Phantasm 4K 1979

"Phantasm" is a veritable hymn to ingenuity. Like Rodriguez later, Don Cascarelli, the film's director, became the writer and director himself, as well as the cameraman and editor of his "brainchild. With a small budget, even by the standards of '79, Cascarelli managed to shoot a classic of the horror genre, which, most surprisingly, has not lost its originality even now. The plot of Phantasm is truly original: no mundane maniac with an axe or chainsaw hunting down sex-crazed teenagers, no trivial vampires or werewolves. No, he twists the intrigue much tighter, mixing in the same bottle and a suspicious funeral home owner who steals coffins with bodies from the cemetery, futuristic flying spheres that drill (literally) into the brain and adds ghastly dwarves who look remarkably like recently dead people.

All these oddities must be sorted out by brothers Jody and Mike, who have personally witnessed horrifying occurrences, among which the reanimated finger is not the creepiest...

Of course, now, almost thirty years after its creation, "Phantasm" can no longer scare you properly: the effects are outdated, the actors don't play very confidently, the film lacks some dynamism. But at the same time, the picture's atmosphere is mesmerizing, and the design is still striking. Especially impressive is the interior of the funeral parlor, a kind of eerie sterility.

Among other things, it is impossible not to mention the script that is just filled with all kinds of riddles and unexpected twists.

Special praise for the ending. I will definitely try to check out the next films in the series.