Trick or Treat (1986)*

 There are times where I regret deciding to watch a film during a weeknight instead of the weekend. I don't know, this is a flick I wanted to discover late Friday night after a few hours of 80s rock revisit. I get that this is to some a Halloween or October staple, but I could dig this during the summers, too. That 2020 is the first time I'm just now seeing this is an absolute travesty. I will say that Trick or Treat (1986) is an example of a very imperfect film that has batshit crazy plotting I thoroughly and unashamedly enjoy. If I were to use "guilty pleasure"--which I don't really apply to films--for a film, "Trick or Treat" wins that prize. This film will undoubtedly speak to people. Maybe no one of today's generation. But if you were a bullied kid in the 80s and 90s (or 70s) particularly, "Trick or Treat" will hold serious value. There is a certain type of cruelty you can experience as a youth in school without deserving it. The character of Eddie Weinbauer (Mark Price) does nothing to warrant the detestable treatment from Tim Hainey (Doug Savant) and his gang of jocks. Eddie likes heavy metal and hard rock, and the various posters on his walls (Anthrax, Motley Crue, Ozzy, etc.) depict that quite specifically. Charles Martin Smith directed this film. The scientist for the government out to nab Jeff Bridges' alien in "Starman" 1984) directed "Trick or Treat". Price, the nerd from "Family Ties", is a "hair metal misfit" in high school with basically one friend, Roger Mockus (Glen Morgan, an X-Files alum). Eddie longs for pretty Leslie Graham (Lisa Orgolini), a popular girl in school who is actually nice and understanding, even though she's friends with the bullies more or less...even though, thankfully, by film's end, she's firmly by Eddie's side as he must vanquish the undead rocker, Sammi (Tony Fields), returning from the grave (killed in a hotel fire) after his heavy-acetate record is played backwards, the "song" resurrecting him. Gene Simmons of KISS is really great on screen...he has a load of charisma and just seems so comfortable as a rock station DJ providing Eddie with the final record of Sammi Curr. Simmons' DJ Nuke tries to bring Eddie down to earth to have him realize that Sammi was just a man, no god, and had his share of issues. But Eddie will need to see it for himself. That Sammi gains his power from electricity is played to the hilt by Smith and his team. 

But this film, to me, is more than just some cheesy supernatural metal horror oddity. There is actually meat on the bone. I truly felt something more than some token nostalgic heart tug because of the music of my youth. I want to explore this further, but, much like "Fright Night Part II" (1988) not long ago, I don't think a random Tuesday night is enough. I need further time to sort out my feelings on "Trick or Treat".

***So I think I will go more in depth after watching it again Friday night***