Rating: 3/5
Hooptober 5.0 | 29/32 | Tobe Hooper 1/2
Nevada Desert 1955 At a hydrogen bomb testing site, “I Don’t Want to Set the World On Fire” by The Ink Spots plays as Brian and Peggy strap into their test harnesses. They are twenty feet below ground level in an underground bunker, testing its efficacy during an atomic bomb.
Suddenly, the bomb named Samson explodes — the bloom is so big you can see it from space. Brian and Peggy’s bunker shakes, but they survive. The military declares them as heroes — “the first nuclear family” — and that they are within the normal range of irradiation.
They have a son named David. They measure his rads, and he seems normal. He has a fever and a perfect circle birthmark on his hand. The nurse brings David to his parents for a moment. When she takes David away, Brian and Peggy burst into flames.
Trinidad Beach, California 1989 It’s Sam Kramer’s birthday. It’s also the anniversary of the Hiroshima bomb. He bombs (ha!) an audition for King Lear with his girlfriend, Lisa.
People in Sam’s life keep burning to death. No one is sure why or how. He hears a radio program about spontaneous combustion. Thus begins a path of discovery that will lead Sam to a horrifying discovery.
Like many Tobe Hooper movies, the established world is fascinating and weird. But with stepping through the plot points, it feels effortful and doesn’t quite gel.
Nevertheless, the effects are extreme and terrifying.
Brian Dourif makes a meal of his hot-headed role. When his powers go into effect, it’s brutal! Things burst into flames around him, his birthmark grows, and holes pop open on his body, shooting blood and fire everywhere.
I may not love it as much as the Hoopsters, but it’s still better than critics claim.
** Stray Thoughts / Spoilers **
- It’s satisfying watching John Landis burst into flames.
- Homeopathic migraine pills??
- Why do they let him get angry? Shouldn’t they be trying to quell his anger, no matter what?
- All Lisa’s translucent neon stuff rules — her phone, her jukebox, and so on. What is that design style called?
- Neon green goo that fixes everything? Sure!