Rating: 3/5
Mark, Sarah, China, and Tony (Dana Ashbrook from Twin Peaks!) are seniors in high school. A waxwork suddenly appears in their neighborhood, and a mysterious man invites Sarah and China to the grand opening. Reluctantly, the leads attend the opening
The waxwork is quite lifelike, and each scene is from a different horror movie genre — werewolves, vampires, mummies, uh… Marquis De Sade? Tony finds an exhibit with a chair and tries to step over the cord, but when he does, it transports him to a real-life version of the scene, which traps him
China, too, falls into one of the scenes, and Mark and Sarah can’t find them. They try to go to the police, who say several other people are missing, but they won’t help the kids. It’s up to Sarah and Mark to figure out what the waxwork is up to and how to stop it
The movie has a goofy, almost made-for-TV vibe until the gore starts flying, and it’s surprisingly graphic — the first kill we see is a guy being ripped in half. It’s pretty fun in places, but by the time it needs to resolve the plot, it starts to feel rushed and shabby
What I’m more interested in is how the movie portrays women who want sex. China is someone who hooks up with anyone she wants. At one point, it’s Mark, but by the next day, it’s someone else. In some ways, she is chasing danger to mix up her dull life
— I do what I want when I want. Dig it or fuck off
In typical horror fashion, China’s desire for danger is, ultimately, what kills her as she succumbs to Dracula
Sarah, though, is a horror movie oddity. First off, while having a little crush on Mark, when the moment comes that she can go out with him, she decides she wants something different (see spoilers for more)
Overall, it’s a movie that’s more fun to think about than watch, but for the horror enthusiast, you could do worse than this
Stray Thoughts:
- Just like Mark, I had to have a tall glass of milk instead of caffeine when I was in high school
- Are we to assume the German history teacher is a Nazi?
- I laughed out loud when that guy grabbed a bat and shot it’s head off
** SPOILERS ** That something different Sarah wants ends up being S&M as she finds herself chained up and whipped by De Sade himself. Through this, she experiences her first orgasm and wants it to keep going until he kills her
Mark comes in to save her, but he does not shame her for being into it — he’s just looking out for her life. Later, it comes full circle when De Sade comes alive and nearly kills Mark, and Sarah delivers the killing blow to De Sade and saves Mark’s life