The Trick or Treat Picture Show, Reliving the Drive-In

Those late 1970s and early 1980s represented an era very dear to us slasher film and drive-in movie fans. Movie-maker Anthony Ashmore agrees and he has given us a love letter to that golden (or shall we say...blood red) age of cinema. Just like the drive-in films we loved so much, Mr. Ashmore gives us grainy picture quality, missing reels, beautiful damsels in much distress, hunks with no purpose, and soulless slashers with machetes and hammers. Hence 2019's "The Trick or Treat Picture Show."

Those proverbial damsels in much distress and the fiends that beset them. In this four hour drive-in experience (compressed into 90 minutes) Christine (Christine James Walker) and Audrey (Annabelle Bailer) do a fine job in performances that would impress Jamie Lee Curtis. Though they are in two separate films, the duo acts as a metaphor for why we all love these films. They are underdogs against the evil that stalks them, their daily struggles in life are met with a dignity and nobility...and their hot...and us guys (or teens back then) have hormones. The monsters that hunt them are indeed soulless, which may be the opposite metaphor, the vicious and unforgiving nemesis of us all, that is real life. Despite the fact that we meet these slasher-film staples after a hint of a movie capturing the mood of "The Devil's Rain" or "The Dunwich Horror," Anthony Ashmore knows our affections for this 1980s cinema, and its backbone...the slasher and his nubile victims.

But wait! Mr. Ashmore's film gives us the entire drive-in experience, and you know what that means. Right, we're going to get hungry, hence Frankenmummies! You'll see, no spoilers here, but have a paper and pencil handy when you watch and this film experience will also carry you into the kitchen...Food Network, eat you're heart out. As a movie-maker, Mr. Ashmore excels, but this bloke also does the music. Remember that drive-in theater  music that played during the intermission, and also before and after the features? You'll be humming it through Christmas as this film is neck deep in those harmonies...enjoy, and be ready to yearn for an under-cooked hot dog.

Perhaps and anthology film...or a medley of fond memories of a bygone era...either way, this tribute to the drive-in theater will have you longing for scream-queens with the face of P.J. Soles and body of Pamela Susan Shoop (or vice versa)...oh wait...we never stopped longing for those ladies. Never mind, "The Trick or Treat Picture Show" will serve as affirmation that you are not alone in your affection for pulp, sleaze,  and slasher horror. So go forth and boldly proclaim your preference for these films and if someone calls you on it...refer them to this film.
For further information on "The Trick or Treat Picture Show," click on these links:
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Trick or Treat Trailer