I mentioned FRIGHT NIGHT a few days ago. It was the other half of a premium cable double feature with HOUSE that blew me away in the 80s.
It’s also a movie I can watch again and again and again as a terrific blend of 80s teen comedy, modern horror, and gothic horror. It’s hilariously funny when it needs to be, charming when it needs to be, and creepy as Hell when it needs to be.
The cast of this movie is truly something else. William Ragsdale as Charlie is every guy I ever knew in high school. Amanda Bearse as Amy, the girl next door, is near perfect casting. And Roddy McDowall as Peter Vincent? So terrific as the ACTOR who has fallen on less-than-glorious times.
Of course, Chris Sarandon as Jerry Dandrige, the vampire, is killer. He is the sincere and vicious, friendly and fiendish. He makes the monster sympathetic.
Now, a lot of people raved over Stephen Geoffreys’ performance as Evil Ed. And they should! He’s awesome! But I must admit, I was always more fascinated by Jonathan Stark’s performance as creepy handyman/undead underling. He’s just so… menacing . But also, like Jerry, he seems like he’d be fun to hang out with.
My biggest disappointment when watching this movie? The sequel, FRIGHT NIGHT 2, is not readily available in the US. I haven’t seen it since the early, early 90s, and I really want to revisit it.
PAIRED READING:
FRIGHT NIGHT is a throwback to classic gothic horror movies. If that’s your thing, run—don’t walk—to you local comic shop and tell them that you want to pre-order THE MIDNITE SHOW from Dark Horse.
