The plot is as basic as they come. A deranged lunatic escapes from prison or a mental institution (it’s irrelevant) and terrorizes a group of girls (and two dorky guys) as they have a slumber party. The killer’s weapon of choice happens to be a power drill, which he uses to impale and slash his way through everyone he sees. Can the girls escape from this madman’s grasp before becoming victim to his merciless drill? You can probably guess the answer to that question with a great deal of confidence, as this is as cookie cutter as it gets.
The film was written and directed by Amy Jones, and while she doesn’t have too many recognizable directing credits, she did write a number films including Mystic Pizza, Indecent Proposal, and Beethoven. As far as the writing and directing goes for this movie, it’s probably on par with the last three films I mentioned. The fact that this movie was directed by a woman is probably the most surprising aspect of all, considering how much pointless nudity and deliberate camera shots of breasts and butts there were. I guess that’s just a testament that exploitation cinema contains no gender bias in its creators.
Probably the biggest disappointment with Slumber Party Massacre is the actual massacre itself. Most of the kills were unimaginative and mediocre, even for the earl 80s. Friday the 13th blew the lid off the slasher genre, and that was two years prior. The thing about slasher flicks is, as sadistic as it may sound, the viewer is always looking for the craziest, most gruesome death scenes. There’s little to no attachment to the characters and most of the time you want to see them get killed. So when you watch a slasher that features no creativity in its dispatching of teenagers, it’s always a let down.
It should also be mentioned that there were two horrendous sequels spawned from this film. The first starred Crystal Bernard from the TV show Wings and took a more supernatural tone with a rockabilly killer that used a guitar drill to terrorize the kids. There was a loose connection to the original in that Bernard’s character was in the first film and was the younger sister of the protagonist.
The third entry is as equally forgettable as the first two, however it ditches the supernatural junk and goes back to the maniac with a drill formula, this time it’s the nephew of the original killer.
The only distinction this movie has over the many that come after it, is simply that it’s a product of its time. The 80s slasher will almost certainly be more entertaining and enjoyable than anything to come out in the 90s and beyond. That statement isn’t without exceptions of course, but most will agree, the 80s was the reign of the slasher and they don’t make ’em like they used to, even mediocre entries such as Slumber Party Massacre.
