The Gate
When I was looking for some inspiration for a plot involving little monsters attacking people, I had several movies to choose from. The "little monsters attack" horror/comedy genre was a fad that started with Gremlins and continued on through Critters, Ghoulies, and Troll in the eighties, among others. I was looking for more horror, less comedy. You need look no further than The Gate.
The Gate's concept is straightforward horror: kids alone (Stephen Dorf as preteen Glen and Christa Denton as his big sister Al) at home inadvertently open a literal pit to the netherworld and all hell breaks loose. But that's oversimplifying the movie, because there's so much more here.
Despite its PG-13 rating, The Gate is rather disturbing. Two of the kids are kidnapped by demons, a dead dog is involved, and a parent's head explodes. At one point Al grabs her father's gun and fires it (!) at one of the monsters. Glen's friend Terry (Louis Tripp) comes back as a demon to bite our protagonist, who proceeds to poke out his eye with a Barbie doll's leg. There's no way this movie would get a PG-13 rating today!
Then there are the little demons themselves, who seem like every kid's nightmare. The director knew how to use "bigatures" to his advantage (a technique perfected in Lord of the Rings), giving the demons a disturbingly lifelike appearance since they're actually actors in suits on a larger backdrop. There are other great FX too, not the least of which is a zombie exploding into a swarm of little demons. And to the movie's credit, artwork seen early in the movie depicts the demon lord accurately - the stop-motion demon that shows up at the end is every bit as horrifying.
Although this is a kid's movie, The Gate pushes all the buttons kids are afraid of. The demons prevent the kids from calling their parents (shouting, "YOU'VE BEEN BAAAD!"). The dead dog shows up in the most frightening places. And long, clawed arms snake out underneath beds to grab at the unsuspecting. If this movie doesn't give kids nightmares, nothing will.
The movie is hopelessly mired in the eighties. The teens dressed with ridiculous big hairstyles. The next door neighbor Terry (Louis Tripp) learns how to repel the demons by playing his death metal record backwards. And the dialogue is hopeless: "Suck my nose until my head caves in," is Glen's taunt to one of Al's annoying friends.
But that's beside the point. This is a movie about a kid's love for his big sister and rockets, both of which help him overcome the forces of evil. With special effects ahead of its time, demons that are anything but cute, and a climax that is both terrifying and inspirational, The Gate is an entertaining piece of eighties horror history. After the hell poor Glen goes through, he deserves the sappy happy ending.
The Gate's concept is straightforward horror: kids alone (Stephen Dorf as preteen Glen and Christa Denton as his big sister Al) at home inadvertently open a literal pit to the netherworld and all hell breaks loose. But that's oversimplifying the movie, because there's so much more here.
Despite its PG-13 rating, The Gate is rather disturbing. Two of the kids are kidnapped by demons, a dead dog is involved, and a parent's head explodes. At one point Al grabs her father's gun and fires it (!) at one of the monsters. Glen's friend Terry (Louis Tripp) comes back as a demon to bite our protagonist, who proceeds to poke out his eye with a Barbie doll's leg. There's no way this movie would get a PG-13 rating today!
Then there are the little demons themselves, who seem like every kid's nightmare. The director knew how to use "bigatures" to his advantage (a technique perfected in Lord of the Rings), giving the demons a disturbingly lifelike appearance since they're actually actors in suits on a larger backdrop. There are other great FX too, not the least of which is a zombie exploding into a swarm of little demons. And to the movie's credit, artwork seen early in the movie depicts the demon lord accurately - the stop-motion demon that shows up at the end is every bit as horrifying.
Although this is a kid's movie, The Gate pushes all the buttons kids are afraid of. The demons prevent the kids from calling their parents (shouting, "YOU'VE BEEN BAAAD!"). The dead dog shows up in the most frightening places. And long, clawed arms snake out underneath beds to grab at the unsuspecting. If this movie doesn't give kids nightmares, nothing will.
The movie is hopelessly mired in the eighties. The teens dressed with ridiculous big hairstyles. The next door neighbor Terry (Louis Tripp) learns how to repel the demons by playing his death metal record backwards. And the dialogue is hopeless: "Suck my nose until my head caves in," is Glen's taunt to one of Al's annoying friends.
But that's beside the point. This is a movie about a kid's love for his big sister and rockets, both of which help him overcome the forces of evil. With special effects ahead of its time, demons that are anything but cute, and a climax that is both terrifying and inspirational, The Gate is an entertaining piece of eighties horror history. After the hell poor Glen goes through, he deserves the sappy happy ending.
posted by talien | 3:40 PM
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