THE PLOT THUS FAR
A man conjures up a gigantic vengeance demon called Pumpkinhead to destroy the teenagers who accidentally killed his son.
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“Pumpkinhead” is about a father’s desire to resurrect his child. A couple of stupid teens accidentally killed his son, so he turns to a Backwoods witch for help to bring him back. The witch connects the man to a spirit of vengeance dubbed Pumpkinhead. From there, the man slowly starts to feel himself becoming the Pumpkinhead, as teen after teen dies. The story is simplistic, but it’s mainly a setup for Winston’s stellar FX work to shine.
Lance Henriksen is an insanely amazing lead in this film. Outside of this movie and “Millennium”, I’m surprised he didn’t get to take over projects more. Henriksen makes you believe in his quest for revenge, even as he sacrifices his body and soul to make sure that justice is served. The teens are pretty forgettable, but I recognize the one lady from the homoerotic Nightmare on Elm Street outing. If you’re wanting to have a horror double feature for the upcoming Halloween season, I’d recommend pairing this movie with “Pet Sematary”. Both films are about parents that abuse the supernatural to cheat death to have more time with their kids. The results are as expected with mayhem and gore around every corner. As a new parent, these are the kinds of horror movies that are starting to freak me out anymore. Oh well, time to start collecting more silver dollars for rural witches.
The Blu-Ray comes with a tribute to Stan Winston, featurettes, trailers, commentary, news interviews and other goodies as the special features. The A/V Quality is a revelation. I’ve never seen the movie looks this crisp in 1080p HD. Plus, the DTS-HD 2.0 master track is right for the era. I’d recommend a purchase to all fans of 80s horror.
RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW!