John Carpenter presents Body Bags was originally made for television. It's the typical horror anthology movie with three stories, all bridged by Carpenter himself in a morgue setting no less. Carpenter wisely takes the humorous route. The first story is about a gas station attendant's first night on the job, which would be anyone's last night for sure. The story is more dumb and predictable, with the protagonist doing things we would all scream at her not to do in a theater, than scary. The flip ending is reminiscent of an episode of Rod Serling's "Night Gallery." The second story is about a vain man with thinning hair; Stacy Keach was absolutely hilarious. This is obviously the best segment. It's inventiveness, humor, and tongue-in-cheek attitude is sorely missing from the other two stories. The final story is better than the first one, but we've seen this before in "Twilight Zone" episodes more than once. The bridging story turns out to be quite humorous, with Carpenter being joined by two special guests at the end. Perhaps the best thing about Body Bags is the unusual cast members that were assembled. From regular film and television actors like Stacy Keach, David Warner, and Robert Carradine to the off-beat selections of Sheena Easton, Deborah Harry, and Twiggy, Body Bags has it all. Look closely for several genre directors: Wes Craven, Sam Raimi, Roger Corman, and Tobe Hooper. It was also great fun to see old veteran John Agar as the eye surgeon near the end of his career. This was at least as enjoyable as most of Carpenter's other films, which have been uneven over the years. **1/2 of 4 stars.
Review of Body Bags
