Trick or Treat (Resurrected Horror Musical)

 

After a long gestation period and serious time spent in Rights Hell, Charles Martin Smith’s Trick or Treat is finally getting a new US release compliments of our buddies at Synapse Films. In an unprecedented move by Synapse, the company has chosen to “leak” their new transfer a full year ahead of release date via the Screambox streaming service. Is it worth all the headache? Put on your studded bracelets and find out. Eddie Weinbauer (Marc Price a.k.a. Skippy from Family Ties) is your prototypical headbanger – dorky, neurotic, spoiled, whiny and in a weird way charming. In the wake of the passing of his hero Sammi Curr (Solid Gold dancer Tony Fields in his only starring role before succumbing to the AIDS virus), Weinbauer receives a rare acetate featuring Sammi’s final album from Gene Simmons. Nonetheless, strange things start happening and Weinbauer has to deal with the fact that rock n’ roll never forgets.

   

Trick or Treat is a lot of fun from beginning to end, especially when Sammi crashes the Halloween Dance and starts shooting deadly lasers out of his Stratocaster. This stuff is hella-goofy and I can’t think for a second that anyone intended this movie to be taken seriously. The FX are pretty good save for the obvious paper mache cunnilingus monster in the backseat seduction scene. In short, if you’re prepared to have a good time with a movie this one will meet you halfway. As far as Synapse’s transfer is concerned, it’s a damn sight better than both the Platinum Productions DVD and the wretched Karl-Lorimar Home Video VHS. Cinematography in the 1980s was predominantly blue for some reason, and this new transfer kicks those fall colors out with a vengeance. The sound is also much improved, letting those Fastway songs truly rip (My favorite is “Tear Down The Walls.”) All in all, a superb effort by Don and Jerry at Synapse. You may have a full year to go to wait for the obligatory jam-packed special edition, but if you feel like Tricking and Treating, this gift to the fans should definitely tide you over until that day. Enjoy yourself and rock out.

 

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Written by David, Comptroller of Your Last Scrap of Existence

Trick or Treat (2024 on Blu-ray)
Director: Charles Martin Smith
Distributor: Synapse Films
4.4 / 5