My quick rating – 6.5/10. Forty years ago, I went to see a Halloween flick that was taking on school bullies, Tipper Gore’s PMRC, and the apparent dangers of heavy metal music. Ah, the good old days, when parents thought playing a record backwards would turn their kids into Satanists. Thankfully, Trick or Treat was here to combine heavy metal and horror into one rockin’ little Halloween package. And while Fastway, the band responsible for the soundtrack, leaned more towards hard rock than heavy metal, they still delivered some great tunes for a fun #Shocktober viewing. Having never reviewed this one before, what better excuse than its 40th anniversary and a 4K viewing? Besides, I clearly remember the cameos from a couple of musical idols of mine growing up.
We kick things off with a panoramic tour of somebody’s bedroom while Stand Up by Fastway plays. Naturally, the walls are covered in posters of Judas Priest, Twisted Sister, Anthrax, and other metal favorites. We’re introduced to Eddie Weinbauer (Marc Price), a metalhead teenager whose school life consists mostly of being bullied and humiliated, including in front of the girl he has a crush on, Leslie (Lisa Orgolini). His hero is heavy metal superstar Sammi Curr (Tony Fields), so when Curr dies in a hotel fire, Eddie is devastated. That is, until he receives the only copy of the rocker’s unreleased album. A little backwards playback later, and Sammi is back from the dead. Because even death isn’t enough to stop a rock star from getting one more encore!
Gene Simmons shows up as Nuke, a local DJ who gifts Eddie, nicknamed Ragman, the mysterious album. For younger viewers, that big, round object isn’t some enormous CD. It’s vinyl! And yes, playing records backwards to uncover secret messages was actually a thing. It’s called backmasking, and you can read more about the hidden messages artists occasionally slipped into their music. Then there’s Ozzy Osbourne, playing a reverend on a television talk show, criticizing heavy metal. The irony is absolutely delicious. Watching the Prince of Darkness preach against the evils of metal is comedy gold!
The revenge against Eddie’s bullies starts relatively harmlessly, but this is a horror movie, so naturally things get increasingly nasty. It’s a fairly soft R rating, meaning you aren’t getting an endless parade of blood and guts. The effects are pretty much what you’d expect from a movie made before CGI took over, although the makeup work is surprisingly good. Interestingly, Kevin Yagher, who worked on the makeup and effects, also plays the guitarist on stage when Curr interrupts the Halloween dance. One scene involving a woman in a car has always struck me as rather bizarre and out of place, though. It feels like it wandered in from another movie.
Director Charles Martin Smith keeps things moving nicely, with some great shots and a particularly entertaining finale. Curr has unfinished business beyond helping Eddie settle a few schoolyard scores. He also wants revenge on the high school that once refused to let him perform there. When he finally gets his chance, the performance of Trick or Treat is a fantastic musical moment, although the students probably weren’t expecting quite such an electrifying Halloween school dance.
At a time when seemingly every other horror release was another slasher, it was refreshing to get a supernatural horror with a rock ‘n’ roll twist. Trick or Treat was never particularly scary, nor does it need to be. This is a fun blast from the 80s, when metal ruled MTV and governments were apparently terrified of what teenagers might hear on their record players. It’s entertaining, has a terrific soundtrack, some memorable cameos, and plenty of nostalgic charm. Perhaps a little rough around the edges, but that’s part of the fun. Once underrated, it has deservedly found its audience as a cult favorite. Crank up the volume and enjoy the #Shocktober fun.
