Each October, the Unsung Horrors podcast does a month of themed movies. This year, they will once again be setting up a fundraiser to benefit Best Friends, which works to save the lives of cats and dogs across America, giving pets second chances and providing them with happy homes.

Today’s theme: Slashers

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Adam Hursey is a pharmacist specializing in health informatics by day, but his true passion is cinema. His current favorite films are Back to the Future, Stop Making Sense, and In the Mood for Love. He has written articles for Film East and The Physical Media Advocate, primarily examining older films through the lens of contemporary perspectives. He is usually found on Letterboxd, where he mainly writes about horror and exploitation films. You can follow him on Letterboxd or Instagram at ashursey.

Are we sure that Fred Olen Ray’s gritty, grimy, grainy film Scalps was made in 1983? Are we sure that it was directed by Fred Olen Ray? It really feels out of place in both his filmography and the time in which it was released.

By 1983, we were on the downward trajectory on the slasher trend. Having peaked around 1981, there really was nowhere else to go but down. Still, 1983 brought us plenty of interesting slashers. Sleepaway Camp. Psycho II. Mausoleum. While the plot of Scalps is not terribly interesting in and of itself, there are some aspects worth digging into (so to speak).

There is plenty of digging in Scalps. A group of college students go out to an area in the California desert to perform some archeological research. Of course, at the local convenience store, they are warned by a Native American in his best Crazy Ralph impersonation (“It’s got a death curse!”) to not disturb the ancient burial grounds found in the Black Forest (or something like that—I should take better notes). Do they listen? Of course not, because there would be no movie if they did. Eventually, one of the guys gets possessed by a Native American spirit and chaos reigns. 

It is all pretty standard 80s slasher tropes. But the look of the film feels closer to 1973 than 1983. If I did not know any better, I would have been certain that this film fell into the proto-slasher years. It was definitely made on the cheap with a reported budget of $15,000. Fred Olen Ray himself described the film as 6 Kids, a Station Wagon, and a Tent. He is not wrong.

One aspect I found interesting is how fairly unlikable this group is as a whole. I typically find it more appealing when I like the characters. I like it when a film takes its time to develop the characters and the relationships between and among the group in a slasher. Then I feel bad when they inevitably get killed. I’m not one to root for a character’s death just because they are annoying or downright hateful. Most films in the early 80s trended toward the likable character. It is interesting to see the beginning of the trend in the other direction. Another slasher from 1983, The Final Terror, feels very similar. These two films might make a decent double feature pairing, although it is not one I would be clamoring to see. Both films feel like Friday the 13th cash-ins versus a straight-up rip-off. And both groups of campers are full of individuals I would not care to be around for any period of time.

I did like Scalps more than it may seem though. I do generally like a boring slasher. This one is plenty dull as nothing happens for at least 40-45 minutes. Maybe more. One character eats Kellogg’s Raisin Bran straight out of the box. That’s the kind of product placement I’m here for. There are some really fun practical effects here. And I secretly love Native American cultural appropriation in horror films. It’s not something I’m proud of, but that old burial ground trope hooks me in every single time. Give me a cursed talisman. I even like the “Old Chief Woodenhead” segment in Creepshow 2. I would say that I would try to do better, but I just have no self-control. I’ll just have to ask for forgiveness.