Intruder (1989)
Review by the Film Fiend
I’ll be painfully honest and upfront with you, dear readers: I’m not the world’s biggest fan of the slasher genre. In fact, I think they’re one of the lowest forms of horror entertainment a person can partake in. After all, anyone with a handful of friends, a digital camera, and a recipe for syrupy fake blood can make one these terrible films in the span of a few short hours. Unless you’re adding your own personal touch to the tried-and-true formula set forth by countless other desperate genre directors, I’m probably not going to pay much attention to your work. Sorry about your luck, pal. It’s nothing personal. I don’t think so, anyway.
However, like most things in life, there are exceptions to the rule. Take, for instance, Scott Spiegel’s brutally entertaining horror effort Intruder, a virtually forgotten late-80’s slasher crafted with more creativity and unchecked imagination than a senior citizen pottery class taught by a four-armed circus midget. Instead of being so serious that it borderlines on unintentional camp, Intruder makes the wise decision to present its material with its tongue pressed firmly in cheek. But before I start giving calloused hand jobs to the entire cast and crew, let me expound on why I adore this crazy little flick as much as I currently do. It’s pretty simple, so do try to keep up.
First, we have the location. Instead of throwing some brainless kids inside a spooky secluded cabin or stuffing them uncomfortably into yet another run-of-the-mill summer camp populated by transsexual maniacs, Spiegel places our would-be victims inside a generic supermarket on the outskirts of Anytown, USA. Almost everyone reading this site has schlepped down the aisles of a grocery store at some point in their miserable lives, allowing the prospective viewer to slip into the cast’s second-hand shoes with relative ease. And while most flicks set in one location usually end up being quite boring and rather dull in a visual sense, Spiegel keeps it lively through the use of bizarre camera angles — the shot from inside a rotary telephone is a fine example — and the fact that he’s chosen to staff this particular marketplace with an odd assortment of characters.
Which brings me to the cast.
Rather than utilizing adorably pretty faces and pounds of rippling muscles to attract attention to his horror film, Spiegel actually managed to find a few talented individuals — read: friends — who can actually perform in front of the camera. Elizabeth Cox (Night of the Creeps) competently portrays our blonde and supposedly beautiful heroine, while Dan Hicks, Ted Raimi, Sam Raimi, and Renee Estevez help round out the rest of the supermarket’s quirky staff. Additionally, being a pre-Scream slasher, it’s nice to see that most of the folks contain within Intruder have absolutely no clue how to handle the presence of a sadistic, blood-thirsty madman. At this stage in the game, it’s an almost refreshing element.
Furthermore, no one character is truly safe from becoming just another jagged slice of gore-soaked meat splattered messily across the butcher counter. Despite the fact you can spot the film’s heroine as soon as her grinning mug pops up on-screen, the rest of the cast are just as likely to die as the next. This element adds a layer of much-needed suspense to the proceedings, especially considering most slashers fail to raise even a solitary hair on the back of my fuzzy neck. Since we have plenty of people employed by this particular mom-and-pop grocer, there’s lots of opportunities for horrible brutality. Nice.
Oh, and don’t be fooled by the presence of Bruce Campbell’s name on the DVD artwork; he’s got a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo as a police officer towards the end of the movie, as does writer/producer Lawrence Bender. Bad marketing! Bad!
Finally, we have the gore. Thanks to some quality work by special effects gurus KNB, viewers are presented with a juicy cornucopia of high-quality slasher-related violence. Though some of scenes don’t hold up quite as well as others would have you believe, they’re still a disgusting sight to behold. From an employee’s head getting squashed in a trash compactor to a nasty scene involving a razor-sharp deli slicer, dedicated gorehounds are sure to find plenty to cheer about. It’s always a pleasure to watch a picture that knows how to properly apply its drippy bloodshed, as opposed to just tossing random grue at the screen for roughly 90 minutes.
Some people have proclaimed Intruder to be the last great slasher from the 80’s. I agree. However, lumping it into the same category as Friday the 13th or My Bloody Valentine is very unfair. Intruder isn’t as obvious or unintentionally silly as other films within the subgenre, and rightfully deserves to stand apart from the group. If you’re not a fan of slashers but entertain the possibility that, sooner or later, one picture may eventually prove worthy of your time, this is the film for you. As a slasher, it puts those funded by big studios to shame. As an independent movie, it proves that ingenuity and imagination can greatly outshine a minuscule budget. So you can keep your summer camp slashers, fanboys.
I’ll be hanging out in aisle ten.
Popularity: 3% [?]
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