Trick or Treats (1982)

 Some films seemingly lost to the 80s can find revival many slasher fans might feel should never have returned from their obscurity. Trick or Treats (1982) is a critically reviled Halloween terror film considered incapable of entertaining, thrilling, or captivating the intended audience. Gary Graver (mostly known as a director of photography, busy in the 1970s; he died in 2006) was responsible for this film, set on Halloween night, even securing funding through hard work. Granted, he raised a small sum that really shows onscreen. Modest doesn't even describe the meager production; Graver used few locations in LA and kept most of the action at the house of Carrie Snodgrass, the wife who commits unknowing Peter Jason against his will. The opening of the film with how Peter Jason wrestles with two institution employees trying to gather him up so they can wrap him in the straight-jacket had me cracking up...the film might be proclaimed by many as dull and pointless, but this opening with how Jason fights and tries to flee the backyard while the white-suits have lots of trouble corralling him--his trying to climb his tree, kick, scratch, and crawl, while also pitching a fit and letting out these cries of agony--with all three falling into the pool just had me laughing. Snodgrass just looks on approvingly, with this expression of barely holding her glee inside, quite proud of herself...it's surreal. So Jason is sent away with four years plotting to break from the mental hospital while Snodgrass has married magician David Carradine (yes, *that* David Carradine!). I said aloud while watching Carradine, "Why is he in this?!" During Carradine's career he had these films that really leave you scratching your head. Yes, like anyone else, he had bills to pay. I get that. But I wonder how much he was paid for this considering Graver barely scraped together enough for the small number of locations available to him on his minuscule budget.

Look, I'd love to say this is a lost slasher that is worthy of investigating, but I would probably be chastised as wasting your time. Go to Letterboxd or the IMDb and you'll get a whole lot of "nothing happens" and "just a whole lot of filler". There is exactly one death at the knife (taken from a diner, while cook (played by the director) leaves momentarily) of Jason, who spends a majority of the film dressed as a nurse (having robbed a nurse of her wig and dress while subduing her) on the streets. He eventually robs a bum (Paul Bartel!!!) of his rags, takes to the home of his ex-wife who put him away, and instead encounters a terrified Jacqueline Giroux (wearing Snodgrass' gown after her son (played by the director's son, Chris Graver)  pretends to drown in the backyard pool!) spending the conclusion trying to get away from him. Chris Graver just spends the middle to late in the movie tormenting Giroux with a number of pranks (tampering with the door knocker to bring her to the door over and over with no trick-or-treaters in sight, pretending to suffer an injury to his trick guillotine, jumping out at her, etc.) while she tries to keep from strangling the little brat. Once Carradine and Snodgrass leave (besides Snodgrass phoning the house to check up on Chris once) for the party, they leave the film. Steve Railsback, as an actor performing in a low-rent play of Othello, is Giroux's love interest (they were once married in real life), contacting her a couple times while enjoying his costume sword and "suit of armor". But the film is primarily Chris Graver driving Giroux nuts while Jason escapes the institution, hits the streets, and eventually makes it to his former home to "kill Snodgrass", failing miserably. Jason tries the "unhinged maniac" character but he is just campy and laughable. I love Jason in the Carpenter films but this character as the "escaped lunatic" is just not in his wheelhouse. He's not scary at all...he tries to be convincing. He is more a parody, and perhaps if you see Jason as a joke of a killer the reaction might be entertainment. Jillian Kesner, as Giroux's friend (and editor for a film she stars in), was married to the director until his death...she is Jason's lone victim. The use of the butcher knife is pathetically staged. And the use of the guillotine is embarrassingly cheap. Graver as a cinematographer is different than as director. This whole film is rough-going. The budget Graver had to work with is obvious. Giroux's frustrations with Chris Graver isn't compelling enough for slasher fans to tolerate the absence of the missing ingredients the genre often provides. There just isn't enough chum to keep attention from waning. And Jason spending too much time away from the home he is destined to return doesn't help. And Jason's target, Snodgrass, nowhere in sight when he does return makes his whole reason to exist further aggravating. Giroux has nothing to do with Jason's committal to the hospital and she looks nothing like Snodgrass. The freezeframe at the end with Chris seemingly "inheriting" the evil of Jason when picking up the knife is desperately trying to be shocking and comes off very silly. 1.5/5

***The poster for the film, a candy bag bleeding and ripped, is rather catchy, but the promise of thrills is a toothless one***

***Graver does try and keep the spirit of Halloween alive with constant trick-or-treaters arriving at the door for Giroux to drop them lots of candy, even as she contends with the annoying kid she's babysitting.***