Spectre

The Boogeyman (1980)

*** (out of 4)

As a child, Willy killed his mother's lover and all of it was reflected in a mirror and witnessed by his sister Lacey. Now, as adults, Lacey (Suzanna Love) begins to struggle so her husband recommend she go see a doctor (John Carradine). The doctor recommends she return to her childhood home and when she does she sees that mirror and breaks it. Soon a possession and murders follow.

Ulli Lommel's THE BOOGEYMAN is a rather effective horror film that I've always felt deserved to have a much better reputation. People have said it borrowed from HALLOWEEN and various possession films and perhaps it did but at the same time it has such a unique and weird atmosphere that you can't help get drawn into its story and the characters. THE BOOGEYMAN certainly deserves to be better remembered as it is quite effective.

The film shows what a talented director can do whenever he doesn't have too much money. The film has a terrific atmosphere that comes from the director's sense of style and especially the camera work. Just check out the sequence when Lacey is looking around the old house and the camera just basically floats around her making it seems as if someone is there waiting for her. The ending is also quite effective with the director using various color tints to build up a strong atmosphere.

The entire film really has a raw and creepy feel to it and all the credit must go to Lommel. The performances are a mixed bag but I think Love, while not the greatest actress, at least manages to keep us caught up in the story. You've also got John Carradine who shows up for a couple scenes, which means he was probably on the set for a day or two at most. The special effects are quite effective and especially the now somewhat notorious scissor death.

THE BOOGEYMAN has probably had its reputation lowered due to a couple really awful sequels, which is too bad because this is a rather effective movie.

I first saw this in the late 80s on a vhs n found it to be pretty disturbing and creepy.

Of course as a kid i didn't notice the blatant plagiarism but simply enjoyed the movie.

Revisited it recently n was kinda wtf man. It has shades of Amityville Horror, Halloween n a bit of The Exorcist regarding the exorcism.

The movie is still creepy n atmospheric but it has too many silly n wtf moments.

I always found Susanna Love beautiful but her filmography is too short.

Now lets talk bah some wtf stuff.

The mother's lover aint some voodoo specialist or some satanic cultist serial killer but his spirit gets trapped inside some ordinary mirror. Why n how, its never shown.

Lacey's husband Jake took the broken mirror n placed it in his home n tried fixing the broken pieces? Weird fella. Now who wud do that?

How come the mirror stayed intact for twenty years n none of the new owners tried to get rid of an old stuff?

Lacey's brother does the act from Of Mice and Men, he tries to kill a girl who seduces him in the barn. Now whether he gets possessed or he is simply a psycho is never shown.

In the end its never shown whether the priest survived or not?

What happened to the injured Jake?

And why wud they show Lacey visiting just a single grave when both her uncle n aunt died?

Why Jake didn't accompany her?

Till the end they never showed what happened to the mother and its just assumed that she is on her deathbed via the letter.

Other than "THE DEVONSVILLE TERROR" (which I didn't particularly care for). I'm fairly new to Ulli Lommel's work, but I gotta say the shoe-string budgeted "THE BOOGEYMAN" was rather a nice surprise. In spite of its stilted nature (especially the scenes involving John Carradine's psychobabble), there's something rather interesting, creative, visually enticing and uncanny around its process of a supernatural slasher. Maybe even a pioneer for the sub-genre, as what felt like a thematic blueprint, still with some slasher influences, eventually goes down its own path. How the plot goes about it early, I thought it was going to be more traditional, where we get a psychological based psychopathic breakdown (the brother), and one's attempt (the sister) to overcome their demons, but once the mirror (the evil entity's source of power) comes into the picture. There begins the supernatural interference, and it doesn't hold back.

An invisible force, POV shots, heavy breathing, floating objects, glowing neon special effects and a growing death toll, as one by one people's fates end in a rather horrific, and jolting demise. These victims just seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's nothing out of the ordinary, can come across as crude, and at this point the story does begin to get sloppy in the details, yet it manages to pack a sting. Lommel's low-scale aesthetics do construct some stylish usage from its leering camerawork, moody lighting, stately rural backdrop (with a farmhouse resembling "AMITYVILLE HORROR") and minimal set-pieces. But the real talking point is that screwy electronic music score. It perfectly adds to the strange, traumatic vibe of the escalating insanity of the situations. Something that once it starts definitely won't leave your head. The acting is quite sound, and Suzanna Love shows she has quite a set of lungs on her.

surprising because Ulli Lommel was involved in writing directing and producing this thing.i didn't realise Lommel was behind it until i got it home.by then figured what the hey.i mean how bad could it be,right.after all,i managed to see at least some of Lommel's other travesties,B.T.K and Black Dalia.those were putrid.The Boogeyman however,is not.it has interesting story,some decent performances,and some unusual music/sound effects.it is readily apparent a low budget production,but i could watch it all,without having to pause to vomit,so that's something.no classic by any means,but still...for me The Boogeyman is a 5/10

Young Lacey (Natasha Schiano) is forced to watch as her brother Willy (Jay Wright) stabs their mothers' lover to death with a big, sharp kitchen knife. Also witness to the killing is a bedroom mirror. 20 years later, the now-grown-up Lacey (Suzanna Love) and Willy (Nicholas Love, Suzanna's real-life brother) are living with an aunt & uncle on their farm. Willy, although mute, seems to be dealing with this dark past better than her; in desperation, her husband Jake (Ron James) tries to make her face her fears, but he only makes things worse. Now, Lacey is afraid that the lovers' vengeful spirit has been released from the mirror and is out for blood.

Overall, the script (by producer & director Ulli Lommel, Suzanna Love (his real-life wife at the time), and David Herschel is pretty slight, and sloppy. But Lommel, who had a background in art films, still creates a funky and amusing supernatural slasher that plays like a mash-up of "The Exorcist" and "Halloween". (Not for nothing is the fact that the farmhouse is very "Amityville"-esque.) The pacing is actually pretty good, and the film is over before the viewer knows it. Once the story really kicks into gear, "The Boogey Man" is quite fun, and colourful, with some very enjoyable splatter effects (and a sense of humour). Eventually, it can't help but get rather cheesy, but the finale is a genuine hoot regardless.

The gorgeous Suzanna acts her little heart out in the lead. The supporting cast is variable; most of these no-names are obvious amateurs. Token "name" cast member John Carradine, one of those old-time veterans who said "yes" to a lot of scripts in order to keep earning a living, is kind of wasted as a psychiatrist. Nicholas L. does an okay job as the unsmiling sibling.

One point of interest is the sometimes offbeat and sometimes catchy electronic soundtrack composed by Tim Krog. It's very reminiscent, at times, of the legendary "Tubular Bells".

Lightly amusing horror fare, with some entertaining special effects. It was followed three years later by "Boogeyman II".

Seven out of 10.