(1981)
Dir - Herb Freed
Overall: MEH
1981, the year of the slasher continues with Graduation Day; another holiday offering that is even more forgettable than most. Co-writer/director Herb Freed had a small handful of lackluster genre cheapies under his belt by the time that he jumped on the bandwagon here, churning out a high school gore flick that hits all of the required beats while elevating none of them. A beloved track and field hopeful dies of a spontaneous cardiac embolism, prompting her older, military sister to return for what would have been her sibling's graduation day and thus setting up the red herring murderer, the actual one of which ends up being revealed in a more lackluster fashion. A beheading and impaling here or there yes, but none of the kill scenes go for gross-out gasps, plus the acting is of the usual borderline amateur quality for better or worse. Still, the main issue is the movie's middle of the road aesthetic; it is neither bad enough to be hilarious nor good enough to differentiate itself from other slasher garbage that is both far worse and far better. A pre-Wheel of Fortune Vanna White makes an appearance though, as does Linnea Quigley's, (of course), naked boobs.
(1985)
Dir - Rod Daniel
Overall: MEH
"Cutesy" and "harmless" are hardly words that are universally associated with werewolf movies, making the hit Michael J. Fox-vehicle Teen Wolf something of a daft hybrid. Lycanthropian puberty metaphors had already been done as far back as American International Pictures' I Was a Teenage Werewolf from three decades prior, but the approach here takes out all of the bite and leaves all of the camp. The quality or lack-thereof is understandable considering that co-writer Jeph Loeb, (turning in his first filmed screenplay), was hired to put something together to be made quickly and on the cheap. Determined not to offend anyone, (except gay people of course since the word "fag" is utilized as an insult, as was the 1980s teen comedy norm), it puts Fox in wolfman makeup, gives him a gentle and understanding father who is also a werewolf, and follows all of the coming-of-age, high school movie tropes of a bullied nerd reaching their true potential. Endless montages set to up-tempo pop music help supply the silly datedness and though it is dopey to a fault and about as original as a can of Mr. Pibb, it gets by to a point on its nostalgia appeal and Fox's effortlessly charming performance.
(1988)
Dir - Rowdy Herrington
Overall: GOODThe debut Jack's Back from writer/director Rowdy Herrington plays with the murder thriller mystery framework to a convoluted extent, yet that and James Spader's dark, charismatic performance are what makes it an interesting if flawed watch. Going against type, Spader is in fact not an unnerving creep here, instead playing a set of identical twin brothers, (that ole gag), with singular personalities from one another. While Spader spends the majority of the movie as the one with the crooked past, neither sibling is out for diabolic gain and the actor excels as a cold yet determined anti-hero of sorts. Contemporizing the Jack the Ripper legend with a copycat killer on the loose, such a narrative hook is quickly abandoned and merely provides the groundwork for Spader to simultaneously clear his name and by doing so, avenge his brother's murderer. There are enough surprises to Herrington's script to keep the pacing up and the viewer on edge, yet the final act is clunky and oversteps its bounds, going for one more elongated suspense showcase and rug pull than is necessary. Still, the movie's ambition, (be it sloppy ambition), is admirable and the loose ends are just hand-tightened enough to hold the whole thing together.
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