Another mini-blog...
My library has been remarkably efficient in getting me horror and monster movies, so I’ve been watching a lot of horror and monster movies. Many of these movies were requested on a whim, some because I had never seen them, some because I had seen them but wanted to see them again.
Pumpkinhead (1988) was one I’d never seen. Here’s the quick summary of the film from the Internet Movie Database:
A man conjures up a gigantic vengeance demon called Pumpkinhead to destroy the teenagers who accidentally killed his son.
Lance Henriksen is the grief-mad father. The movie was directed by Stan Winston, known for his amazing special effects work on scores of movies. The film was based on a poem by Ed Justin and this seems to be his only movie credit. The story is credited to Mark Patrick Carducci, Winston and Richard Weinman. The screenplay is credited to Carducci and Gary Gerani.
Ed Harley [Henriksen] is a widower, raising his son in the kind of backwater country that usually involves cannibals and chainsaws. As a child, he witnessed Pumpkinhead slaughter someone who had done wrong, moments after his dad had turned away that doomed someone. Harley dotes on his bespectacled son. He’s honestly thrilled when the lad gives him a homemade necklace with a small Pumpkinhead figure. Even though Harley knows Pumpkinhead is real.
Harley and son have a store in the nowhere that is this neck of the woods. It’s clear they are barely getting by. On that fateful day, their customers include a group of young people. Two of the young men are dirt-bikers. One is a totally shitbag.
Harley has to leave the store. He tells his son and his son’s dog to stay inside the store. The dog, hearing the dirt-bikes, charges from the store. The son follows him and is struck by the shitbag’s bike. It was an accident, but what follows isn’t.
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
The shitbag bullies everyone except his brother into leaving, then prevents the others from calling for help from the cabin where they are saying. Harley returns in time to hear his son’s last word and last breath. His face is a mask of grief and hatred.
Harley goes to an old witch. She makes him dig up the rotted corpse of Pumpkinhead. She restores the monster to life using bloods from Harley and her son. This links Harley to the monster. He can feel Pumpkinhead slaughter the teens one by one.
Harley comes to his senses, but nothing can stop Pumpkinhead. The link between monster and man grows stronger with each kill. Indeed, Harley starts to resemble Pumpkinhead and vice versa. Realizing his death is the only thing that can stop the monster, Harley tries to shoot himself. It’s not enough and it takes the sole survivor, an innocent young woman, to finish the job.
Pumpkinhead bursts into flames and vanishes. The last scene of the movie shows the witch burying the charred remains of Harley, still wearing that homemade necklace. It’s a terrific ending.
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
Pumpkinhead has achieved cult status and I can see why. It’s a neat little shocker with a performance by Henriksen that lifts it above most “B” movies. The actor was so committed to his performance that he supplied most of his character’s props and such. His Ed Harley is a good man whose grief leads him to do a terrible thing.
Pumpkinhead has spawned three sequels and Wikipedia says there are plans to reboot the series. I’ve requested the first sequel from my library and will watch/review it when it arrives.
Dark Horse launched a four-issue mini-series sequel to the movie, but canceled the title after only two issues. If the publisher ever wants to give Pumpkinhead another chance, I would certainly relish the challenge of trying to bring the eerie qualities of the series to the comic-book format.
Pumpkinhead gets my recommendation. It’s such a great movie that, if there weren’t two other library patrons waiting for it, I would watch it a second time.
I’ll be back soon with more stuff.
© 2015 Tony Isabella
My library has been remarkably efficient in getting me horror and monster movies, so I’ve been watching a lot of horror and monster movies. Many of these movies were requested on a whim, some because I had never seen them, some because I had seen them but wanted to see them again.
Pumpkinhead (1988) was one I’d never seen. Here’s the quick summary of the film from the Internet Movie Database:
A man conjures up a gigantic vengeance demon called Pumpkinhead to destroy the teenagers who accidentally killed his son.
Lance Henriksen is the grief-mad father. The movie was directed by Stan Winston, known for his amazing special effects work on scores of movies. The film was based on a poem by Ed Justin and this seems to be his only movie credit. The story is credited to Mark Patrick Carducci, Winston and Richard Weinman. The screenplay is credited to Carducci and Gary Gerani.
Ed Harley [Henriksen] is a widower, raising his son in the kind of backwater country that usually involves cannibals and chainsaws. As a child, he witnessed Pumpkinhead slaughter someone who had done wrong, moments after his dad had turned away that doomed someone. Harley dotes on his bespectacled son. He’s honestly thrilled when the lad gives him a homemade necklace with a small Pumpkinhead figure. Even though Harley knows Pumpkinhead is real.
Harley and son have a store in the nowhere that is this neck of the woods. It’s clear they are barely getting by. On that fateful day, their customers include a group of young people. Two of the young men are dirt-bikers. One is a totally shitbag.
Harley has to leave the store. He tells his son and his son’s dog to stay inside the store. The dog, hearing the dirt-bikes, charges from the store. The son follows him and is struck by the shitbag’s bike. It was an accident, but what follows isn’t.
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
The shitbag bullies everyone except his brother into leaving, then prevents the others from calling for help from the cabin where they are saying. Harley returns in time to hear his son’s last word and last breath. His face is a mask of grief and hatred.
Harley goes to an old witch. She makes him dig up the rotted corpse of Pumpkinhead. She restores the monster to life using bloods from Harley and her son. This links Harley to the monster. He can feel Pumpkinhead slaughter the teens one by one.
Harley comes to his senses, but nothing can stop Pumpkinhead. The link between monster and man grows stronger with each kill. Indeed, Harley starts to resemble Pumpkinhead and vice versa. Realizing his death is the only thing that can stop the monster, Harley tries to shoot himself. It’s not enough and it takes the sole survivor, an innocent young woman, to finish the job.
Pumpkinhead bursts into flames and vanishes. The last scene of the movie shows the witch burying the charred remains of Harley, still wearing that homemade necklace. It’s a terrific ending.
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
Pumpkinhead has achieved cult status and I can see why. It’s a neat little shocker with a performance by Henriksen that lifts it above most “B” movies. The actor was so committed to his performance that he supplied most of his character’s props and such. His Ed Harley is a good man whose grief leads him to do a terrible thing.
Pumpkinhead has spawned three sequels and Wikipedia says there are plans to reboot the series. I’ve requested the first sequel from my library and will watch/review it when it arrives.
Dark Horse launched a four-issue mini-series sequel to the movie, but canceled the title after only two issues. If the publisher ever wants to give Pumpkinhead another chance, I would certainly relish the challenge of trying to bring the eerie qualities of the series to the comic-book format.
Pumpkinhead gets my recommendation. It’s such a great movie that, if there weren’t two other library patrons waiting for it, I would watch it a second time.
I’ll be back soon with more stuff.
© 2015 Tony Isabella
I saw this on VHS years ago and remember enjoying it. It has become, if not a cult classic, at least a film that horror fans seem to agree is one to recommend to newbies. I don't think I ever saw any of the sequels, but if they were at least half as good as this one they may be worth seeking.
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