A man visits Alcatraz prison after having dreams about all the people who died there. When he gets there, his brother is possessed by an evil cannibal demon. The ghost of a female heavy metal singer who was killed there tries to help the man fight the monster.
**_Psychic energies draw six students and a teacher to The Rock_**
Shot in the spring of 1987, this takes bits from three prior 80s’ movies and meshes them together with the unique setting of the landmark Alcatraz Island. The films I’m talking about are “An American Werewolf in London,” “Trick or Treat” and “The Lost Boys.” While it’s a ‘B’ movie by comparison and easily the least of these, there are enough highlights to make it worth checking out for those interested.
Tammy Hyler as conservative Jan stands out in the feminine department, although the camera tends to focus on blonde Hope Marie Carlton (Krista) in various stages of undress. Toni Basil shows up in the second half and perks things up. She was 43 during shooting and looked ten years younger. If you’re not familiar with her, she played the beautiful redhead ‘teen’ in “Village of the Giants” and was one of two female hitchhikers in Jack Nicholson’s “Five Easy Pieces.” In 1982 she became a one-hit wonder with "Oh Mickey, you're so fine."
The four songs on the rockin’ sountrack were composed by Devo main-men Mark Mothersbaugh & Gerald Casale and performed by their band. While the soundtrack isn’t as notable as Fastway’s songs for “Trick or Treat,” it serves its purpose and the closing credits song “The Only One,” sung by Basil, is as good as anything in that other flick.
It runs 1h 25m and was shot in Santa Monica (Gardner Brothers' house) and Los Feliz in Los Angeles (the school) with studio work done in Culver City. Exterior shooting was done around Alcatraz.
GRADE: B-
