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On April Fool's Day, perky teen gal Muffy invites
her bunch of high school pals to party at her
parent's summer house, located at a small island.
Mean practical jokes and pranks starts early,
but at the ferry ride over a man is seriously injured
and on the first night at the house one of the
friends disappears. Seems like someone is taking
the pranks a bit too seriously...
What first appears to be your regular Friday
the 13th slasher rip-off is more comic mystery
thriller with several surprise twists in the climax.
Compared to other similar 80s teen-flicks,
this is a very fun and likable little film which may
not stay in your memory forever but it's sure
good entertainment for the moment.
The cast and its characters are unusually
sympathetic, if somewhat stereotypical. We have
the pretty heroine, the jock boyfriend, the
prankster, the bitchy babe, the nerd...
And so on. But they're not as one-note as in
other films, but you can actually believe that
these people are a gang of friends.
The film is pretty uneven, its combination of
humor and scares doesn't really click and it has
on-going spark that never kicks in. It's not the
cult classic it wants to be -
and could have been.
The main cast has Deborah Foreman, who puts
in a terrific performance as Muffy, and Amy Steel
as the heroine, not being as annoying, as she was
in Friday the 13th Part 2.
Clayton Rhoner, who is very
funny as the comic relief prankster guy, was later
seen as a hero in films like The Relic and
Sometimes They Come Back for More.
The killings are done off-screen (with a
reasonable explanation). Still, there are some gore
like the boat-accident victim's makeup-effects in the
start of the film. There's also a pretty scary
scene with a girl climbing down a well for some
water and has a bunch of severed heads and dead
bodies popping up around her. And don't miss the
shock-surprise behind that painting with the eyes...
Pretty good Friday the 13th-like score, but
nothing notable. The climatic party scene features
the great, original version of "Mama Told
Me Not to Come" (not the one with
Tom Jones & Stereophonics).
Not for gore fans, but a fun and entertaining
80s horror flick with a fun sense of humor,
likable cast, some suspense and
several good plot twists.
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