Slaughter High
Encyclopedia
Slaughter High is a 1986
slasher film
written and directed by George Dugdale, Mark Ezra, and Peter Litten
.
), jokingly asking Marty Rantzen (Simon Scuddamore), the school nerd, to have sex with her in the women’s locker room. After he removes his clothes, Marty is surprisingly exposed to a group of students who tease him in several ways, including jabbing at his crotch with a javelin
, giving him an electric shock, and dunking his head into a toilet bowl. This prank ends when the students’ coach comes in to find out what is happening.
The students are forced to perform a vigorous workout in the gymnasium. Still, two students give Marty a marijuana
joint laced
with poison, which he smokes in the science lab where he is working on a chemistry project. The joint makes him so sick he runs to the men's room to vomit. While he is gone, Skip, one of the popular kids, rigs the experiment to explode in Marty's face.
Upon Marty's return, the set-up works, causing Marty to panic, and a great fire to erupt in the lab after he knocks over a Bunsen burner. In the struggle, Marty accidentally bumps into a shelf where a precariously placed jug of acid sits, causing the jug to fall and break, which splashes acid on Marty's face, leaving him horribly disfigured. The sound attracts the attention of the students, who stand by the door in shock and many of them now start to show signs of remorse.
Years later, those behind the prank are invited back to the school for a reunion. Upon arriving, they discover that the campus was shuttered years ago and the building is in disrepair, awaiting demolition. They begin to think that one of the former students was behind the invitations, but everyone denies it.
They decide to break into the school to hang out and drink alcohol
, and come across a room containing their old school lockers, which to their surprise are filled with their old belongings. They notice Marty's old locker, and the alumni begin questioning what happened to him after the prank-gone-awry. Skip tells them that Marty is doing fine and probably forgot all about what happened. He has supposedly been in a mental institution.
Soon thereafter, the friends begin to die in gruesome ways at the hands of a mysterious killer dressed like a jester. One's stomach explodes, one melts away in an acid bath, one is impaled on a javelin, one is chopped up by a riding lawn mower. They quickly come to believe it is Marty, deranged and bent on revenge. All the former students wind up dead then come back as ghosts and the film closes with Marty apparently going insane
. He wakes up in a mental hospital
, restrained to a bed and wearing bandages on his face, and had in fact dreamed the events of the massacre.
The film ends with Marty strangling the nurse, jamming a syringe into the doctor's eye, and peeling a chunk of skin from his own face.
's same-titled slasher film scheduled for release the same year.
The film was shot in England
, and many of the actors use fake American accents.
Simon Scuddamore, who plays the film's slasher, committed suicide shortly after production of the film.
The original music score was composed by Harry Manfredini
, of Friday the 13th fame.
theatrically in the United States
by Vestron Pictures
in November 1986.
Much of the gore was cut prior to release to obtain an R-rating; for its video premiere, the distributor Vestron Video
released both the censored theatrical version and an unrated version that contained the excised violence.
Slaughter High was released as April Fool's Day on VHS in Japan only by Vestron International. To date, Japan is the only country to have a home video release of the film under its original title.
LionsGate
released the film on DVD April 14, 2009 in the USA as part of their 'The Lost Collection'. The DVD contains the unrated Vestron Video
full screen VHS master print. The Vestron Video logo can be seen after the end credits on the DVD.
Lions Gate re-released the film to DVD on January 4, 2011 in a "4-Film Collection" set along with My Best Friend Is a Vampire
, Repossessed
and Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out!
.
On July 10, 2011 Arrow Video
will be releasing a new Special Edition DVD, which will be released Uncut for the first time in the United Kingdom and will contain the following Special Features:
1986 in film
-Events:*April 12 - Actor Morgan Mason marries The Go-Go's Belinda Carlisle.*April 26 - Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger marries television journalist Maria Shriver.*May - Actress Heather Locklear marries Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee....
slasher film
Slasher film
A slasher film is a type of horror film typically involving a psychopathic killer stalking and killing a sequence of victims in a graphically violent manner, often with a cutting tool such as a knife or axe...
written and directed by George Dugdale, Mark Ezra, and Peter Litten
Peter Litten
Peter Litten or Peter Mackenzie Litten is a British film director and designer whose film credits include To Die For and Slaughter High....
.
Plot
The day begins with a popular student, Carol Manning (Caroline MunroCaroline Munro
Caroline Munro is an English actress and model known for her many appearances in horror, science fiction and action films of the 1970s and 1980s.-Early career:...
), jokingly asking Marty Rantzen (Simon Scuddamore), the school nerd, to have sex with her in the women’s locker room. After he removes his clothes, Marty is surprisingly exposed to a group of students who tease him in several ways, including jabbing at his crotch with a javelin
Pilum
The pilum was a javelin commonly used by the Roman army in ancient times. It was generally about two metres long overall, consisting of an iron shank about 7 mm in diameter and 60 cm long with pyramidal head...
, giving him an electric shock, and dunking his head into a toilet bowl. This prank ends when the students’ coach comes in to find out what is happening.
The students are forced to perform a vigorous workout in the gymnasium. Still, two students give Marty a marijuana
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
joint laced
Lacing (drugs)
Lacing is the act of secretly adding one or more substances to another. Some street drugs are commonly laced with other chemicals for various reasons, but it is most commonly done so as to bulk up the original product or to sell other, cheaper drugs in the place of something more expensive.-Reasons...
with poison, which he smokes in the science lab where he is working on a chemistry project. The joint makes him so sick he runs to the men's room to vomit. While he is gone, Skip, one of the popular kids, rigs the experiment to explode in Marty's face.
Upon Marty's return, the set-up works, causing Marty to panic, and a great fire to erupt in the lab after he knocks over a Bunsen burner. In the struggle, Marty accidentally bumps into a shelf where a precariously placed jug of acid sits, causing the jug to fall and break, which splashes acid on Marty's face, leaving him horribly disfigured. The sound attracts the attention of the students, who stand by the door in shock and many of them now start to show signs of remorse.
Years later, those behind the prank are invited back to the school for a reunion. Upon arriving, they discover that the campus was shuttered years ago and the building is in disrepair, awaiting demolition. They begin to think that one of the former students was behind the invitations, but everyone denies it.
They decide to break into the school to hang out and drink alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
, and come across a room containing their old school lockers, which to their surprise are filled with their old belongings. They notice Marty's old locker, and the alumni begin questioning what happened to him after the prank-gone-awry. Skip tells them that Marty is doing fine and probably forgot all about what happened. He has supposedly been in a mental institution.
Soon thereafter, the friends begin to die in gruesome ways at the hands of a mysterious killer dressed like a jester. One's stomach explodes, one melts away in an acid bath, one is impaled on a javelin, one is chopped up by a riding lawn mower. They quickly come to believe it is Marty, deranged and bent on revenge. All the former students wind up dead then come back as ghosts and the film closes with Marty apparently going insane
Insanity
Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity...
. He wakes up in a mental hospital
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
, restrained to a bed and wearing bandages on his face, and had in fact dreamed the events of the massacre.
The film ends with Marty strangling the nurse, jamming a syringe into the doctor's eye, and peeling a chunk of skin from his own face.
Cast
- Caroline MunroCaroline MunroCaroline Munro is an English actress and model known for her many appearances in horror, science fiction and action films of the 1970s and 1980s.-Early career:...
...Carol Manning - Simon Scuddamore...Marty Rantzen
- Carmine Iannaconne...Skip Pollack
- Donna Yeager...Stella
- Gary MartinGary Martin (actor)Gary Martin is a British voice artist and actor who has been in the industry since the early 1980s. His first recorded acting credit is as a chauffeur in the television series Nobody's Perfect. He has since gone on to perform in over 60 roles, either as a voice artist or actor...
...Joe - Billy HartmanBilly HartmanBilly Hartman is a Scottish actor, well known for playing the part of Terry Woods on ITV's Emmerdale from 1995 until his character was killed off in 2011.He also played a small role in the film Highlander...
...Frank - Michael Saffran...Ted Harrison
- John Segal...Carl Putney
- Kelly Baker...Nancy
- Sally Cross...Susan
- Josephine Scandi...Shirley
Production
Producers initially intended to call the film April Fool's Day, but renamed it after learning of ParamountParamount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
's same-titled slasher film scheduled for release the same year.
The film was shot in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and many of the actors use fake American accents.
Simon Scuddamore, who plays the film's slasher, committed suicide shortly after production of the film.
The original music score was composed by Harry Manfredini
Harry Manfredini
Harry Manfredini is an American film composer and jazz-soloist, who has scored more than one hundred films, most notably perhaps being the Friday the 13th film series. He has had years of classical training, as well as twenty years in the popular music scene...
, of Friday the 13th fame.
Release
The film was given a limited releaseLimited release
Limited release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing in a select few theaters across the country ....
theatrically in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by Vestron Pictures
Vestron Pictures
Vestron Pictures was a film studio and distributor of the late 1980s, and a division of Austin O. Furst, Jr.'s Vestron Inc., best known for their 1987 release of Dirty Dancing. The company was a spin-off of the earlier video distributor, Vestron Video. Vestron also had a genre film division,...
in November 1986.
Much of the gore was cut prior to release to obtain an R-rating; for its video premiere, the distributor Vestron Video
Vestron Video
Vestron Video was the main subsidiary of Vestron, Inc., a home video company based in Stamford, Connecticut that was active from 1982 to 1992. It is considered to have been a pioneer in the home video market....
released both the censored theatrical version and an unrated version that contained the excised violence.
Slaughter High was released as April Fool's Day on VHS in Japan only by Vestron International. To date, Japan is the only country to have a home video release of the film under its original title.
LionsGate
Lionsgate Home Entertainment
Lionsgate Home Entertainment is the home video and DVD distribution arm of Lions Gate Entertainment and most former Artisan Entertainment releases. Its library of more than 8000 films owes some of its size to output deals with other studios...
released the film on DVD April 14, 2009 in the USA as part of their 'The Lost Collection'. The DVD contains the unrated Vestron Video
Vestron Video
Vestron Video was the main subsidiary of Vestron, Inc., a home video company based in Stamford, Connecticut that was active from 1982 to 1992. It is considered to have been a pioneer in the home video market....
full screen VHS master print. The Vestron Video logo can be seen after the end credits on the DVD.
Lions Gate re-released the film to DVD on January 4, 2011 in a "4-Film Collection" set along with My Best Friend Is a Vampire
My Best Friend Is a Vampire
My Best Friend Is a Vampire is a 1987 American horror-comedy film about a newly made vampire who is trying to live as a "good" vampire and not feed on humans. Jeremy is played by Robert Sean Leonard and Rene Auberjonois also stars as Jeremy's vampire guidance counsel...
, Repossessed
Repossessed
Repossessed is a 1990 comedy film that spoofs the 1973 horror film The Exorcist. It was written and directed by Bob Logan. The film features the original star of The Exorcist, Linda Blair, as well as Leslie Nielsen and Anthony Starke...
and Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out!
Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out!
Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out! is a 1989 slasher film directed by Monte Hellman. A direct-to-video release, the film is the second sequel to the 1984 film Silent Night, Deadly Night and centers around the Christmas-obsessed killer Ricky Caldwell awakening from a coma and stalking a...
.
On July 10, 2011 Arrow Video
Arrow Video
Arrow Films is a UK distributor of classic, horror, and cult films on Blu-ray and DVD.-Arrow Films:Arrow Films is an independent distributor of world cinema, arthouse, horror and classic films...
will be releasing a new Special Edition DVD, which will be released Uncut for the first time in the United Kingdom and will contain the following Special Features:
- Reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork
- Double-sided fold-out artwork poster
- Collector’s booklet featuring brand new writing on the film by author Troy Howarth, an interview with legendary composer Harry Manfredini by Calum Waddell and an interview with star Josephine Scandi by Justin Kerswell
- Available on DVD and UNCUT for the first time in the UK!
- Introduction by co-writer/ co-director Mark Ezra
- Jesters and Jolts: Interview with co-writer/co-director Mark Ezra
- Lamb to the Slaughter: The Scream Queen Career of Caroline Munro
- Audio Commentary with star Caroline Munro, DVD World editor Allan Bryce and author and critic Calum Waddell
- Audio Commentary with co-writer/ co-director Mark Ezra and moderated by Teenage Wasteland author J. A. Kerswell