How can a cheesy 80's
thriller, replete with man-perms, saxophone solos and unwaxed female
'staches' (not Kelly), scare the bejesus out of me? I don't really
know how or why, but "Spellbinder" is an obscure little movie that
gives me the creeps.
Hardly anyone has ever seen this film. It was released back in the
fall of 1988, making only a couple of million bucks, and I am pretty
sure that it has only ever seen the light of day on cable once or
twice. You might be able to find a rare VHS copy at the bottom of
Wal-Mart's bargain bin. And if you think this film is as successfully
eerie as I do, you can find a Region 4 DVD (Aus) on the internet from
time to time.
The plot revolves around Jeff Mills, played by Tim Daly of "Wings" in
the days before Hollywood realized that he wasn't leading man
material. He is a single lawyer, struggling to sustain romantic
relationships.
One night, he and his hoops buddy witness a man backhanding a
beautiful woman and they hurry to intervene. After a
testosterone-induced stand-off, the face-slapping creep leaves the
scene vowing revenge.
The woman is Miranda Reed (Kelly Preston), a stunning beauty who has
no where else to go. So, naturellement, Jeff invites her back to his
place -- he promises to sleep on the couch.
When they arrive back at his pad, she immediately recognizes the
artists in his bad jazz collection and the painters whose "modern art"
hangs on his walls. She reads his palm and heals his aching back --
Oooohh hhooo Witchay Woman!!!
Anyway, after about 24 hours together, we get the obligatory 1980's
love scene (an excuse to see Scientology boobs), and the two of them
are virtually head over heels in love.
All of Jeff's friends love Miranda -- She is the perfect girlfriend...
the one he has been waiting for. The only person who suspects
something fishy is Jeff's secretary, who catches Miranda taking a
turkey out of the oven without mitts.
So, as is typical in medium-budget 80's schlock, we get happy scene,
scary scene, happy scene, scary scene until it escalates to the
chillingly corny final act.
I don't want to spoil the surprise for anyone... but it does follow
the same path as a famous 1970's horror movie which was recently
remade. It is not exactly an original movie... But it works
surprisingly well.
The fact that Tim Daly is rather dorky in this film actually works to
its advantage. He is easy to sympathize with. I've always thought of
Kelly Preston as underrated. She has been really good in lots of
average films. This isn't her best performance. She is generally
resigned to being fabulous eye-candy in "Spellbinder" -- going from
pageant pretty to melodramatically concerned. Then again, if anyone is
good at playing a 1980's eye candy girl... it's Kelly.
The film's final act makes me itchy all over. It makes me want to turn
the lights up as bright as they will go. It just gives me goosebumps
every time.
Is it a quality film? No. The production values are on a par with most
Skinemax movies. However, I am still going to give it a good grade
because manages to do what most horror movies fall far short of... It
scares me like I was a five year old. |
