Pledge Night

The producers Shapiro/Glickenhaus, who were also responsible for one of my all time-trash favorites (Frank Henenlotter´s "Frankenhooker") made another "Friday"-rip off possible, which is better than most of the reviews say about it (What does not mean that "Pledge Night" is a good film!)...

The story is about a sadistic student´s establishment-ritual, where the newcomers have to drink from toilets or get branded... (That´s the first half of the film..!). One night however the monstrous Acid Sid, who looks like Alice Cooper with a cauterized face, returns and starts to take bitter revenge, because the trick they played on him about twenty years ago has been a little bit too deadly!

Probably the most interesting fact is that Joe Belladonna, former vocalist of the US-Speed Metal-Band Anthrax, has a small role. The rest is business as usual: some dumb youths get killed one by one, just with the difference that you mostly don´t see the murder, only the results... The most grotesque death is when a guy is strangulated by a spine.

It´s okay to watch "Pledge Night" one time, if you haven´t seen it you won´t miss anything!

A frat house is attacked by the ghost of a pledge that was accidently killed years ago during a prank on pledge night. Never has homosexual undertones ran so rampant in a slasher film. The guys are given spankings throughout, forced to particpate in all kinds of sadomaschtic activity, wear jockstraps, and have various objects put up their anus. Anyway, back to the film's merits, which it doesn't have any of. It doesn't have scares, the humor falls flat and despite attempts to be creative with the murder sequences, the lackluster direction stops them from working.

I played Chip and as bad - so bad it's funny - as this movie is I can't believe people are still talking about it. On the other hand it does have some of the best/worst lines ever. One complaint even thou my death scene had the blood cut out of it I believe the acting is more than bad enough to entertain. who knew people would talk about this film for so long.

In 1968, a young hippie frat pledge was killed in a hazing mishap, burned to death in a tub of muric acid. Two decades later, his demonic corpse returns to the frathouse during "Hell Week"(wherein hazing rituals take place). As bodies pile up, the new pledges are left to determine if the grisly goings-on are a terrible reality, or just a mean-spirited prank intended to further debase them.

The first half of this gonzo slasher mess is devoid of horror elements, and plays out like an edgy gay porn flick with a hazing theme(okay, let's face it...there's always been serious homocore in the whole fraternity thing anyhow). I think it's safe to say that this is the most ass-happy horror film of the ages, and even features a death scene which involves a small explosive lodged in a dude's ripe punani. Once the bloodshed starts, however, there's actually some fun to be had here(and the sheer lame-brainedness of it all is clearly intentional). Don't expect a high quality product(like you really would, right?), but if you put your brain on pause for 90 minutes, you might find yourself enjoying this slice of very 80s cine-crap. 4/10

It's great Vinegar Syndrome keeps unearthing forgotten b-movies. Here (meaning Finland) most of their releases are not just obscure, but films that were never released at all. Although I must say the excitement of seeing something new makes the experience kind of fragile. You forget a bit too easily that most of these titles are straight from the bottom of the barrel.

That being said, Pledge Night is not that bad, or at least not in the same pile as their worst releases. The actors actually feel like students, they have a chemistry, the movie has a point and an understandable structure and the sets feel believable plus there's surprisingly many outdoor shots, which boost up the mood since there was a snow blizzard during filming. The original soundtrack cues and Anthrax songs fit in nicely plus Joey Belladonna plays a cool cameo.

Considering the budget, the effects are pretty cool and creative too, although you can tell how they've made most of them. I'm not sure if some of the effects shots were never re-discovered or if the budget just wouldn't budge, but they set up some of those scenes so the viewer is waiting for it to escalate, but then cut into something else, which is a bit of a drag. Surprisingly some of the frat boy stuff is actually more gross than the bloodshed, and it's been reported that writer Joyce Snyder researched the subject thoroughly, so that part of the suffering was real!

So if you go in with zero expectations and realize that what you're seeing isn't exactly spectacular, it is an enjoyable horror comedy. It feels like they really tried to get out the best of it and had a lot of fun.