Phantasm (1979)
[Reader disclaimer: there will be spoilers discussed].
Horror has always been a family obsession. I inherited my love of it from my dad, passed down to him from my grandfather, who used to tell me all the time that his favourite horror was Phantasm (1979). I never got a chance to watch it when I was younger, so this week, I decided to bite the bullet and sit down to watch this classic horror that he was always raving about.
After watching, I'm still admittedly undecided as to how I feel about it. In essence, it is a surrealist piece masquerading as sci-fi, something you only become aware of in the film's final act. To some, I suppose it's a clever plot twist, and something that (contextually) was probably very new and inspired for its time.
However, I found myself sitting in the aftermath, unable to decide whether I was just being taken for a clever ride by director Don Coscarelli or swindled out of something that was supposed to be spectacular.
The musical score of the film is a grey area. On one hand, I loved the main theme: it's very reminiscent of Tubular Bells from The Exorcist (1973) and I imagine is iconic to those who enjoy this franchise. On the other hand, the overlying music of the film (although indicative of the era in which it was made) felt more distracting than atmospheric, at times more jarring than suspenseful. Sound effects such as footsteps or the movement of objects were amplified, as if to scare the audience: in reality, I found it annoying, not scary.
Scenes were intermittently too long, female characters only served as markers to push the narrative forward and dialogue felt forced in places. I'm aware that this film was made in the late 70s, but films such as The Exorcist have aged spectacularly, so I feel that there's no room for excuse with Phantasm.
The plot surrounds a young teenager named Mike, who begins to investigate the local mortician, otherwise known as The Tall Man. Played by Angus Scrimm, The Tall Man character is undoubtedly creepy and serves well as the film's main antagonist: there are definitely a few scenes where I found myself dreading his inevitable appearance.
I will also say that the surrealist imagery (the enigmatic, silver murder-sphere, the animate, dismembered finger that oozes a mustard-like substance, the gateway to another planet) made for a very entertaining product of the protagonist's paranoia and imagination. Although we later find out that none of these things are seemingly real, the agitation and confusion is undeniably intriguing for the viewer.
The clincher is, spoiler alert, that Mike has been asleep the entire time and that none of the film's events took place in what we consider to be our reality. Whilst I know that "it was a dream the whole time" is a cliché, it's likely that in context, it went down well with mainstream audiences. However, as a viewer in 2018, it felt uninspired.
I don't think it's the plot twist that particularly threw me, but it certainly felt more like the film spat in my face for assuming its genre and making deductions based on the science fiction elements that were presented to me, rather than the dramatic 'ta-da!' moment that I assume it was going for. Tonally, this film felt unforgiving and estranged, as opposed to clever and psychedelic. Perhaps that was Coscarelli's intention the entire time.
Either way, I can't say that I enjoyed Phantasm but I also wouldn't say that I hated it. I am, I guess, indifferent. I can see its appeal, I can see why it has the fan base that it does. But for me, it does not appeal to my sensibilities as a viewer intent on being scared and/or tantalised by a horror film.
If you liked this film, I'd also recommend the following:
- The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920)
- Suspiria (1976)
- Eraserhead (1977)
- Videodrome (1983)
- Eden Log (2007)
Overall rating: 5/10
- K
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