|
DREAM SLAYER (1982)
aka BLOOD SONG
Directed by Alan J. Levi
HQV VHS
Reviewed 06.15.06
Review by Joseph A. Ziemba
THE FILM
Mr. Frankie Avalon, don't listen
to those whining baby boomers. Trading
in your swim trunk short-shorts
for a flute and hatchet set was
the best decision you ever made.
Don't dis the flute! Director Alan
J. Levi made one feature film during
his nearly forty year career in
television (The Incredible Hulk,
Miami Vice, ER,
the list goes on). Be thankful for
that sole departure. Dream Slayer
(video re-title) aka Blood Song
(theatrical title) pits a sickie
Frankie Avalon and his cherished
wooden flute against a teenage girl
with a metal leg brace. I can't
figure out exactly why it all happens,
but that's not the point. 'Cause
whenever somebody says "Stop
it with the damn flute!" or
"You're not supposed to be
playin' that damn flute!",
Frankie kills them. Stuff THAT in
your wild bikini.
Portland, Oregon, 1955. Young Frankie
witnesses the gory slaying of his
Mother and her lover at the hands
of his Father. Dad eats a bullet.
Frankie plays his flute. Stanford
Bay, Oregon, 1982. A mental ward
escape leaves a trail of dead orderlies.
Frankie plays his flute. Marion
(Donna Wilkes from Hello, Larry!)
is a teenager with leg problems,
an abusive drunk father, and an
"experienced" boyfriend
("Wanna go to Porker Flats?").
When Marion sleeps, she sees visions.
Negative-film visions. She shares
a psychic link with Frankie, enabling
her to hone in on his various gory
killings while they happen. A skinny
Sheriff (blasphemy!) avoids work,
sleeps, and sports a killer toupee.
It all winds up at a sawmill, but
no one gets cut in half. Bullcrap.
While picking out visual rips of
several trailblazing slashers, you
might find yourself surprised. Despite
the connecting plot threads that
never connect and a glutted final
act, Dream Slayer composes
a sinister jumble of gloom, laughs,
and genuine scares (and that includes
the "Beat The Baloney"
t-shirt cameo). The Autumn setting
helps. Avalon's performance finishes
the job. He lets it all go and never
stops to think about the consequences.
That unleashed attitude propels
a slasher that would fall flat in
the guise of an average schlub (Re:Final
Exam). Levi's sharp direction
gets the job done, but he can't
resist the TV pull; sappy library
cues break up the thick synths just
when we need 'em the most. The uncomfortable
scenes of Marion's homelife dip
into the After School Special neighborhood,
but that's A-OK in my book. What's
an early 80s slasher without a little
angst?
To this day, Frankie Avalon has
only appeared in one feature film
since Dream Slayer (Back
To The Beach, 1987). Talk about
going out with a bang.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
Is this a joke? Stickers line this
ex-rental tape, but my eyebrows
are still raised. Haphazard ghosting,
doubled images, completely washed
out colors, and rainbow dubbing
lines after a cut towards the end.
This has to be a copy of a copy
of another tape. The lack of an
FBI Warning screen clinches it.
EXTRAS
Sometimes the flute is powered by
a plastic keyboard. Other times,
it sounds like a recorder. It never
sounds like a real flute.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Frankie makes it work. Dream
Slayer won't toot your heartstrings
for keeps, but it will satisfy your
odd slasher yearnings. "Venus"?
Never heard of it. |
Oh Veeeeenus
Flute rock
Sniffin'
She knocked the flute
|
