Director: David Schmoeller
Year: 1979
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Slasher
Plot:
Heading out on a trip together, a group of friends taking a vacation through the countryside get stranded at a former roadside wax museum where the proprietor warns them about a masked maniac lives that begins picking them off one-by-one and turning them into the wax-coated mannequin displays.
Review:
This was an exceptionally fun and enjoyable entry. One of the better features here is the absolutely creepy and chilling atmosphere that's present throughout the film. The idea of the wax dolls and mannequins littering the grounds of the museum as well as the remote house on it's grounds is perfectly creepy on it's own, yet the idea is given excessive marks over the film by focusing on the concept of them potentially being alive. The way they continually stare at nothing, their blank expressions and the creepy whispering done during their scenes offers a wholly mystical quality that's appreciated by the overwhelmingly creepy atmosphere and ambience afforded to the film.
As well, this one also manages to feature a wholly amazing amount of action which is quite fun. The opening attack where the loner trapped in the store is assaulted by a series of telekinetically-controlled mannequins that crash through walls and doors or have different objects hurled at him without anything touching them starts this off on a great note, while the later attack in the house where the second victim is telekinetically attacked by objects in a living room gives this a creepy tone with the dolls around the room and the masked killer in the middle of the action. A mannequin ambush on a trespasser is also highly creepy and chilling, and the scenes of the mumbling killer preparing for the deranged waxing ceremony are rather dark and morbid.
As well, the other big enjoyable element is the thrilling finale which really packs in plenty of action. With several foot-chases through the wildness outside the house, the escape attempt that's halted by the dolls inside the museum and the truly chilling ceremony held in the attic where it utilizes the mannequins lined up and on being manipulated into tormenting the last victim, this is a wholly enjoyable set of action scenes that offer up a lot of creepy moments. Likewise, with the revelations that were played out and settled in here as well as the creepy battle with the killer, settle this one incredibly well and give this one a lot to like to hold over it's negative aspects.
The one main issue that really holds this one back is the decidedly slowed-down pace that accompanies this one once they uncover the truth about the museum owner. Since he captures the group early on, the opportunity for a series of fine stalking scenes out in the middle of the creepy dolls is lost due to this being kept out in favor of monologue sequences with the masked killer informing his victims about what he's going to do to them, and while they're wholly enjoyable the pace is dragged down to a crawl as a result. The other minor issue to be had here is the silliness of the characters' powers which is so hamfisted into the story it really didn't need to be included in the film to score nicely and just feels tacked on here. Otherwise, there's not much to dislike here.
Overview: **** 1/2/5
A wholly enjoyable and entertaining effort, the few issues that crop up here aren't anywhere close to knocking down the fact that this underrated creepy effort works incredibly well. Give this a shot if you've missed it before or are generally a fan of the slasher style, while there isn't a whole lot out there that won't enjoy this one overall.
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