Superstition(1982)

I have decided to review some of may favorite horror films, especially ones that I always go back to again and again. Superstition, like The Final Terror, is a very underrated slasher film. In the case of Superstition, I think the fact that it has a supernatural element, kept it from being bigger than it was. Had it been a psycho in a dollar store mask, killing these people, rather than an unseen supernatural force, I think people would still be talking about it today. But it does have it's fans(I'm talking to you, Amanda By Night), and the people that worship this film, really do feel passionate about it. As far as I know, it was the first horror film that had a death by microwave(correct me if I'm wrong). It also features a young Billy Jacoby(aka Billy Jayne), who went on to be in Cujo, Just One Of The Guys, and Bloody Birthday. I honestly can't think of any reason why this film isn't talked about more and revered by slasher fans.


Reverend Leahy and his family inherit an old house and property as part of his new job, and move in and find out the house has a history of strange goings on. For one, there is an old gypsy lady and her son that live on the property, and more than one person think that the son is a maniac. In fact, he spends most of the film in hiding, because the police think that he has murdered some teenagers who use the property as a make out spot. Also, there is a lake on the property, and it is the home of an ancient witch, that was imprisoned there by religious zealots, hundreds of years ago. Not long after their arrival the blood begins to shed. In one of the films most memorable killings(aside from the microwave), an elder reverend is killed when the blade flies off of a saw, that has no power, and it eats it's way through the old mans chest. The father of the family is a drunk, so he spends most of his time hiding away getting drunk while his family is tormented by the evil forces.


In one of the films funnier scenes, a younger reverend, who is at the house to help out the family, watches the reverends teen aged daughters swim in the family lake. They are really scantily clad for preacher's daughters(we have all heard stories about them, haven't we?), and the young preacher almost salivates all over himself checking out their rumps. The film has loads of atmosphere, and is very creepy. It looks like it could have been filmed in Spain or Romania, even though it was lensed in Canada. The gore is handled very well, and most of the killings are very gruesome. The flashback scenes pertaining to the witch, and her demise, give the film a Hammer feeling, or something that Paul Naschy would have made. If you are fan of the genre, and haven't seen Superstition, maybe you aren't such a big fan? Anchor Bay released a bare bones DVD of this 4 or 5 years ago, but I think that it's long out of print by now. It can still be found on Amazon and Ebay though, the VHS was put out by the kings of horror and cheese, Vestron Video. It would be cool for another DVD company(not Code Red), to re-release it, with a better print, and some extras, but I'm not gonna hold my breath.