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Fright Night
From Outcyclopedia, the free and queer encyclopedia. Fright Night is a 1985 horror film. It stars William Ragsdale, Chris Sarandon, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, and Stephen Geoffreys. The plot is a fairly simple play on the "Boy Who Cried Wolf" tale. Teenager Charlie Brewtser (William Ragsdale) learns that his new next-door neighbor (Sarandon) is a vampire. Because of his propensity for jokes and his obsessive love for horror movies, neither his girlfriend Amy (Bearse) or his best friend, nerdy "Evil" Ed (Geoffreys) will believe him. Nor, for that matter, will the police or Charlie's idol, B-horror film actor turned horror movie show host Peter Vincent (McDowall). At Amy and Ed's request, Vincent finally agrees to meet Charlie and his new neighbor, though only to convince him that Dandridge is not a vampire. Vincent persuades Dandridge to drink a bottle of what he tells Charlie is holy water, but is actually ordinary tap water. When Dandridge naturally fails to burst in flames, Charlie appears convinced, but still has reservations. Peter Vincent, meanwhile, notices that Dandridge casts no reflection. Dandridge learns of this, and begins to stalk the self-styled "Vampire Killer" and the three teenagers. In a scene reminiscent of a gay pornographic video, and thus somewhat foreshadowing Stephen Geoffreys' later career, Dandridge corners Ed in a dark alley and seduces him into vampirism. This is probably the gayest scene in an otherwise ungay movie. Ed is then dispatched to kill Vincent, who is able to drive Ed off with a prop crucifix from one of his movies. Dandridge meanwhile, manages to abduct Amy and take her back to his house, where he feeds upon her. Charlie comes to the house to rescue Amy, only to be locked in with her. Dandridge hands Charlie a stake, pointing out that he'll need it once Amy's transformation into a vampire is complete. Peter Vincent meanwhile goes to Charlie's house to warn his mother, only to be confronted by Ed, who attacks him in wolf form. Vincent stakes the boy, then goes next door to rescue Charlie. They lock Amy, who has already turned vampiric, in Dandridge's bedroom, and shoot and kill Cole who, being an animated cadaver, instantly decomposes. A final fight with Dandridge moves to the cellar. A broken window lets in sunlight which destroys Dandridge in a fiery explosion. The movie ends with Charlie and Amy watching Peter Vincent, who has switched from hosting his old vampire movies to hosting Z-grade sci-fi flicks. Fright Night is not really a gay movie, unless one infers, as some of the other characters in the movie do, that something sexual may be going on between vampire Jerry Dandridge (Chris Sarandon) and his henchman Billy Cole (Jonathan Stark). But the movie does come up frequently in discussions of queer cinema, if only because it is one of the more familiar of the many films of the late Roddy McDowall, and helped launch the careers of Amanda Bearse and Stephen Geoffreys. Though simple in structure, Fright Night has a comedic element coupled with performances and, for the time, state-of-the-art visual effects which make it one of the few genuine classics from the 1980s." The bulk of the movie's appeal, though, rests on the performance of Roddy McDowall as "Peter Vincent, Vampire Killer" a cinematic ham whose name pays homage to two of the great actors of B-grade horror, Peter Cushing and Vincent Price. Known during his life as an actor's actor, McDowall is in top form both in delivery and comedic timing. In segments showing scenes from Peter Vincent's movies, which themselves incorporate clips from the Hammer Studios films of the 1960s, McDowall chews the scenery with relish and holds a wooden stake backwards as an extra comedic touch. He thus shows not only a talent for great acting, but also for deliberately acting badly for a laugh. In 1989 a sequel to Fright Night, titled Fright Night Part II, was released. William Ragsdale returned as Charlie Brewster, now a college student being stalked by Charlie Dandridge's vengeful sister Regina (Julie Carmen). Roddy McDowall returned as Peter Vincent, also being stalked by Regina. Amanda Bearse was absent from the flick, as was Stephen Geoffreys, despite a hint at the previous film's ending that Ed had survived his staking. Playing Charlie's roommate and friend was Merritt Buttrick, most famous for playing Captain Kirk's son in two of the Star Trek films. Buttrick was by now visibly sick with AIDS and in fact died before the movie's release. One of Regina's victims, Buttrick's gaunt appearance actually accentuated his performance as he talks to Ragsdale about how he feels mysteriously tired and weak. The parallels between AIDS and the wasting sicknesses once attributed to vampirism, purposely implied or not, are chilling and dark. Dark in fact describes the entire film. Unlike its predecessor, Fright Night Part II is lacking in the humor that made the original so much fun. As a sequel, it is dreary, dull, and unnecessary. While it is certainly not one of the greatest films ever made, or even the gayest, Fright Night does have a campy sense of fun which makes it perennially enjoyable to watch. It is also an interesting gem in the history of gay cinema, while the individual histories of its cast provide an example of the contrasts between the sexual attitudes of two different generations. Fright Night features one of the latter-day performances of an accomplished actor who, having lived for so long within the confines of the Hollywood Closet, was never out about his sexuality, though he was supportive of the gay community in his later years. The film was also the career launcher for two young actors who, though certainly not of the same caliber as Roddy McDowall, were able to come out in a much more tolerant and safer environment than their elder co-star had known through most of his life. External links: 80s Fast Rewind - Fright Night Fright Night: Roger Ebert's review. Queer Horror: 'Fright Night' by Tom Holland (1985) Mr. Cranky Rates the Movies : Fright Night The Nitpickers Site: MOVIE - Fright Night - 1985 Roogulator Review: Fright Night (1985) Internet Movie Database: Fright Night Internet Movie Database: Fright Night Part II Entry revised 17 February, 2005. All text is available for use under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (see Copyrights for details). DISCLAIMER: This is not an adult site, and does not contain any pornographic images or material. Any references to sex or other adult material or behavior is made from a purely academic standpoint. Images used on this site are credited whenever possible, and any whose copyright status is in dispute will be gladly removed or credited upon request. Not all persons listed on this site are or were openly homosexual, but reasonable conclusions about their sexuality may and has been made from diaries, letters, and other writings and accounts made by them and/or those who knew them. Several others are heterosexual and are included here for the impact, whether positive or negative, they have made on queer culture and history. |
