The Pit, Homicidal Adolescent

No matter how uncomfortable and taboo this film is, the ending is classic.  Yeah, it goes places where polite people don't like their films to go, but hey...if there is bloody carnage involved, we can forgive the film-makers.  Nudity, gore, and child-murder through the eyes of an adolescent 12 year old boy. Today we look at 1981's "The Pit" directed by Lew Lehman.

Jamie (Sammy Snyders), an awkward 12 year old is coming to grips with his sexuality.  In school he is frequently punished for his stash of nude girly photos.  He has a sultry mother (Laura Press) who is sexually molesting him.  As his parents leave for Seattle, they find a babysitter to stay with him...the nubile and bubbly Sandy (Jeannie Ellis). Jamie immediately falls into lustful love with Sandy and never misses a chance to see her nude in the shower or in bed.  Uh oh...Jamie has a Teddy Bear that goads him to doing some weird things.  Double uh oh, Jamie finds a pit in the woods with four monsters in it.

With no friends, Jamie befriends these creature.  He begins feeding them, first candy bars, then raw meat from the butcher shop, then folks who antagonize him.  He will feed them a little girl, and old woman in a wheel chair, then Sandy's beau, and more.  As Sandy refuses Jamie's advances we wonder if she will be fed to the creatures. Empowered, Jamie, with assistance from his bear, starts peeking in windows at nude women.  Are the creatures a mere metaphor for Jamie's raging hormones? As Sandy turns into a damsel in great distress, and perhaps a menu item, Jamie's homicidal tendencies increase, and the creatures get fatter.

Perhaps this film needs to be attached to modern day anti-bullying campaigns. Instead of an ineffective emoji on our smart phones, bullies can be told they will be eaten by monsters.  In any case, this film is not for everyone, and won't be discussed in polite company, but fans of this blog will have a certain affection for it.  Oh yes...the ending...you'll love it...see "The Pit."