Phantasm returns for the fifth and final installment, with it being seventeen years since the 1998 release of Phantasm IV: Oblivion and thirty seven years since the original incarnation premiering in 1979. Despite what was some obvious budgetary constraints and fairly average CGI, there is more than enough interesting moments in this to please fans of the series. It may not be the best of the five movies, but it is a fitting send off to one of my favorite horror series. The story involves Reggie’s (Reggie Bannister) continued search for his friends as he takes on The Tall Man (Angus Scrimm), the deadly spheres, and his evil minions, all while flipping back and forth into different realities and time frames. This calls into question whether any of the events of the previous films were even real, or just part of Reggie’s failing mind.
Don Coscarelli and David Hartman created a fascinating story
that brings the series and character arc full circle. The first movie focused
on the boy Mike and how he had to cope with the deaths of his family members at
the hands of The Tall Man. This one flips it around and focuses on the issues
of aging and having to deal with memory loss and impending death. As with the
previous four pictures in the series, part of the appeal is the fact that the
story revolves around the same primary characters and the actors that portray
them.
It was nice to see all of the main actors come back for one
final appearance, especially Scrimm who sadly passed away in January. Michael
Baldwin and Bill Thornbury reprise their respective roles, but the main focus
in this one is Reggie. There were also appearances from Kathy Lester (Phantasm) and Gloria Lynne Henry (Phantasm III). Bannister absolutely
rules the screen and gives a top notch performance, going through various
issues that make him question his mental capacities. He shows multiple sides of
the character. We see the badass portion, the humorous side, and the weakness
and frailty of an aging man. Scrimm has limited screen time, but his portions that
are face to face with Bannister are well worth watching. We see a somewhat
different version of The Tall Man, one in which the actor is most likely self
aware of his eventual death and it come across in the portrayal of the
character.
The camera work is well and done and the motion picture has
a nice overall look to it, making good use of the desert and other physical
locations. The lighting and camera angles are all effective and help create the
atmosphere fans have come to expect. It has to be noted that there are a lot of
CGI effects, mostly with the balls and futuristic scenarios. They aren’t the
greatest, but I don’t think true fans will have an issue with this.
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Thank You, RIP |
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-RV