucker; it was based on his childhood, or rather the first 30 minutes was.
Basically he got bullied when he was a child. Everything supernatural that followed was pure fantasy.
Surely you can't brand something 'based on real life events' in this circumstance?
That's like claiming Jurassic Park is based on real life events because there is an archeological dig going on in Montana, or that Harry Potter is based on real life events because somewhere in the world an adopted child went to a zoo with his aunt, uncle and cousin, and looked at some snakes.
It's ridiculous.
The film didn't even need it.
I would recommend you watch this as it is a little bit of fun, it's just a shame the director decided to try and deceive people for no apparent reason.
Despite the campy 80s horror nature of the thing I think it was acted out really well, and as laughable as some of the effects were it was fun and not the worst way to pass an hour and a half.
It was kind of like Goosebumps for adults and that's fine in my book, I'd happily watch it again.
However the biggest riddle of the film presents itself before a single scene of the movie has been played.
Right at the start a message flashes up on the screen saying it is 'based on real life events' or words to that effect.
Having watched it I was perplexed. To give a VERY high level overview, the story follows a budding horror effects artist who is bullied by a few older kids (a jock, a fat kid and a stoner... hitting all the tropes!) He unwittingly summons a demon to do his bidding and ends up bearing the brunt of the consequences.
So I wondered... Was it based on a murderer that blamed the paranormal for making him do it?
Was it based on the wild claims of some poor soul troubled by a demon?
Well no, after some research I finally found the answer in an interview with director Todd Tucker; it was based on his childhood, or rather the first 30 minutes was.
Basically he got bullied when he was a child. Everything supernatural that followed was pure fantasy.
Surely you can't brand something 'based on real life events' in this circumstance?
That's like claiming Jurassic Park is based on real life events because there is an archeological dig going on in Montana, or that Harry Potter is based on real life events because somewhere in the world an adopted child went to a zoo with his aunt, uncle and cousin, and looked at some snakes.
It's ridiculous.
The film didn't even need it.
I would recommend you watch this as it is a little bit of fun, it's just a shame the director decided to try and deceive people for no apparent reason.