Trick or Treat (1986 film)
Encyclopedia
Trick or Treat is a 1986
horror film by De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
, starring Marc Price
, Tony Fields, and Lisa Orgolini, with special appearances by Gene Simmons
and Ozzy Osbourne
.
), a DJ who knew Sammi Curr personally. To take Eddie's mind off the death of his idol, Nuke gives Eddie the only copy of Curr's last and only unreleased album on an acetate disc
.
Once back home, Eddie falls asleep while listening to the record and has a strange dream about the fire that killed Sammi Curr. When he wakes up he finds that the record is skipping and after listening to it for a few seconds he comes to realize that there is something not right about the words the record is stuck on. Having previous experience with hidden lyrics, Eddie plays the record backwards but receives more than he imagined: Sammi Curr speaking to him from beyond the grave.
Sammi instructs him on how to go about getting revenge on a group of bullies that like to torment Eddie, since Sammi was bullied constantly in high school and would like to take the revenge on bullies he never got to take himself. At first the revenge is innocent enough, but after a while the plans start to become more sinister, eventually starting to involve murder, and Eddie finally tries cutting ties with the dead rocker, but Sammi will not let him. Eddie accidentally spills some soda on the record which causes an electrical surge that gives Sammi just the amount of energy he needs to get out of the record and become able to carry out his sinister plans without the help of another; the only setback is that Sammi can only travel through radios or anything else electronic, so, no radios, no way for Sammi to carry out his plans. Eddie goes on a path to destroying every radio he sees to prevent Sammi from carrying out his plans.This leads to a final confrontation between Eddie and Sammi. Eddie finally lures Sammi (in a cassette tape) to a police car and starts dissing and insulting him until he breaks out and tries to attack Eddie from behind a gate in the car. Eddie drives the police car off an unfinished bridge, short-circuiting the tape, thus, destroying Sammi.
of W.A.S.P.
was to originally play Sammi Curr. Ozzy Osbourne
plays a televangelist decrying the evils of heavy metal music
. "Lunch Of The Dead" is displayed on a cinema marquee. According to The Internet Movie Database, no such film exists. It was likely an invention of the props department.
(known for his acting roles in motion pictures such as American Graffiti
and Never Cry Wolf) takes the helm of this project as his directorial debut. In a brief credited cameo, Smith plays the high school principal, killed by a bolt of electricity fired from Sammi Curr's guitar during the Halloween
dance.
After long debate, the role of undead rock icon Sammi Curr went to Tony Fields, a former Solid Gold
dancer and one of the stars of A Chorus Line
.
Eddie WeinBauer is played by Marc Price
(known for his role as 'Skippy' on the television show 'Family Ties
'). Eddie's mother is played by Elaine Joyce
.
Doug Savant
(of Melrose Place and Desperate Housewives
fame) plays Tim Hainey, the popular bully responsible for much of Eddie Weinbauer's angst.
Alice Nunn
plays Mrs. Sylvia Cavell.
Special effects for the movie were created by Kevin Yagher
, who would go on to provide the effects for such horror icons as Freddy Krueger
and the Crypt Keeper from HBO's Tales from the Crypt. Kevin also had a cameo in the movie as the lead singer / guitarist for the band playing at the high school Halloween dance (Sammi Curr's hand reaches through the amplifier and explodes Yagher's head).
and upcoming composer Christopher Young
. In the stack of records the mother looks at, the last LP is a copy of Megadeth
's Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!
, with a cut corner. Normally a record with cut corners denotes that it was a radio promo, or was for discounted sale only. The other records in the stack were also real releases. Included was a 4 song E.P. by U.S. heavy metal/horror rock band Impaler
, Rise of the Mutants
, and Canadian Thrash Metal band Exciter
's 1986 LP Unveiling the Wicked
and Savatage
's 1984 release The Dungeons Are Calling
. On the walls in Eddies room there are posters of Judas Priest
, Anthrax
, Raven
, Twisted Sister
, Mötley Crüe
, Ozzy Osbourne
and Kiss
. On his locker door in school there is also a sticker with Lizzy Borden
. Co-Composer Christopher Young
went on to compose music for the films The Gift, Urban Legend
, Ghost Rider
, Spider-Man 3
, Drag Me to Hell
and The Uninvited
. Gene Simmons was originally offered the role of Sammi Curr, but he did not think much of the script and ultimately agreed to do only a cameo as a radio DJ. Simmons later said in an interview that he chose to play the role as a childhood hero of his, Wolfman Jack
. The only band that performs music in the movie is Fastway
.
by De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
in October 1986. It grossed $6,797,218 at the box office. It was released on VHS
by Karl-Lorimar home video the following year.
The film was released on DVD
in the United States
by Platinum Disc Corporation in 2002. This version is currently out of print
. Some people believe the DVD cover to be misleading because it shows Gene Simmons and Ozzy Osbourne starring in the movie, when actually they only make very brief cameo appearances. On the back of the DVD artwork are also scenes from the making-of.
Anchor Bay Entertainment
was all set to release a 20th Anniversary DVD in 2006, but due to music copyrights, the release was cancelled. Anchor Bay so far has no plans to release any kind of DVD.
1986 in film
-Events:*April 12 - Actor Morgan Mason marries The Go-Go's Belinda Carlisle.*April 26 - Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger marries television journalist Maria Shriver.*May - Actress Heather Locklear marries Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee....
horror film by De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
De Laurentiis Entertainment Group was a production company/distribution unit founded by producer Dino De Laurentiis.The company is notable for producing Manhunter, Blue Velvet, the horror films Near Dark and Evil Dead II, King Kong Lives , and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, as well as...
, starring Marc Price
Marc Price
Marc Price is a television actor primarily known for his role as Erwin "Skippy" Handelman on Family Ties.-Biography:Price also hosted the children's game show Teen Win, Lose or Draw on The Disney Channel from 1989 to 1992....
, Tony Fields, and Lisa Orgolini, with special appearances by Gene Simmons
Gene Simmons
Gene Simmons is an Israeli-American entrepreneur, singer-songwriter, actor, and rock bassist. Known as "The Demon", he is the bassist/vocalist of Kiss, a hard rock band he co-founded in the early 1970s.-Early life:...
and Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
.
Plot
High school outcast Eddie Weinbauer is writing a letter to his hero, metal musician Sammi Curr. He puts the letter in an envelope and starts doing his chores. He watches the news at the same time when he hears the worst words to ever reach his mind: Sammi Curr has died in a mysterious hotel fire. He is completely devastated. He goes to his friend "Nuke" (Gene SimmonsGene Simmons
Gene Simmons is an Israeli-American entrepreneur, singer-songwriter, actor, and rock bassist. Known as "The Demon", he is the bassist/vocalist of Kiss, a hard rock band he co-founded in the early 1970s.-Early life:...
), a DJ who knew Sammi Curr personally. To take Eddie's mind off the death of his idol, Nuke gives Eddie the only copy of Curr's last and only unreleased album on an acetate disc
Acetate disc
An acetate disc, also known as a test acetate, dubplate , lacquer , transcription disc or instantaneous disc...
.
Once back home, Eddie falls asleep while listening to the record and has a strange dream about the fire that killed Sammi Curr. When he wakes up he finds that the record is skipping and after listening to it for a few seconds he comes to realize that there is something not right about the words the record is stuck on. Having previous experience with hidden lyrics, Eddie plays the record backwards but receives more than he imagined: Sammi Curr speaking to him from beyond the grave.
Sammi instructs him on how to go about getting revenge on a group of bullies that like to torment Eddie, since Sammi was bullied constantly in high school and would like to take the revenge on bullies he never got to take himself. At first the revenge is innocent enough, but after a while the plans start to become more sinister, eventually starting to involve murder, and Eddie finally tries cutting ties with the dead rocker, but Sammi will not let him. Eddie accidentally spills some soda on the record which causes an electrical surge that gives Sammi just the amount of energy he needs to get out of the record and become able to carry out his sinister plans without the help of another; the only setback is that Sammi can only travel through radios or anything else electronic, so, no radios, no way for Sammi to carry out his plans. Eddie goes on a path to destroying every radio he sees to prevent Sammi from carrying out his plans.This leads to a final confrontation between Eddie and Sammi. Eddie finally lures Sammi (in a cassette tape) to a police car and starts dissing and insulting him until he breaks out and tries to attack Eddie from behind a gate in the car. Eddie drives the police car off an unfinished bridge, short-circuiting the tape, thus, destroying Sammi.
Production
Blackie LawlessBlackie Lawless
Blackie Lawless , is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, bassist and actor, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for heavy metal band W.A.S.P..In an interview, Blackie claims to have been born in the kitchen of the Rainbow Bar and Grill in Hollywood,...
of W.A.S.P.
W.A.S.P.
W.A.S.P. is an American heavy metal band formed in 1982. They emerged from the same Los Angeles scene that spawned Mötley Crüe, Ratt, Quiet Riot and others. The band's popularity peaked in the 1980s, yet they continue to record and tour, making them one of the most enduring of the West Coast heavy...
was to originally play Sammi Curr. Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
plays a televangelist decrying the evils of heavy metal music
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
. "Lunch Of The Dead" is displayed on a cinema marquee. According to The Internet Movie Database, no such film exists. It was likely an invention of the props department.
Casting
Director Charles Martin SmithCharles Martin Smith
Charles Martin Smith is an American film actor, writer, and director.-Early life:Smith was born in Van Nuys, California. His father, Frank Smith, was a film cartoonist and animator, while his uncle Paul J. Smith was an animator as well as a director for the Walter Lantz Studios...
(known for his acting roles in motion pictures such as American Graffiti
American Graffiti
American Graffiti is a 1973 coming of age film co-written/directed by George Lucas starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips and Harrison Ford...
and Never Cry Wolf) takes the helm of this project as his directorial debut. In a brief credited cameo, Smith plays the high school principal, killed by a bolt of electricity fired from Sammi Curr's guitar during the Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
dance.
After long debate, the role of undead rock icon Sammi Curr went to Tony Fields, a former Solid Gold
Solid Gold (TV series)
Solid Gold is an American syndicated music television series that debuted on September 13, 1980. Like many other shows of its genre, such as American Bandstand, Solid Gold featured musical performances and various other elements such as music videos...
dancer and one of the stars of A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. The book was authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante, lyrics were written by Edward Kleban, and music was composed by Marvin Hamlisch....
.
Eddie WeinBauer is played by Marc Price
Marc Price
Marc Price is a television actor primarily known for his role as Erwin "Skippy" Handelman on Family Ties.-Biography:Price also hosted the children's game show Teen Win, Lose or Draw on The Disney Channel from 1989 to 1992....
(known for his role as 'Skippy' on the television show 'Family Ties
Family Ties
Family Ties is an American sitcom that aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989. The sitcom reflected the move in the United States from the cultural liberalism of the 1960s and 1970s to the conservatism of the 1980s. This was particularly expressed through the relationship between young...
'). Eddie's mother is played by Elaine Joyce
Elaine Joyce
Elaine Joyce is an American actress.Joyce was born in Kansas City, Missouri. She made her film debut in 1961 as an extra in West Side Story and made uncredited appearances in several musical films, including The Music Man, Bye Bye Birdie, and Funny Girl before being cast in Such Good Friends in 1971...
.
Doug Savant
Doug Savant
Douglas Peter "Doug" Savant is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Matt Fielding on Melrose Place and Tom Scavo on the ABC dramedy series Desperate Housewives.-Career:...
(of Melrose Place and Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
fame) plays Tim Hainey, the popular bully responsible for much of Eddie Weinbauer's angst.
Alice Nunn
Alice Nunn
Alice Elizabeth Nunn, was an American film and theatre actress. She was born in Jacksonville, Florida and died at her apartment in West Hollywood, California...
plays Mrs. Sylvia Cavell.
Special effects for the movie were created by Kevin Yagher
Kevin Yagher
Kevin Yagher is a special effects technician, known for Freddy Krueger's makeup and the Crypt Keeper creature.His company, Kevin Yagher Productions, has created effects for Face/Off, Enemy of the State, Volcano, Starship Troopers, Conspiracy Theory, Radio Flyer, Mission: Impossible II, and Honey,...
, who would go on to provide the effects for such horror icons as Freddy Krueger
Freddy Krueger
Frederick Charles "Freddy" Krueger is a fictional, horrifying character from the Nightmare on Elm Street series of horror films. He first appears in Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street as a disfigured dream stalker who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams,...
and the Crypt Keeper from HBO's Tales from the Crypt. Kevin also had a cameo in the movie as the lead singer / guitarist for the band playing at the high school Halloween dance (Sammi Curr's hand reaches through the amplifier and explodes Yagher's head).
Soundtrack
All Sammi Curr music done by the band FastwayFastway (band)
Fastway is a British heavy metal band formed by guitarist, "Fast" Eddie Clarke, formerly of Motörhead, and bassist, Pete Way, formerly of UFO.-Career:...
and upcoming composer Christopher Young
Christopher Young
Christopher Young is an American music composer for both film and television.Many of his music compositions are for horror films, including Hellraiser, Tales from the Hood, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, Urban Legend, and Drag Me to Hell...
. In the stack of records the mother looks at, the last LP is a copy of Megadeth
Megadeth
Megadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California which was formed in 1983 by guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine, bassist Dave Ellefson and guitarist Greg Handevidt, following Mustaine's expulsion from Metallica. The band has since released 13 studio albums, three live albums, two...
's Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!
Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!
Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! is the debut album by the American heavy metal band Megadeth, released in June 1985 through Combat and Relativity Records. During the beginning of 1985, the band was given $8,000 by Combat Records to record and produce their debut album, but this...
, with a cut corner. Normally a record with cut corners denotes that it was a radio promo, or was for discounted sale only. The other records in the stack were also real releases. Included was a 4 song E.P. by U.S. heavy metal/horror rock band Impaler
Impaler
Impaler is a Minnesota horror metal band from the Twin Cities. Impaler formed in the spring of 1983 with founding members Bill Lindsey , Michael James Torok , "Commander" Court Hawley , Robert "Meaty Bob" Johnson , and Mike Senn...
, Rise of the Mutants
Rise Of The Mutants
Rise of the Mutants is the first release by horror rock group Impaler. It was their first album released through Combat Records.- Personal :Line-up*Bill Lindsey - vocals*Michael James Torok - guitars*Meaty Bob Johnson - drums*Commander Court Hawley - bass...
, and Canadian Thrash Metal band Exciter
Exciter (band)
Exciter is a Canadian speed metal band from Ottawa, Ontario. They are widely considered to be one of the first speed metal bands and a seminal influence of the thrash metal genre. Exciter have sold nearly 2.3 million units in the USA and a total sells at 10 million units worldwide...
's 1986 LP Unveiling the Wicked
Unveiling the Wicked
Unveiling the Wicked is the fourth studio album by the Canadian speed metal band Exciter, released through Music for Nations in 1986 and reissued through Megaforce Records in 2005.-Track listing:All songs by Beehler, Johnson & McPhee...
and Savatage
Savatage
Savatage is an American heavy metal band founded by the brothers Jon and Criss Oliva in 1978 at Astro Skate in Tarpon Springs, Florida.-Early days :...
's 1984 release The Dungeons Are Calling
The Dungeons Are Calling
-Personnel:Interesting to note is that in the liner notes for the album, they gave themselves roles instead of listing their instruments.*Jon Oliva - Shrieks of Terror *Criss Oliva - Metalaxe...
. On the walls in Eddies room there are posters of Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
, Anthrax
Anthrax (band)
Anthrax is an American heavy metal band from New York City, formed in 1981. Founded by guitarists Scott Ian and Danny Lilker, the band has since released ten studio albums and 20 singles, and an EP featuring Public Enemy. The band was one of the most popular of the 1980s thrash metal scene...
, Raven
Raven (band)
Raven are an English heavy metal band associated with the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. They had a hit with the single "On and On", and refer to their music as "athletic rock".-Formation:...
, Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
, Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
, Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
and Kiss
KISS (band)
Kiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in January 1973. Well-known for its members' face paint and flamboyant stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid to late 1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting,...
. On his locker door in school there is also a sticker with Lizzy Borden
Lizzy Borden (band)
Lizzy Borden is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983. Lizzy Borden is also the name of the band's lead vocalist.-History:Lizzy Borden specializes in the shock rock style originated by artists such as Alice Cooper and Kiss...
. Co-Composer Christopher Young
Christopher Young
Christopher Young is an American music composer for both film and television.Many of his music compositions are for horror films, including Hellraiser, Tales from the Hood, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, Urban Legend, and Drag Me to Hell...
went on to compose music for the films The Gift, Urban Legend
Urban Legend (film)
Urban Legend is a 1998 horror film starring Alicia Witt, Rebecca Gayheart, Jared Leto, Michael Rosenbaum, Natasha Gregson Wagner, Loretta Devine, Robert Englund, John Neville, Joshua Jackson, Regina King, and Tara Reid...
, Ghost Rider
Ghost Rider (film)
Ghost Rider is a 2007 superhero film written and directed by Mark Steven Johnson. Based on the character of the same name which appeared in Marvel Comics, the film stars Nicolas Cage as Johnny Blaze, a stunt motorcyclist who sells his soul to the Devil and transforms into thevigilante Ghost...
, Spider-Man 3
Spider-Man 3
Spider-Man 3 is a 2007 American superhero film written and directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay by Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargent. It is the third film in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man...
, Drag Me to Hell
Drag Me to Hell
Drag Me to Hell is a 2009 American horror film, directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay by Sam and Ivan Raimi. The plot focuses on loan officer Christine Brown , who tries to impress her boss by refusing to extend a loan to a gypsy woman by the name of Mrs. Ganush...
and The Uninvited
The Uninvited (2009 film)
The Uninvited is a 2009 American remake of the 2003 South Korean horror film A Tale of Two Sisters. It is unrelated to another 2003 Korean horror film and a 1944 American film, both of which have the same name.-Plot:...
. Gene Simmons was originally offered the role of Sammi Curr, but he did not think much of the script and ultimately agreed to do only a cameo as a radio DJ. Simmons later said in an interview that he chose to play the role as a childhood hero of his, Wolfman Jack
Wolfman Jack
Robert Weston Smith, known commonly as Wolfman Jack was a gravelly voiced US disc jockey who became famous in the 1960s and 1970s.-Early career:...
. The only band that performs music in the movie is Fastway
Fastway (band)
Fastway is a British heavy metal band formed by guitarist, "Fast" Eddie Clarke, formerly of Motörhead, and bassist, Pete Way, formerly of UFO.-Career:...
.
Release
The film was released theatrically in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
De Laurentiis Entertainment Group was a production company/distribution unit founded by producer Dino De Laurentiis.The company is notable for producing Manhunter, Blue Velvet, the horror films Near Dark and Evil Dead II, King Kong Lives , and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, as well as...
in October 1986. It grossed $6,797,218 at the box office. It was released on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
by Karl-Lorimar home video the following year.
The film was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by Platinum Disc Corporation in 2002. This version is currently out of print
Out of print
Out of print refers to an item, typically a book , but can include any print or visual media or sound recording, that is in the state of no longer being published....
. Some people believe the DVD cover to be misleading because it shows Gene Simmons and Ozzy Osbourne starring in the movie, when actually they only make very brief cameo appearances. On the back of the DVD artwork are also scenes from the making-of.
Anchor Bay Entertainment
Anchor Bay Entertainment
Anchor Bay Entertainment is a U.S. based home entertainment and production company and is a division of Starz Media, which is a unit of Starz, LLC. It was previously owned by IDT Entertainment until 2006 when IDT was purchased by Starz Media. Anchor Bay markets and sells feature films, series,...
was all set to release a 20th Anniversary DVD in 2006, but due to music copyrights, the release was cancelled. Anchor Bay so far has no plans to release any kind of DVD.
External links
- Trick or Treat at the Internet Movie Database
- Trick or Treat (1986) at The Croc's Domain