Star Time, A Slasher Born from TV

What do you get when we mesh "Videodrome" and "Henry: Portrait of s Serial Killer"? Yep, today's feature.  The two aforementioned 1980s horror classics obviously inspired this 1992 offering that may be the magnum opus of John P. Ryan.  This fable is convicting and perhaps talks to all of us about what our minds do when deluged with the nonsense we watch every week on the tube.  Madness and gratuity abound, and some of this film will break your heart.  Let us look at "Star Time," directed by Alexander Cassini.

Uh oh...Henry's (Michael St. George) favorite TV show, "The Robertson Family" is ended by the network.  This show was not a mindless sitcom to Henry.  The characters were real and in his mind, his family. The mentally unstable Henry has only one friend now, his social worker/therapist, the nubile Wendy (Maureen Teefy).  She does not really have an understanding of this cancelled show or what it means to her patient's psyche.  Sadly, she'll find out.  Now, Henry is about to commit suicide when the head of "The Robertson Family," the dad (Ryan) shows up and introduces himself as Sam.  Sam is distraught too but more philosophical.  He convinces Henry not to end it all and instead to make something of himself in show business.  Become someone important.  Be significant.  Matter.  Yep, you guessed it, a serial killer.

Sam fixes Henry up with a hatchet and a baby mask.  Soon, after dozens of murders, Henry will be known as "The Baby Mask Killer."  He preys on families who are watching TV.  In Henry's mind, as coached by Sam, he is making his victims important by allowing them to be covered on the evening news.  Being on TV is akin to immortality.  Now Henry is immortal and loving the fame.  Poor Henry, his sense of reality was never there.  Even sadder, the pretty Wendy has no idea the level of Henry's delusion and paranoia. With hatchet in hand and mask on his face, Henry sets out to win over Wendy and also to introduce her to Sam.  Sam is not pleased that now he will have to share Henry with this babe.

Is Sam real or just part of Henry's insane brain manifesting itself as his new buddy?  Will Wendy be able to figure out Henry's true level of madness before meeting a hatchet in the head?  Is this film an accurate metaphor of what TV has done to the past three generations of Americans?  Heartbreaking, with an astronomical kill count, and difficult to watch, this is a splendid slasher film and Mr. Ryan, Mr. St. Gerard, and Miss Teefy all turn in stellar performances.  See "Star Time" and evaluate what your favorite TV show is doing for you, or to you.