The made
for T.V. movie marathon continues. This time we dip into the mid ‘80s for a bit
of Halloween fun. This ABC movie premiered the day after Halloween and tells
the story of one terrible All Hallows Eve when the dead came back to haunt the
town of Pitchford Cove. This is a good one so let us waste no time diving in.
The local
teenagers are getting ready for Pitchford Cove’s annual costume party on
Halloween night. They get the bright idea of breaking into the local museum and
stealing the authentic costumes from the towns legendary witch and witch
hunter. While poking around the find a chest and take it with them as well. After
finding a scroll they decide to break the seal and read it in the cemetery!
Really teenagers are so stupid… All the dead and demons from hell are unleashed
and it is up to one of the teens to save the day. But first we get some mayhem.
The
Midnight Hour is a well assembled movie that is paced quickly, has a lot of
humor, some creepy monsters, and a satisfying ending. The story wastes no time
establishing the characters and getting them right to the good stuff. We go
from meeting them to holy crap there are bad things everywhere quickly and that
is one of the things that makes the movie fun. The casting is perfect and
features some familiar faces. Let me give you a prime example that will blow
your mind (if you are a child of the ‘70s anyway…). Vampire dentist Dick Van
Patten! How can that not bring a smile to your face? Oh, and the legendary
Kevin McCarthy shows up playing the father of one of the kids. Towards the end
of his career no one did the angry old guy better.
The movie
is also surprisingly sweet. While the characters might not realize that the
cheerleader, Sandy, who shows up is a ghost we certainly should. Her reactions
at “modern” 1985 is amusing to watch. She also gets to have a romance, completely
innocent in a ‘50s sappy way, that she never had in life. There are also some
funny bits the ghouls as they show up at the big costume party. Everyone
assumes that they are just people dressed up which means you have zombies
making out on the couch and a little demon guy commiserating with a spurned
teen boy. Maybe not laugh out loud but it was amusing. It is also a very sad twist
when Sandy is forced to help save the town, knowing that it will send her back
as well. There is a song and dance routine that is quintessentially an ‘80s
thing that put a smile on my face as well.
 |
| Not bad makeup for a made for television movie! |
The
creature designs are good. The ghouls/zombies look stellar. We get a couple of
them that seem to be featured. They get a lot of screen time and the makeup
holds up really well. Even when viewed in close-ups. We get a lot of background
zombies in the cemetery scene that are just tattered clothes and grey skin, but
they aren’t really seen until the end. There are also a couple of werewolves
that look okay. The vampires are mostly just teeth and not much else. We do get
a nice vampire attack in a wine cellar that is staged in a unique and memorable
fashion.
There is a
lot to like about The Midnight Hour. I can’t think of a made for T.V. horror
movie that I like any better than this one. I put it right up there with the
Kolchak movies from the early ‘70s and Dark Night of the Scarecrow from 81.
This movie used to be impossible to find (I still have my bootlegged VHS rip on DVD!) but while writing this review I found it on YouTube. See the link at the top of this page. Really you should check this one out!
© Copyright 2018 John Shatzer
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