WARNING! THIS REVIEW INCLUDES MAJOR SPOILERS! IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILM, PLEASE DON'T READ THIS REVIEW!
Still with me? Good. "Waxwork" is, quite frankly, my favorite horror film ever. It has a clever, original story, memorable monsters and the lovely, talented Deborah Foreman as the leading lady. Really, what else could you possibly need in a film?
The plot starts out simply enough: six college seniors get invited to attend a late-night showing of the exhibits in a new waxworks building. But the characters in each of the displays are much more lifelike than they seem and when you step past the railing into the displays, you're taken into an illusionary world where the characters live, breathe... and kill.
Pretty creepy, huh?
Among the main cast members are Zach Galligan as Mark, Foreman as Sarah, David Warner as the Waxwork's owner Mr. David Lincoln, Dana Ashbrook as Tony, Michelle Johnson as Mark's ex-girlfriend China, Miles O'Keeffe as Count Dracula (or, as he's known as in this film, "The Count"), John Rhys-Davies as a werewolf, J. Kenneth Campbell as the Marquis de Sade and Patrick Macnee as Sir Wilfred, Mark's godfather. While Ashbrook and Macnee give good performances with their roles, it is Foreman and Warner who give the best performances. Galligan, though, gives as good wooden acting as any actor in the modern day "Star Wars" prequel films.
Among the many good moments in the film, we get a few good one-liners in the mostly serious horror flick, good acting, a clever plot, likable characters and a truly frightening, though brief, black-and-white sequence with zombies! The musical score by Roger Bellon is also especially impressive for such a B-budgeted horror movie (particularly the main theme and the Mark and Sarah theme which is heard twice, when Mark is with Sarah outside her apartment and then when Mark takes Sarah's hand in the de Sade exhibit and leaves the display with her).
Of the bad parts, we get some less-than-impressive cardboard sets, a werewolf that looks like a Muppet on steroids, lipstick-looking lashes on Sarah's back when she is whipped in the Marquis display (and the mentioned injuries curiously disappear when she leaves the display) and plot holes big enough to drive cars through. For example, the Marquis display hypnotizes Sarah when she stares at it and steps inside of it, but the others do not get hypnotized by their displays. Also, some gore is unnecessary (do we really need to see a hunter being torn in half by a werewolf?).
Still, despite its flaws, "Waxwork" is a wonderful horror film that scares as much as it entertains. It may not be that scary by today's standards, but it goes well with popcorn and soda. So, dim the lights (if you dare) and enjoy watching this fine, lesser-known horror film.
Would you like a closer look?
Still with me? Good. "Waxwork" is, quite frankly, my favorite horror film ever. It has a clever, original story, memorable monsters and the lovely, talented Deborah Foreman as the leading lady. Really, what else could you possibly need in a film?
The plot starts out simply enough: six college seniors get invited to attend a late-night showing of the exhibits in a new waxworks building. But the characters in each of the displays are much more lifelike than they seem and when you step past the railing into the displays, you're taken into an illusionary world where the characters live, breathe... and kill.
Pretty creepy, huh?
Among the main cast members are Zach Galligan as Mark, Foreman as Sarah, David Warner as the Waxwork's owner Mr. David Lincoln, Dana Ashbrook as Tony, Michelle Johnson as Mark's ex-girlfriend China, Miles O'Keeffe as Count Dracula (or, as he's known as in this film, "The Count"), John Rhys-Davies as a werewolf, J. Kenneth Campbell as the Marquis de Sade and Patrick Macnee as Sir Wilfred, Mark's godfather. While Ashbrook and Macnee give good performances with their roles, it is Foreman and Warner who give the best performances. Galligan, though, gives as good wooden acting as any actor in the modern day "Star Wars" prequel films.
Among the many good moments in the film, we get a few good one-liners in the mostly serious horror flick, good acting, a clever plot, likable characters and a truly frightening, though brief, black-and-white sequence with zombies! The musical score by Roger Bellon is also especially impressive for such a B-budgeted horror movie (particularly the main theme and the Mark and Sarah theme which is heard twice, when Mark is with Sarah outside her apartment and then when Mark takes Sarah's hand in the de Sade exhibit and leaves the display with her).
Of the bad parts, we get some less-than-impressive cardboard sets, a werewolf that looks like a Muppet on steroids, lipstick-looking lashes on Sarah's back when she is whipped in the Marquis display (and the mentioned injuries curiously disappear when she leaves the display) and plot holes big enough to drive cars through. For example, the Marquis display hypnotizes Sarah when she stares at it and steps inside of it, but the others do not get hypnotized by their displays. Also, some gore is unnecessary (do we really need to see a hunter being torn in half by a werewolf?).
Still, despite its flaws, "Waxwork" is a wonderful horror film that scares as much as it entertains. It may not be that scary by today's standards, but it goes well with popcorn and soda. So, dim the lights (if you dare) and enjoy watching this fine, lesser-known horror film.
Would you like a closer look?