Troll (1986) Horror Movie Review

by Spider
(Salem, Oregon, USA)

Hello boys and girls. Today’s movie is about young boy named Harry Potter who learns that magic is real and faces it’s lighter and darker sides in an adventure that includes a sassy witch, a dark wizard, nymphs, goblins and a rather troublesome troll. No, I’m not talking about a movie based on any works by J.K. Rowling but a 1986 horror movie directed by John Carl Buechler called Troll.

Release: January 17, 1986
Directed by: John Carl Buechler
Written by: Ed Naha
Starring:

Noah Hathaway as Harry Potter Jr.
Michael Moriarty as Harry Potter Sr.
Shelley Hack as Anne potter
Jenny Beck as Wendy Anne Potter
Sonny Bono as Peter Dickinson
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Jeanette Cooper
June Lockhart as Eunice St. Clair

In Troll we are quickly introduced to Harry Potter Jr., his parents and his younger sister Wendy, who are moving into a new apartment. While the family is unpacking, Wendy wanders into the laundry room where a troll uses a magic green ring to take her place. The Potter parents notice strange changes in their daughter (forgetting all table manners, biting, hitting and growling) but attribute it to the stress of moving (because all kids have a complete change of personality when they move).

Thankfully Harry seems a bit more intelligent than his parents and realizes something’s not right with his sister. Harry fears she maybe a pod person but is informed by the witch living upstairs that no his sister has not been replaced by an alien, but by her ex, a Dark wizard named Torok. Torok was in a great war eons back between men and magic, took the side of magic and was transformed into a troll as punishment.

Meanwhile our dangerous dark wizard/troll is running loose in the apartment complex. Is he slaughtering its mortal dwellers or enslaving their minds you may ask? The answer is no. He’s transforming their apartment into a magical forest and turning them into various mythical creatures like goblins and elves with his ring. It’s rather cute.

So to save the world from becoming full of cute magical beings and to get his sister back, Harry must face off against Torok.

Will Harry Potter be victorious and keep the world save for muggles…sorry I mean people? Or will Torok and magic overthrow the human race? You’ll have to watch the movie and see.

Okay the special effects are defiantly dated, the acting isn’t great and quite frankly reading a JK Rowling book would be scarier. But I will admit I have a soft spot for Troll. I like seeing creatures who aren’t CGI in a movie. I like the film’s cheesiness. And even like the out of nowhere musical number. So while I can only justify giving this movie a 4 out of 10 point rating I will disclose I recently bought it to add to my collection. So, if you’re looking for a good scare or some gore this movie isn’t for you. But if you looking for something cheesy and cute, maybe something to appropriate to show a child this Halloween, Troll may be right up your alley.