Retro Slashers

Scarecrows is one of the scariest independent films released during the 1980s. This film should feature a warning label: Do Not Watch Unless You Want the Heebie-Jeebies, Goosebumps, and Cold Chills Slithering Up Your Spine. It’s the type of film that makes you turn on every light in the house when it’s over. Some scary films mellow with age. What terrified you as a kid seems laughable when viewed through the prism of maturity. Scarecrows isn’t one of those scary movies. It’s just as terrifying today as it was back in 1988.

A gang of thieves steal a $3 million dollar payroll from Camp Pendleton, hijack a plane, and make a run for the boarder. Everything is going according to plan until Burt (B.J. Turner), a backstabbing rat fink bastard, jumps out of the plane with the cash. The other very pissed-off thieves track Burt down to an old farm house surrounded by creepy scarecrows. While the thieves hunt Burt something else is hunting the thieves. It’s cold blooded commandos vs. demonic scarecrows from hell in one of the best hybrid films ever made.

Scarecrows works so well because director William Wesley goes out of his way to set up mood, atmosphere, and the all important scares. Wesley’s focus on building suspense means the film doesn’t lose momentum after a jump scare. There’s no cathartic release of tension after these scares because Wesley won’t let the viewer off the hook that easily. The script by Richard Jefferies and William Wesley leaves a great many things up to the viewer’s imagination. Who are the Fowler boys and how did they become killer scarecrows? They might be members of a cult or maybe the thieves are all dead and this is their personal hell. Without a firm origin for the scarecrows in place the viewer is given the opportunity to look for clues and interpret their meanings which adds another level of fun to the film.

The special effects in Scarecrows are very impressive considering the film’s low budget. There’s amputation, decapitation, and mutilation gore-lore in the unrated version. One especially macabre scene involves the thieves opening up one of their stuffed comrades and digging cash out of the body cavity. All of the murders are bloody and brutal so expect to wince more than once.

Another one of Scarecrows strengths is the good cast. The only recognizable face in the crowd is David (Killer Workout) Campbell who plays the kidnapped pilot here. Ted Vernon, who plays the bad-ass enforcer, is believable because he used to really beat the hell out of guys when he was a boxer. Richard Vidon is likable as big, slow Jack, the sidekick to the ultra amped up team leader Curry (Michael Simms). Kristina Sanborn gives Roxanne, the gang’s gun moll, several layers of personality. She’s a tough bird but watches over the other kidnap victim Kellie (played by Victoria Christian but dubbed by voice actress Bambi Darro).

Scarecrows is a scary little low budget gem that deserves to be seen by a wider audience. If you don’t already have this film in your collection, then I urge you to find it. If you’re a programmer for a retro horror film festival, then add Scarecrows to the line up. Scarecrows 2: The Last Straw was a proposed sequel that never got off the ground. The story would’ve focused on the army invading the haunted farm in search of the missing payroll.