Phantasm IV: Oblivion

[Scott]

Seen Phantasm IV: Obivion for the first time. It was good. I plan to see parts 2&3. The Tall Man is a neat character. Some great scenes and interesting story. I kinda wish I had seen them in order, but Oblivion did a good job of telling the whole story of the earlier films.

A long time ago I did see the original Phantasm and liked it.  I don't think The Tall Man talked in that one. I think he is aging now. He didn't look as old before.

[AndyC]

Scott wrote:
> I don't think The Tall Man talked in that one.

He had very few lines. My favourite was where he comes up behind Jody near the beginning, puts a hand on his shoulder, scaring the crap out of him, and says "The funeral is about to begin, sir" in the most unsettling way.

Later, he gets a couple of lines while chasing Mike: "You play a good game, boy, but the game is finished. Now you die." I remember that one because I used to have a sound file of it that I played at appropriate times.

Of course there's the big surprise ending, when he appears in Mike's room: "BOOOOYYYYY!"

I think that's about the extent of his speaking part in the first Phantasm.

[Drezzy]

You saw the 4th (possibly final if #5 isn't made) Phantasm without seeing 2 (the BEST one) or 3 (the worst one, but still utterly enjoyable)? Argh...

Although it is forgiveable, as I know Phantasm II and Phantasm III: Lord Of The Dead are hard to find these days, whereas Phantasm has been re-issued a few times on DVD, and OblIVion just came out a little while ago...

[AndyC]

Phantasm 2 was very good. Loved the homemade weapons, the Hemicuda, the new and improved spheres, and all the goings on at the mortuary. I especially liked the way they took Reggie from being kind of a wussy friend of Jody's and made him the coolest (human) character in the series. Loved his chainsaw duel with the big guy in the gas mask. His love scenes were kind of amusing too.

[Mofo Rising]

I started watching PHANTASM IV, but the replay of all the scenes from the previous movies were going on too long.  I decided to come back to it later, but never did.

The PHANTASM DVD has a segment of Angus Scrimm, the actor who played the Tall Man, talking at a horror convention.  He actually recites every line he had in the original movie.  I think there were four or five.  He really hammed it up at that convention.

[John]

>You saw the 4th (possibly final if #5 isn't made)

IMDB lists Phantasm's End as being in production, for whatever that's worth.

>Phantasm without seeing 2 (the BEST one)

I agree that part 2 was good, but it loses points for being the only movie in the series to have a different actor playing Mike.

[Drezzy]

But it gains those points back by being the perfect one of the series to start on, IMO.

It introduces the double-double-barrel shotgun that Reggie uses in 3 and 4, and shows the history of the first one in a nutshell. A different actor (and, IMO, a better one than Michael Baldwin) for Mike is excuseable because of the overall quality of the film.

Although I do love the line at the end of Phantasm III, just as the kid stands in front of a glass filled with a mist, and Reggie is pinned up against the wall by tons of spheres...
Reggie: Get outta here, kid! It's over...
(The Tall Man walks in from the doors, scaring the kid)
Tall Man: It's NEVER...over...
(Creature bursts through the glass, grabs the kid, and pulls him through)

A perfect homage to the ending of the original, and it cues one of the best horror movie theme songs ever.

[Andre Toulon]

Tremendous series.

Even if you've seen the fourth one it's well worth your time to grab 2 and 3.  The HemiCuda is reason enough to watch.

[Drezzy]

I wholeheartedly agree with Puppetmaster boy up there.

[Conrad]

Actually, all 3 are available on DVD in a box-package, which a friend of mine got at a car-boot sale for £5   (@  $8).  Daft but entertaining films that don't pretend to be anything but what they are!

[Chadzilla]

I think they are all worth seeing, and Don Coscarelli (the writer/director of the series) promises a Phantasm 5 (set in the plague riddled world briefly seen in 4).

There is a comic book spin-off, blackest heart media carries it, I think.

[Mofo Rising]

Gp here and check out the second picture from the top.

[John]

Why is he facing the blade side?

[Drezzy]

Why not?

I saved that pic of the sphere and The Tall Man, as well as "Reservoir Gods."

So, Chad, which plague-ridden world is this? Because I recall no such world in any of the movies, only the alternate universe where The Tall Man evolves his Dwarves, the past where The Tall Man was still human, and the alternate past with a young Mike and Reggie...
The "real world" just had lots of ghost towns because of The Tall Man's work, soo...