Pumpkinhead Didn't Fare Well With the Critics, but Who Listens to them Anyway?
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Pumpkinhead has a great story, great lead actor, and a teen-killing monster - what else could you want? Here is the review.
Review by The Zombie Master Lee Roberts
2006
Release: 1989
Written by: Mark Patrick Carducci & Gary
Gerani
Directed by: Stan Winston
Starring:
Lance Henriksen as Ed Harley
Jeff East as Chris
Kimberly Ross as Kim
Madeleine Taylor Holmes as Old hill woman
I believe that a fan of film, regardless of genre, should be
aware of
more than just the actors but also have an awareness of the other
aspects of film making. You should want to know who directed that great
film...who created those awesome special effects? When I heard that
Stan Winston, one of the greatest special effects artists
there are, was going to direct a horror film I started looking forward
to it from the moment it went into pre-production. I was also a big fan
of lead actor Lance Henriksen so I was in line on opening day.
Pumpkinhead starts by introducing us to Ed Harley (Lance Henriksen), a single father who is trying to raise his son in the small backwoods community that he grew up in. Ed runs a little country store that becomes the stop for a group of city dwelling teenagers that are on their way to a cabin for the weekend.
The males
of the group decide that this is a great place to crank up
their dirt bikes and ride just like male teenagers are want to do:
recklessly. A problem arises though when Ed Harley’s
son’s dog gets irritated by the noise
that the dirt bikes are making. During the barking, chasing and
confusion Ed’s son gets in the way and is run over
by one of the teenagers. This tragedy destroys Ed
Harley and the only thing that he can think of is getting revenge.
Ed Harley goes to the old hill woman, a well known witch around those parts, and with her help releases a demon that has a one track mind. When pointed in the right direction, this demon won’t stop until he is finished with his deadly deeds.
Pumpkinhead is a classic story about vengeance and the price you have to pay to achieve it. I thoroughly enjoyed this film in the theater and still enjoy it to this day. For some reason it was panned by the critics but I have never really listened to the critics anyway.
Stan
Winston did a great job
at setting the atmosphere and direction for Pumpkinhead
and not veering very far from the core of the tale. His story telling
skills are certainly very apparent. Another great element in Pumpkinhead
is the lead actor Lance Henriksen. Lance is the epitome
of a character actor. He is just as believable as an FBI agent as he is
as a soulless, murderous vampire - or a grief-stricken father.
Henriksen’s versatility allowed him to make the character Ed
Harley so believable that you catch yourself
believing that the legend of Pumpkinhead could actually
be true.
I recommend this film to anyone
that likes the ancient art of
storytelling. Oh, and there is a great teenager-killing monster thrown
in for good measure. Comments
or questions about Pumpkinhead? Contact us!
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