Here he chops between footage of shot put, hurdles, gymnastics and an audience that were clearly watching something completely different. Now Available: Daughters of Darkness Book (Get 30% off! Is it the overzealous and demanding Coach George Michaels (Christopher George); the awkward sister, home from duty, Anne; or is it Laura’s boyfriend, Kevin Badger. | Rating: 3/5, August 14, 2005 With that said, the real charm of the film does not come from its ability to fashion a engaging whodunit, but rather Freed’s take on the subgenre. The 4K transfer of Graduation Day, from the original filmic evidence, is proof of Vinegar Syndrome’s absolute dedication to their craft. Forgot your password? Is it weird that a bunch of kids are going missing in a small town at the same time, and there is very little police presence to investigate? Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 It's completely goofball stuff, but engaging and, at times, exciting, giving a notoriously lazy genre a firm towel snap as it strives to turn a minimal budget into a nail-biter. Is she the killer? No spoilers here, you’ll have to pick it up to find out. In the area where I grew up, there were two local video-shops just meters away from each other. Director Herb Freed does some of his trademark quick-time cutting that's fast enough to make Mark Goldblatt blush. Almost as soon as she arrives in town, a jogger is murdered by an unseen someone with a switchblade and a stopwatch. Even the youngsters weren't all that bad, you'll spot a young Linnea Quigley and an infamous early appearance from Vanna White, who spends most of her screen time screaming unconvincingly! Impressive box-office (nearly $24 million from a much smaller budget) makes me wonder why they didn't make a sequel? Tactfully, the lyrics say something about ?everybody wanting to be the winner'. Now when you're that young and in-experienced, those words sound extremely intriguing and even rebellious, because I knew that I was doing something that I wasn't yet lawfully supposed to. Sidney Poitier’s 7 Most Memorable Performances, All Harry Potter Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer. Next up we meet her elder sister Anne (Patch Mackenzie), who's taken leave from the Navy to visit Midvale high and collect Laura's trophy at the Graduation ceremony. Vinegar Syndrome really did Graduation Day a great service with this release. Regal An ideal weekend movie, the sort of entertaining low-budget horror item that will work best for audiences looking to unwind and have fun after a long, busy work week. The star runner Laura makes a 100 meter dash in thirty seconds, but falls dead after she crosses the finish line. Meanwhile, Laura’s team members begin slowly being picked off, one-by-one, by a javelin-wielding, fencing masked killer. My little world had been shattered, so I asked if I could keep the box for future reference and disappointedly headed home. Coming Soon, Regal The first sequence was like a bizarre sportsman's dream. |, April 17, 2005 Please reference “Error Code 2121” when contacting customer service. | Rating: B My curiosities never died and some seven years later, when I first learned of Video-search agencies, this was one of the first movies that popped into my head to track down. Using a rapid succession of cuts, the shots cascading into each other forms the level of excitement at the opening track meet—tension and enthusiasm are in the air, as the crowd prepares for the big race. You will never receive spam. Posted by: Joe Yanick I do agree that Graduation Day is probably the daftest of all the period slashers. : The Pain & Beauty of Strange Advance, Sonic Seraphim: The Interstellar Voices of Klaus Nomi & King Diamond, The Bloody Chamber: Angela and the Wolf: On Angela Carter’s The Company of Wolves. They're terrible, with a singer that has extreme vocal limitations and not even a decent song for him to attempt to sing. No Exit: Hell is a Film Related Facebook Group. It's scary, thinking that this could have become a franchise, imagine Freddy vs. Jason vs. The more I looked at the box-art that promised ?? We want to hear what you have to say but need to verify your account. Nope. Its chief merit is that it lacks the awesome stupidity of many of its successors. |, August 22, 2005 We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future. Graduation Day (Día de Graduación) 1981. On Writing About Genre Film as a Woman, Episode 3: Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca (1940), Episode 2: Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow-Up (1966), Episode 1: Dario Argento’s Suspiria (1977), Episode 30: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne, Episode 29: Dirty Girls: The Films of John Hayes, Episode 28: I Saw What You Did: The Later Films of William Castle, Episode 27: Sex Without Shame: The Telephone Book (1971) and Elle (2016), Audio commentary with producer David Baughn. Christopher George turns out a decent performance and the jesting banter between B-movie vet Michael Pataki and Broadway star E.J. Graduation Day features a number of memorable, unique kills, but there is not a ton of blood to go around. In addition, he has worked with the Cleveland International Film Festival as a Feature reviewer. One of them was as strict as a nazi head teacher and wouldn't let the eleven year old little-me rent out any 18 rated movies. Herb Freed’s 1981 horror pic GRADUATION DAY has never achieved much of a reputation among slasher movie fans. Add Article. | Rating: 4/10 The stellar 4K scan and wealth of features really makes this one of the most unique and worthwhile titles of the year. A coach (Christopher George) wearing black gloves and a stopwatch is suspected of killing high-school track stars. Copyright 2012 - 2019 Avada | All Rights Reserved | Powered by. Cinemark There's a roller-disco, loads of ear-bashing heavy metal and the surviving girl even fends off the killer using (somewhat lame) martial arts, which was pretty hot stuff at the time. In 30 seconds, track star Laura Ramstead wins the race, collapses, and dies. It managed to keep me interested and the cheesy thrills make a worthy alternative to competent horror. Having a podcast handle the audio commentary is nothing short of brilliant. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. All Rights Reserved. They seriously ruined an otherwise comical sequence that includes Quigley being pursued by the psycho in a fencing mask. Don’t worry, it won’t take long. The first two features come in the form of two separate audio commentaries; one with producer David Baughn and, the second, a fantastic piece with the crew of the podcast Hysteria Lives! Pandemonium breaks loose in the stands, but the runner screams in pain before falling to the floor. The film is marked by a very chaotic cinematic style. Review: Graduation Day (1981) Slasher movie where they give away the killer’s identity at the beginning, so the mystery element is kaput. Coming Soon. The original theatrical trailer—actually highly entertaining—is also included in this release. Disks: 2 2, “What ever happened to Gloria Hole?” An Interview with the Makers of Death Drop Gorgeous, The Cool Side of My Pillow Interview: A Trip Inside the Mind of Bruce Campbell, Saving the World From Quarantine Boredom, Pt. It looks as if Freed blew his entire budget on the actors and hiring that abysmal rock band, leaving him with nothing to spend on effects. It's not too different from other slasher flicks, but it's entertaining and enjoyable. The film is a bit soft and grainy, but these are most likely the result of the film’s low budget and not a result of the transfer it There is definitely a decent amount of age related issues on display, but you have to expect a bit of grit with your schlock and we wouldn’t have it any other way. The AVC Encoded 1.78:1 transfer has faithful colors, a dynamic depth, and is free from distracting digital enhancement. Soon all the members of the track team begin suffering unfortunate demises at the hands of the hooded assassin, who crosses their faces off of a group-photo with bright red lipstick. That, matched with performances by the always entertaining Christopher George and horror favorite Linnea Quigley (as well as an early performance by Vanna White), make Graduation Day a great little horror flick. For a cheap cash-in (which this no doubt is), there's still a solid amount going on under Graduation Day's hood, even as the bodies begin to pile toward the ceiling. Picasso, Goya, and The Imagery of Suffering. 24 (July/Sep 2015), Diabolique Magazine No. Verified reviews are considered more trustworthy by fellow moviegoers. Clichd, forgettable 80s teen slasher lacking all kind of originality or characterization. Good once, but after the fifteenth time I was beginning to wonder how much more he could possibly milk the idea. Quite what made these guys dig out a Fencing visor was somewhat dubious, but it must've impressed John Ottman, because he ?borrowed' it for his Urban Legend follow up! Cheered on by her Coach (Christopher George), the youngster sprints over the finishing line, leaving the opposition more or less at the starting post! This movie made a good profit for the studio, due to its low budget. Confessions of a Cineslut: Fantasia 2020 picks. 0, Director: Herb Freed Just leave us a message here and we will work on getting you verified. | Rating: 2/5 Type: Color, Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 Copyright © Fandango. Interviews with David Baughn, Herb Freed, Patch Mackenzie, and Martin Jay Sadoff, Cinematic adaptations of books have a long history of being derided by the source material’s author, but few have a…, What happens when sludge metal goes dark? American Madness; Or, How A Country Lost Its Mind, Belle, Book, and Candle: A Bewitching Burlesque Show in a Haunted LA Venue, In the House of Wounds Fabulous Beasts Sing Their Sadness Deep…, “The Ghastly One Is Coming! The percentage of users who rated this 3.5 stars or higher. Required fields are marked *. I know, I know, you must think I'm crazy, but watching it last night whilst taking notes for this review, I actually rather enjoyed myself. Unsubscribe at any time. By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.
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