The Phantasm series began in 1979 and wrapped up in 2016 spanning a whopping 5 movies. It's good. I swear it's good. Take my word on it. Well, okay. I'll try and give you a bit more to go on.
The key phrases here are:
-An army of undead (but not zombies or vampires).
-Little, metal, flying spheres that kill people (in every movie).
-A tall man who is impossible to kill (who says "BOOOYY" a lot).
-Crazy things happen (but might not have actually happened).
-There is an ice cream man who is a gun-toting bad ass (but can't for the life of him get a date).
-Midgets. (Most of them are bad. Most of them.)
I could keep going. Have I spoiled the movie yet? Were you able to take those bullet points and assemble a plot? I bet you couldn't!
The Phantasm series, as a whole, feels like someone's fever dream that they just can't escape from. Funny thing about that! It was actually based on a dream! It shows. There are a lot of things about this series that seems to fit "dream logic."
Apparently all the glass in the world is made out of sugar. There was one moment where a little boy easily jumped through the back window of a hearse. How? I mean... seriously how? Guns very rarely ever need to be reloaded. They just shoot forever until the characters start talking and then that's when they reload. Cars apparently don't need gas. People don't seem to know the world is ending half the time. People literally act like nothing is happening. It's bizarre. But then... it might be a dream.
But I'm not saying the series is a dream. I'm saying it's like a dream. It's like reality changes into a dream. You sort of have to roll with it. If you fail at this, you'll probably just end up going nuts. Half the time you're watching the Phantasm movies you feel like your nuts. The movie seems to seamlessly transition from one scene to a completely unrelated scene. But wait... it is related. It only felt unrelated. In the end... everything made sense somehow. They pulled it off. Somehow. I'm actually quite tired, sorry.
I think I am just padding this out so that you know what I know. And what I know is that the Phantasm series is good. It is really, really good. And everything is explained well enough. And the conclusion is weirdly satisfying. And I am really just ready to move on after letting five movies rearrange my head. Watch these films!
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The title itself summarizes the series. Like you said, it is a universe based on dream logic. EVERYTHING about it is surreal, even the attitudes of the supposedly normal people. Even as a genre it is indescribable: horror? science fiction? fantasy? Interestingly, for all the strangeness, the world is immersive and its characters endearing.
ReplyDeleteYou showed me these films! Thank you so much!
DeleteI love this series, the surreal nature of it makes for a wild ride. The characters are over the top and interesting. Reggie and his quad barreled shotgun are iconic, not to mention the car... the Hemi-cuda. Interesting fact, the Tall Man (played by Angus Scrimm) was 6'4" he was portrayed as being taller by camera and wardrobe work.
ReplyDeleteThe Tall Man was before Slender Man so I do wonder if the Tall Man was the inspiration. They are scary in the same way.
DeleteThat car! Hahahaha! So funny how they kept making it the centerpiece.
DeleteI have only seen the first one, but I enjoyed it. The tall man was creepy and the movie did have a dreamlike quality. I loved the flying spheres and the way the tall man would show up unexpectedly.
ReplyDeleteYou should see the whole thing. The main character reminds me a lot of you.
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