Reviewed by Melissa Garza
If “House on Haunted Hill,” was written by a crack-head one would get close to the complete confusion of “Spellcaster.”
As an Adam Ant fan, I needed to see this movie and as it was on Netflix Instant watch, I decided to give it a go. Sadly, Ant is only in it for the final ten minutes.
A hard rock video television station, much like the way MTV used to be, conducts a contest for a weekend trip to a medieval castle where a one million dollar check will be hidden. To hype the contest, rock star Cassandra Castle (Bunty Bailey) whose record label financed the trip is there. However, Castle has a serious partying lifestyle and shows up drunk and angry. She wants nothing to do with the event and VJ Rex (Richard Blade) does his best to put the whole thing together without her presence.
The contestants chosen include a French woman named Yvette (Tracy Lind), Myrna (Martha Demson) a pretentious woman who always dresses as though she is ready to ride a horse and carries a rifle in her golf club bag. Also, aboard is Teri (Kim Johnston Ulrich) a flirtatious witch who leads all the men on, Harlan (Michael Zorek) the clichéd gluttonous rude fool who is always and only interested in food and Tony (Marcello Modugno) a violent would-be rapist/murderer. Lastly, are the two protagonists which were quiet all-American siblings who worked for a dirty old man washing dishes in a small diner.
Teri (Kim Johnston Ulrich) a quiet and reserved do-gooder much like Sandy from Grease before the transformation, accompanies her brother Tom (Harold Pruett) who thought is not as righteous as his sister still has good intentions and a desire to do the right thing as long as it means him walking away with the 1 million dollars.
The one rule set forth by the owner of the castle Diablo (Adam Ant) is that no one may destroy anything within the confines and that the check would not be hidden in a manner which would necessitate the destruction of his home.
It doesn’t take long for the first contestant to break the rules and suffer the consequences of being murdered by a demonic chair that springs to life. For certain parts of the movie, only those who mess with the house are killed, but somewhere in the middle the film changes and everyone becomes a victim of Diablo.
On the upside, the costumes and make-up are really cool. There’s one scene where Cassandra is stalked by the walking dead. In another, Harlan eats a roasted pig with the head attached and then becomes something of a werepig. In both scenes, the make-up is fantastic.
That’s really where the good ends. There is one scene where a neon green computer generated snake wraps itself around the camera-woman’s neck.
In the end, Diablo reveals himself to Teri advising she had won but would be watching her brother’s decent into hell. Cassandra who has had a change of heart shows up and it is revealed that her popularity is the result of a deal between her and the devil.
I was sad to hear that Harold Pruett had died of a heroine overdose in 2002. He had starred in a great 80s flick called “Summer Camp Nightmare.” It is definitely disheartening to see talented actors get wrapped up in such harsh drug abuse.
Overall, “Spellcaster” left a lot to be desired and only a few things to be admired. If bored enough, one may want to give it a go – just ensure that you have the lowest of expectations when venturing in.
Scared Stiff Review: 3.5/10
