Shriek of the Mutilated

Just a note of warning: The Retromedia DVD of "Shriek of the Mutilated" is missing one of the highlights of the movie...the use of the '70s syntho-pop instrumental hit "Popcorn" during the party scene early in the movie. I assume Retromedia couldn't get the music rights, so they dubbed in some unremarkable new background music. There also appear to be some cuts in the dialogue (for instance, when the St. Claires arrive at the party, Retromedia has removed a student's sarcastic remark about their presence). In its original form, this movie is a hysterical classic of bizarre filmmaking...so track down the out-of-print Lightning Video VHS release if you can.

In other words...a must see! Five minutes into this epic genre masterpiece you'll forget that wannabe horror films like PSYCHO and THE EXORCIST even exist. SHRIEK truly is the one.

Four college students are invited by a professor to go to a secluded island to investigate reports of a killer Yeti/Abominable Snowman. But First they attend a happenin' 70s party complete with groovy music, fashions and that legendary disco instrumental "Popcorn," which sounds like a bunch of kernels popping. A guy walking in accidentally bumps his head on a low-hanging ceiling light! Another professor from the college warns the four students not to go, but his wife nags him and wants to leave. When the couple return home he cuts her neck open with an electric carving knife!! He jumps into the bathtub fully clothed and cracks open a beer, when his still-alive wife crawls in the room, throws in a toaster that isn't even plugged in and electrocutes him!

The four students decide to go anyway and are attacked and killed by an awful white creature that looks more like THE SHAGGY DOG than a Yeti. The filmmakers decided it would be best to blur out of the face of the monster so we never even get a good look at it. But wait! There's more! The monster is actually (surprise!) a guy dressed up, and the island is home to a cannibal clan who want the students as dinner. Wow!

Full of hilariously awful acting, dialogue, FX and editing, this effort from the untoppable husband and wife team of Michael and Roberta Findlay is a laugh riot that deserves a cult following. It belongs with PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE at the top of the so-bad-it's-good genre. More people should see it. For fans of this stuff, it's a classic.

(Quality) Score: 1 out of 10 (And I mean that in a good way!)

Well, take four studious grad students desiring to impress their professor on a weekend jaunt to "Boot" Island(Heaven knows where that is...but by the looks of the area I would say Upstate New York), a professor intent on finding the Yetti(in New York no less), and a mixture of cheap special effects, implausible situations, horrendous acting, and a lively tune called Popcorn and you have the makings of a great film ...right? Well maybe not great, but certainly entertaining. This film is a joy to behold for lovers of bad films and is thoroughly entertaining on that level. The story is about how four students are invited on a hunt to find a Yetti only to discover they find themselves the meat d'jour on the menu for some evil cult. The film has some wonderful moments of really inspiring bad acting as well as some of the corniest dialogue around.

I'm sorry to say I saw this one back in the 70's at a Drive In.We all laughed at it for months.We tried to determine if it was filmed in someones back yard and what the total budget was.The canniblism aspect was a good spin though.This movie was very good for laughs and comments like " Hey who's idea was it to watch this one?"I think it ranks right up there with Plan 9 ,Microwave Massacre and even Ishtar.Make sure you drink heavily when you watch it.It makes it easier.I do recommend it.Do not spend more than 2 bucks if possible.I would also recommend that you do not watch this one on a first date.Wait till at least the third,and it may even just be your last.

I saw this movie originally in the theaters when I must have been about 6-7. A babysitter took me, and it quite literally made me afraid to walk in the woods alone for many years. I ran across it again when I was about 20 and couldn't believe it had scared me so. The costumed "monster" looked like he had been adorned with bathroom throw rugs to resemble not so much a yeti but more like an overgrown Pekingese. The out-of-focus close-ups on the beasts slavering mouth as he bit at his victims only served to accentuate his lapdogness. Still, the movie made for good fun as my friends and I took great pleasure in predicting which of the students would fall next or how bad the next cannibal joke would be. For an amusing if not forgettable night, pick this up wherever fine foods are served.