By the end of 1989, slasher movies were experiencing vastly diminishing returns. To the point where the studios were more than happy to retire (or sell-off) their menagerie of stabby boogeymen. For a brief time, Leatherface and Freddy were making room for more “elevated” psychological thrillers like Misery, Cape Fear or Silence of the Lambs. That is until Wes Craven’s Scream took a Stab at giving the genre a proper burial in ’96… and also kind of revived it.
There exists this weird netherworld of lost Slashers from the early 90’s that stuck to the theater floor after falling between the seat cushions. Some like Leprechaun or Candyman were able to get some semblance of a franchise off the ground, while others like Doctor Giggles weren’t so lucky. But the tone was starting to shift. Things were getting a bit more meta and self-referential. This would eventually culminate into the pure postmodernism of Craven’s New Nightmare and Scream, but it was already starting to creep in with titles like There’s Nothing Out There and of course… Popcorn.
If you’ve never had the pleasure of tasting Popcorn, you’re in for a real treat. It’s a tribute to all things Horror, including the whodunnittry of Ten-Little-Indians-inspired Slashers of the late 70s and early 80s. It also has a stellar cast including Jill Schoelen, Dee Wallace, Tony Roberts, Kelly Jo Minter and the late, great Stork himself, Tom Villard.
Plus it’s ghost-produced by THE Bob Clark. ‘Nuff Said.
It’s a beautifully crafted love letter to Horror Cinema, and thusly Popcorn is much closer in spirit to Joe Dante’s Matinee than some of its contemporaries. Go grab a bag, and enjoy the aroma.
-Pop
Popcorn was spilled on Home Video today in 1991, shortly after its February 1st theatrical Smell-O-Vision.