Ted Nicolaou, who some may remember directed Subspecies, has had quite an interesting career, especially in the horror genre. After graduating from film school, his first job was as a sound recorder for 1974’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. In 1979, he worked as an editor on the film Tourist Trap, where he first met producer Charles Band. He continued editing for Band on movies like The Day Time Ended, The Alchemist, Trancers, Ghoulies, and Zone Troopers. Eventually, Nicolaou got to direct a segment of The Dungeonmaster, but later asked Band to direct a full-length feature. Band presented him with a poster and a title, “TerrorVision”, and told him to come up with the concept. With this in mind, Nicolaou decided to make it a comedy that satirized the excess and tropes of the 1980s. After some months shooting in Italy, 1986 saw the release of Nicolaou’s feature debut, TerrorVision.
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Stan Putterman (Gerrit Graham) is working on his new satellite dish when it gets struck by a bolt of lightning. This ends up boosting the dish’s signal, much to the shock and amazement of the rest of the Putterman family. Later on, their son Sherman (Chad Allen) settles in to watch some monster movies with his survivalist Grampa (Bert Remsen). Meanwhile, Stan and his wife Raquel (Mary Woronov) go out to meet some swingers, who they eventually bring back home. Their daughter Suzy (Diane Franklin) goes out with her metalhead boyfriend OD (Jon Gries), leaving Sherman and Grampa all alone. That night, while Sherman and Grampa fall asleep, a giant alien monster emerges from the TV and eats Grampa. Soon, the rest of the family return home and Sherman tries warning them about the monster, but to no avail. Soon, the monster runs rampant and eating everything in its path.
Even for an 80s horror-comedy, TerrorVision is such a strange and ridiculous film that shouldn’t work but weirdly does. The entire cast is having a great time, playing their parts as over-the-top as possible and reveling in the absurdity. You have Gerrit Graham and Mary Woronov as the parents with the sensibilities of the 50s mixed with 80s weirdness. Then there’s Diane Franklin, whose character is like a more exaggerated Cyndi Lauper mixed with a stereotypical 80s valley girl. Along with the crazy survivalist Grampa and the stereotypical metalhead OD, Chad Allen’s Sherman is pretty much the straight man. Also worth mentioning is Jennifer Richards as Medusa, a horror hostess inspired by Elvira who has some fun moments. Lastly, there’s Sonny Carl Davis in a small role, who would later go on to be a Full Moon regular. This is one of the best B-movie casts assembled.
Given that this was his first time directing a feature, Nicolaou’s direction is fantastic, perfectly capturing that live-action cartoon aesthetic. The creature effects were done by the late John Carl Buechler, and they look fantastic, a testament to his talent. Buechler and his team manage to make the monster both hideous and gross, yet strangely cute at the same time. In terms of production design, the Putterman house is intentionally made to be as garish and tacky as possible. The look and style compliment the cast in satirizing some of the worst aspects of the 1980s. Admittedly, TerrorVision is one of those films that people will either love or hate given the ridiculousness on display. If you rolled your eyes at how I described TerrorVision, then this is not the film for you. But if you enjoy 80s campy cinema, TerrorVision is an underrated gem that’s worth a watch.
Buy the film on blu-ray via Shout! Factory: https://www.shoutfactory.com/product/terrorvision-the-video-dead-double-feature?product_id=2192
