The Final Terror Blu-Ray/DVD Combo Pack from Scream Factory drops on July 1st.
After the success of Friday The 13th, there came a wave of forest-and camp-themed teen slashers like The Burning, Sleepaway Camp and its sequels, and the subject of today’s review, The Final Terror. To be honest, I tend to enjoy these “copycats” more than their inspiration. Perhaps it’s the familiarity of having seen Friday The 13th several times, but I love seeing what these other films have done to differentiate themselves while clearly following a certain trend.
The story concerns a group of teens who are assigned to a work detail in the wilderness, but find themselves in danger when members of their group go missing. Joe Pantoliano is especially memorable in the over-the-top role of Eggar, the grimy and abrasive weirdo/misfit who serves both as the group’s bus driver as well as the film’s equivalent of Friday The 13th’s “Crazy Ralph”.
Besides Pantoliano, The Final Terror boasts some other recognizable names involved including actress Daryl Hannah, legendary producer Samuel Z. Arkoff, and most notably director Andrew Davis. Davis would go on to become one of the most prolific action directors of the late 80s and early 90s with an impressive string of hits like Code Of Silence, Above The Law, Under Siege, and The Fugitive. His sense of action (and to a lesser extent his distaste for horror) does permeate the film, and ends up making it unique in certain respects, dodging horror and slasher tropes.
Early in the film, Eggar criticizes the idea of a co-ed trip and argues with Mike, the group’s adult leader, “What the hell you think they’re gonna do out there in the woods with girls, huh?” — sensible advice in the world of camp slashers, where randy teens are the biggest target. Weirdly though, the boys and girls don’t really pair off or get into any such trouble. I’m not sure if this is great genre subversion or simple inattention to the rules. The guys are a pretty coarse bunch while at least two of the girls speak in inexplicably British accents. The only reason provided for this is Mike briefly mentioning that “These are very classy ladies”.
While never overtly mentioned in the film, it is suggested in the supplemental features that the guys were probably rough-edged troublemakers doing work details as community service while the gals are rich socialites, so there’s perhaps even a bit of class warfare subtext. In any event, there’s barely any flirtation between the sexes, and the single slasher-requisite love scene involves the adult chaperones. Weird, right?
One particularly enjoyable element of The Final Terror is that once the killing starts, the kids don’t panic or sit around waiting to be slaughtered. They gear up, cover themselves in makeshift woodland camo of leaves and mud, set traps, and strategize their survival. The finale takes place in the midst of some fallen Redwood trees, which provide an amazing scenic background for the showdown as the kids face whoever — or whatever — is stalking them (actually, this part is pretty predictable).
THE PACKAGE
A message precedes the film explaining how the original film elements are lost so the Blu-ray was reconstructed from multiple film prints. This seems to represent a best-effort attempt to release the film looking as good as possible.
The result is pretty seamless; I didn’t notice any obvious transitions when sources were switched. Overall the film does show its age. Visually, there are two main drawbacks: the overall darkness which makes some scenes difficult to see, and a lot of tonal flickering between warmer and cooler frames.
The film is rated R for language, slasher violence, and a sex scene.
Special Features
Post Terror: Finishing The Final Terror (22:59)
Allan Holzman, Executive in Charge of Post-Production, talks about the film’s scares and producer Samuel Arkoff’s ideas on audiences and film design. Composer Susan Justin, who created the film’s score, discusses the difference in scoring for film in the 1980’s versus modern digital environments.
The First Terror with Adrian Zmed and Lewis Smith (16:22)
Remembrances from actors Adrian Zmed and Lewis Smith on making the film and shooting in the Redwoods. Most interestingly, Zmed tells the insane story of how the film got shelved for years because the kill count was considered too low.
Theatrical Trailer (2:17)
Behind The Scenes Still Gallery (8:59)
A slideshow of set photos provided by director Andrew Davis
Commentary With Director Andrew Davis
The Final Terror was only the second feature for Davis, and like many budding filmmakers he simply used the horror genre as a résumé builder to launch his career. He mentions outright that he’s not crazy about the movie, and his lack of enthusiasm means lots of silence on the track and little meaningful content aside from location notes. These commentaries on older films tend to work better when there’s an additional commenter or interviewer helping to create a conversational dialogue, and that probably should’ve been the approach here.
Andrew Davis may not be a fan of this film, but I know I am. I’m going to come right out and call The Final Terror a lost classic. Stylishly photographed and cleverly devoid of certain genre expectations, it’s definitely worth seeking out. Shelved for years on its original release and rare in home video formats until now, it’s time to give this film a second life and this Blu-Ray edition is just the ticket.
A/V Out.
Get it at Amazon:
The Final Terror — [Blu-Ray]