DVD Release
Remember the “good old days” in horror when slasher films were still original and we got all kinds of crazy-ass slasher icons? We got leprechauns, animated dolls and zombies with hockey masks! I don’t know about some of you but I’ve always had a soft spot in my black heart for the underdogs like The Sandman from Sleepstalker and Horace Pinker from Wes Craven’s Shocker.
As a quick aside, how many of you know what a “shocker” is? I won’t go into the specifics but I always giggle when I get to say “Horace PINKer was a SLASHer from SHOCKER.” Tee hee!
Anyhow, fans of Shocker will automatically take a liking to Heartstopper because they’re both eerily similar right up to the balding, gruff voiced psycho killers roasted in the electric chairs of their respective prisons. Hell, Shocker was written & directed by Wes Craven who also wrote & directed A Nightmare on Elm Street, a film featuring Robert Englund who also just so happens to appear in Heartstopper. Coincidence? Perhaps.
Jonathan Chambers (James Binkley) is a convicted psychopath slated to burn in the electric chair for his hideous serial killings. When his final moment arrives, something goes wrong and there’s a drain in power followed by a blinding flash of lightning. The chair is overloaded and Chambers literally fries. Sheriff Berger (Robert Englund), the original arresting officer is there to witness the execution and escort the body from the premises to the city morgue.
Meanwhile, a depressed and lonely girl named Sara is preparing to “end it all” and rid herself of her bothersome fleshly coil by plopping her ass down in the middle of the street to await the first oncoming vehicle. Despite the rain and darkness, the ambulance carrying Chambers’ body only KINDA hits her. En route to the hospital Chambers’ dead arm comes in contact with Sara and transfers a tattoo to her.
Was it depression and fate that lead Sara to that very spot or something far more sinister?
Sara goes to emergency and recovery while Chambers’ body heads to the morgue to receive a death certificate and autopsy. Unfortunately for everybody in the hospital Chambers is far from dead and ready to resume ripping people’s hearts from their chests in the name of his evil lord Satan…or whoever.
The hospital goes into a mystical lock down and Sara and her roomie Walter soon discover there’s no way out for them. Chambers slowly makes his way through the hospital massacring people, seeking the one person who can “receive” him and allow him to continue his task of cleansing sinners. The only thing standing between Chambers and Sara is Sheriff Berger but will he be strong enough to withstand the unholy fury of Chambers and his heartstopping ways?
Admittedly, Heartstopper doesn’t offer much in the way of story or answers but director Bob Keen (Hellraiser) makes up for that by heaping on the gore and quasi-biblical jibber jabber. To be completely honest there were parts in this movie that had me reverting to man’s primal stupidity, high-fiving my guys and hollering, “Fuck yeah dude! That’s crazy gore!” If the gore doesn’t impress you then you’ll surely be pleased by psychopath Chambers hilariously delightful blasphemies which include “child-fucker” and “you Christ defected bitch.” Personally, I got a kick out of the blasphemy but I must admit…the whole Bible paraphrasing psycho Satanist gimmick was just a bit worn and silly.
The acting in Heartstopper was excellent with major kudos going to James Binkley for his portrayal of Chambers and Robert Englund as Sheriff Berger. I was actually quite impressed with Englund’s restraint and the down-to-earth character he played. Perhaps we see Robert in the over-the-top roles so much that we forget he’s capable of more than just cackling and busting out one-liners.
As I mentioned earlier, this flick delivers the gore and I’d expect nothing less from the man who oversaw the FX for such films as Alien, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Hellraiser & Hellbound: Hellraiser II! We’re never once ripped on a sweet gore sequence though I was a bit pissy that Chambers’ didn’t stomp around through this whole film with his roasty, toasty fried corpse face but what’re ya gonna do?
All in all Heartstopper was a damn good time. A blast from the past that’s sure to give you a kick in the ass! It’s not going to set any new standards but it holds it’s own and considering some of the absolute shitfest slasher clones out there I’d have to say that’s a major plus! This was an 80’s flick through and through and I couldn’t have been happier. Do yourself a favor; rent (or buy) this film, go buy a case of Bass Ale, a few bags of tortilla chips and an industrial sized drum of bean dip and have you a muthatruckin’ party you stinkin’ lil’ Christ lickers!
