Wes Craven's Shocker (1989)

Every now and then you will run across a film like Shocker that isn't cinematically good, but for some reason, you can't help but to love anyways. I feel a certain amount of confliction when trying to decide a basic opinion of the overall film, but fortunately, am easily able to conjure up my opinion with no time at all: I love it. Simple as that. But I am also very aware of the fact that it's not really a good film. What does that really mean, though? What is a "good" film? What makes a "good" film? Well, the simple answer to that is that there is no answer; the answer is infinite. Whatever you decide a good film is, that's what a good film film is. And for me and my personal opinion on what a good film is, very simply, is anything that genuinely entertains you. If it entertains you, then it's a good film. Because that's why films are made. That's why music is made. To entertain you. So if it entertains you, then is it really bad? Shocker is a fantastic example, because cinematically, it isn't even remotely good, but somehow it is. If you really wanna break it down and analyze it for what it is, it's a cluttered, misdirected, overly ambitious attempt at filmmaking. Of course, the great horror maestro Wes Craven wrote and directed the film, and if you know the origin of the film, you may know that he had wanted to start another horror series much like his classic A Nightmare on Elm Street, so I think in that regard, he may have tried a little too hard and the result was a very mixed up, overcrowded and not incredibly technically good film. But all the way down at the other end of the spectrum, you have the side that is fucking great and is totally badass that makes certain technical aspects of the film not matter anymore. Although it seems like Wes Craven tried to use multiple ideas and concepts that didn't exactly translate, it all still made for a great, fun ride. And that's why I love it, and why it's one of my favorite Wes Craven films. In addition, it has a great soundtrack, with Megadeth covering Alice Cooper's No More Mr. Nice Guy, which also acts as the film's mantra. And with The Dudes of Wrath, whose members included Kiss' Paul Stanley, producer/songwriter Desmond Child, Def Leppard's Vivian Campbell, session guitarist Guy Mann-Dude, Quiet Riot's Rudy Sarzo and Motley Crue's Tommy Lee, performing the title song, Shocker. Above all, I would probably recommend Shocker to those who haven't seen it before any other horror film, especially those of Wes Craven. It would also be an injustice of me to not mention the incredible acting in the film. Mitch Pillegi, who portrays the film's primary antagonist, Horace Pinker, does an absolutely amazing job of playing such a sick, sadistic bastard. Peter Berg, who plays Jonathan Parker and who is the protagonist of the film, also does a surprisingly great job. Shocker, upon its release, was a financial success, but a critical failure. Critics and fans alike found the film to be too reminiscent of Craven's earlier film A Nightmare on Elm Street in the relation of dreams holding a primary plot point. Which I agree with, but am not strongly affected by it. So although Shocker has its problems, Wes Craven failed to disappoint, as always.

"I was beatin' you real good when your mama tried to stop me with the gun that she brought into our happy home. You must've remembered it boy. Don't you remember the way she screamed? And how clever you were picking up that gun and shootin' me right through the fuckin' knee, you little little peckerhead! Oh, such a big gun, just blastin' at your dear old dad with murder in your eyes. Like father, like son, huh?"

J. L. Pilkins