Title: 976-EVIL (1988)
Director: Robert Englund
Cast: Stephen Geoffreys, Patrick O’Bryan, Sandy Dennis, Robert Picardo
Review:
So 976-EVIL is a film known primarily for two things: it stars Stephen Geoffreys (‘Evil’ from Fright Night (1985)) and it was directed by Robert Englund. Now, Robert Englund is of course best known for playing Freddy Krueger on the A Nightmare on Elm Street series of films, but he’s also been known to direct a couple of horror films. So far, his repertoire includes a horror film called Killer Pad (2008) about a house that has a portal into hell in it’s basement, a couple of episodes of the Freddy’s Nightmare’s television series and the film I’ll be reviewing today: 976-EVIL. How was this, his first directorial effort?
On this film we meet a nerdy highschool student called Hoax (Stephen Geoffreys) and his cool James Dean type cousin Spike. Spike is kind of ashamed to have Hoax as his cousin because Hoax is such a super nerd, but on the other hand Hoax worships Spike and wishes he could be more like him. One day while reading a magazine, Spike stumbles upon an advertisement for a phone service that gives you your “horrorscope” for the day. Out of curiosity and boredom Spike calls and gets advice from the telephone service, but he quickly gets freaked out by it and quits calling. Unfortunately, Hoax gets hooked with the service and starts calling regularly. It isn’t long before Hoax is doing everything that the horrorscope tells him to do. What evil powers lay behind this telephone service?
Stephen Geoffreys gets Satanic!
Well, I gotta say, this isn’t a bad little horror movie for a first time effort from Mr. Englund. This is the kind of film in which the nerdy teenager who gets beat up and harassed by everybody suddenly gets revenge on all those who wronged him; not unlike Evil Speak (1981), Trick or Treat (1986) or Fear No Evil (1981) all of which have nerdy teenagers avenging themselves through Satanic powers. All of these movies are basically the same film, the teenager gets harassed by bullies in the first half, and on the second half the nerdy dude gets help from Satan and avenges himself. All the bullies get what was coming to them in various gruesome ways. Of course, it’s the little things that make them different. On Evil Speak, the main character connects with Satan through his computer, on Fear No Evil, the nerdy guy ends up being the antichrist, on Trick or Treat heavy metal music connects nerds with Satan and on 976-EVIL Hoax connects with Satan through the telephone service.
You mess with the bull you get the horns!
I liked a couple of things about this movie, for example, the angle about the mother being ultra religious and treating Hoax as if he was still a child. The mother played by Sandy Dennis is depicted as a religious fanatic who watches t.v. evangelists all the time and has paintings and statues of Jesus spread out through out the entire house. She was by far the most animated character in the film, very entertaining, she’s kind of a living cartoon of an over protective/religious fanatic mother. Stephen Geoffreys as Hoax is another plus for the film, he plays Hoax as a sexually repressed young man, who has to resort to watching pictures of naked African women from National Geographic magazine to satiate his sexual curiosities; he also ends up being a peeping tom, spying on his cousin as he’s having sex with his girlfriend. He’s kind of mousy and harmless, trying to break out of his shell. Another bonus on this film is Kevin Yagher’s make up effects for Hoax’s possessed visage. We get a couple of gory moments, Hoax showing signs of possession are very subtle at first and they grow and grow as the film progresses until by the end Hoax looks full blown demonic.
There’s these little inside jokes spread through out the whole movie. Since the movie is based on the premise that this phone service gives whoever hears it satanic powers, everything in the film is Satan related. The coffee shop is called “Dante” (as in Dante’s Inferno) the movie theater is called Diablo (Spanish world for Devil) one scene has a character about to eat a t.v dinner and the box reads “Devil Twins”. The local theater is apparently run by a group of teenagers (!!??) who have the projection room filled with posters from old horror movies like Maniac (1980) and even Fright Night (1985). In order to get your horrroscope for the day, you have to press “666” and so the Satanic inuendoes continue all through out the film, keep an eye out for them.
There’s a lot of silliness in this movie, but I guess that’s to be expected in a film from the 80’s, on top of that, were talking about a film whose premise is a Satanic powered horoscope phone service? On this film, telephone booths blow up without explanation! Guys get their hands chopped off and the best thing they can think of doing is using toilet paper from a public bathroom to cover the wound! Another guy gets his face sliced and he can think of nothing better than going to play poker with his buddies afterward! The local movie theater is run by a group of poker playing highschool teenagers! Fish fall from the sky and no one thinks nothing of it! But what the hell, 976-EVIL manages to be entertaining anyways in spite of all its flaws, and that’s what really matters in the end.
Rating: 3 out of 5
5 comments:
I haven't seen this one, but I have seen part 2. And it's shit.
I forgot to mention the shitty sequel that followed this one. 976-EVIL 2 is kind of the same as THE GATE II, sequels that dont even matter, and shouldnt even exist.
its a ok movie no big deal, it gets boring the first 40 minutes tho.
The film actually has a pretty explosive opening sequence, then were introduced to the characters, and the bullies that mess with Hoax.
I guess it pretty much follows the formula every movie goes through, introduction of the characters, establishing premise...I personally didnt find it boring at all. The characters were pretty entertaining, in my opinion anyways.
Of course it aint a masterpiece, it has some glitches here and there, which is why I gave it a 3.
I remmber i seen shis movie back in 1991
Post a Comment