Return to Horror High (1987)

27% of users liked it
(4,211 ratings)

In 1982, Crippen High School was the scene of a gruesome series of dismemberment murders, but the killer was never identified. Five years later, Cosmic Pictures arrives at the long-abandoned campus to make a low-budget horror movie based on the tragedy, and suddenly the terror begins anew. The… More In 1982, Crippen High School was the scene of a gruesome series of dismemberment murders, but the killer was never identified. Five years later, Cosmic Pictures arrives at the long-abandoned campus to make a low-budget horror movie based on the tragedy, and suddenly the terror begins anew. The police department arrives at the school to find the building and grounds covered in gore and human body parts, the remains of the unfortunate film crew. The only survivor of this new massacre is the screenwriter, Arthur (Richard Brestoff), who tries to explain the horrifying events to the authorities. The troubled production's leading lady is angered over the demeaning nature of her role, the producer and director argue over the film's lack of artistic merits, and when cast members start disappearing, everyone else assumes that they're just quitting out of disgust. Who is the culprit? Is it the school's principal, appearing as himself in the film for the sake of realism? The janitor, who hopes to parlay his cameo into a pornography career? Or maybe Steven (Brendan Hughes), who was a student at Crippen during the original murder spree and finds himself reluctantly cast as the hero? This self-referential slasher parody features George Clooney in a small part as the film's first victim, and The Brady Bunch's Maureen McCormick as a policewoman with a lust for blood and hot dogs. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 35 min.
Directed By: Bill Froehlich
Genres: Horror

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1987 Wide
On DVD: Nov 27, 2001

Critic Reviews

Dustin Putman, DustinPutman.com
The premise is admittedly pretty crafty, but other than that two-minute distraction, Return to Horror High is certainly no great shake.

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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

Jeff "

Return to Horror High is an interested concept for a horror comedy. Told in a series of flashbacks, Return to Horror High is a fine parody of other Slashers. The film is sort of confusing to follow, but is pretty entertaining. The thing that is quite hard to follow is how to tell the… More
Return to Horror High is an interested concept for a horror comedy. Told in a series of flashbacks, Return to Horror High is a fine parody of other Slashers. The film is sort of confusing to follow, but is pretty entertaining. The thing that is quite hard to follow is how to tell the real kills, from the fake one The use of flashbacks is a good idea for this film, only if it was told in a way that it would make sense for the viewer. The film is definitely ahead of its time, in the sense that this is one of the first spoofs of the Slasher genre. This is a fun, tongue in cheek horror comedy that delivers some pretty decent kills on-screen. This is an underrated film in the slasher genre, and one that shouldn't be vilified like it has. If you enjoy a good, cheesy comedy horror flick, a neglected gem of 80's horror sleaze, then Return to Horror High is the perfect film for you to watch. The film, along with other B movie Slashers such as Slaughter High and Cutting Class is one of the 1980's most fun Slashers films. Sure, the film won't win any prizes, but for what it is, Return to Horror High is a good cheesy Slasher with a unique idea. Everything is over the top, and this is an entertaining film if you're used to the genre. By the time the 1980's came to a close, the Slasher was uninspired, boring and flat. Films like this one brought an element of cheesy fun to the genre. If you enjoy a cheesy horror flick, then give this one a shot. The film is pretty underrated and it really doesn't deserve the flack it has received. One of the better Slasher spoofs. The only thing is, is that the film is a tad confusing with its flashback sequences, you may be thrown off by which scene is a real kill and which one isn't.
Lee ?

Reasonably good comic slasher which see's a film crew attempt to make a movie in a high school which was the scene of a bloody massacre five years previously where the killer was never caught. It's fun at times and has some bloody scenes but most of the kills are off-screen.… More
Reasonably good comic slasher which see's a film crew attempt to make a movie in a high school which was the scene of a bloody massacre five years previously where the killer was never caught. It's fun at times and has some bloody scenes but most of the kills are off-screen. We get a bit of George Clooney for the 15 minutes which was fun to see him in something trashy. The film-within-a-film scenes went on for too long though and some of the humour just wasn't funny enough. It may not be the best of the 80s slashers but it's memorable and unpredictable. So if you're in the mood for something different in this horror sub-genre give it a look.
Dean !

A cheesy 80's horror comedy! It actually does a rather good job at taking early fun out of other 80's slasher films. Yes it briefly even has a young George Clooney. Not scary at all, if anything almost the so bad it's good category, but the fact it making fun of itself,… More
A cheesy 80's horror comedy! It actually does a rather good job at taking early fun out of other 80's slasher films. Yes it briefly even has a young George Clooney. Not scary at all, if anything almost the so bad it's good category, but the fact it making fun of itself, it can get away with it. One for slasher fans......but certainly no Scream!
Alexis N

Oh hello young George Clooney. I couldn't even tell you what's going on, half way through I was like, 'wait, what?!' It's so cheesy, so dumb and really hits home the fact that you should NEVER ask, "_____, is that you?" Because it never is and… More
Oh hello young George Clooney. I couldn't even tell you what's going on, half way through I was like, 'wait, what?!' It's so cheesy, so dumb and really hits home the fact that you should NEVER ask, "_____, is that you?" Because it never is and that's how you end up dead.
Tim S

Meh. Pretty bad. I couldn't wait for it to end. Not even fun in a cheesy way.
Cassandra M

A film crew is making a sleazy low-budget horror flick at Crippen High School. This location hides a terrible past, where a few years ago a series of brutal murders occurred and the killer was never captured. Strangely enough members of the cast and crew start disappearing and on the… More
A film crew is making a sleazy low-budget horror flick at Crippen High School. This location hides a terrible past, where a few years ago a series of brutal murders occurred and the killer was never captured. Strangely enough members of the cast and crew start disappearing and on the minds of certain cast members is that it's happening all over again. Huh? Yep, huh? "Return to Horror High" is a hokey low-budget tongue-in-cheek slasher that peculiarly rips on its genre in a very confusing muddle of ideas and bizarre pathways. There's just too much going on, as the illogical story switches back and forth in a rather disjointed manner. The reason for this messy situation can be attributed to story moving between the police investigation, that of the crew actually making the horror flick with killer knocking them off and then the murders the film is based on. That's quite handful and when they gel into one. You're left rather bemused by it all and at times it hard to tell when it's just a film within a film moment. It can get tediously bog down (especially the awkward romance link) by its chattiness and little action. The "Scooby Doo" mystery piles on the red herrings and the lambs for the slaughter, but it's nothing we haven't watched before. What I found to lift this outrageously silly comic horror was that it has a real good time mocking that of stereotypes and clichés and there are a couple of fun hammy performances from the elastic cast. It simply plays for one big wicked joke. The story's structure and overall editing might be a choppy mess, on the other-hand the production was well prepared and the setting was atmospheric. A spine-tingling score that tries to keep you on edge combined with sweeping semi-doco cinematography and gloomy lighting made that factor passable. Although the embarrassingly cheese-filled 80s soundtrack can destroy the mood in certain scenes and the humour can over-rail the menace it tries to build in the opening half of the film. On a whole, it can be lacking, but director Bill Froelich delivers some inventive flushes in a few piercing scenes. A lot of blood (if "fake" movie blood) is splashed about and nudity is dished up in minor bursts. On the other spectre, suspense is quite minimal and clumsy false jumps only reveal the real one with dire results. Actually it can get unpredictable in spontaneous spurts. The ridiculously out-there climax only proves so when it builds up towards its final outcome. This big twist is easy to understand, but how it came to be doesn't make a whole lotta' sense. The humour is quite overwrought in its not-so-subtle style, but these playful jests in the dialogues do have its shining light. Alex Rocco gets most of the best lines and is real treat as the flat-out, obnoxious, slime ball producer. Also the likes of Maureen McCormick as the hot and bothered cop raises a few chuckles and Lori Lethin's feisty awe only engages. While, the acting teeters on lousy, the over-exaggerated turns only enhances the film's eccentric energy and likability. Oh yeah, I actually found the characters rather likable. I'm sure some people will be waiting for George Clooney to hit the screen and you don't have to wait for long, but then again he bites the dust after only about 15 minutes into the flick. Even if it was only a tiny part, his charisma was evident early on. This spoof isn't always on the mark, but it passes time decently enough.
Lafe F

A fun school slasher film. Inconsistent and cheap with some WTF? killing scenes. The plot takes some outrageous twists and turns, trying to confuse, but I stuck with it all the way through for the atmosphere. There are some great scenes, paired with some cheesy acting and dialogue.… More
A fun school slasher film. Inconsistent and cheap with some WTF? killing scenes. The plot takes some outrageous twists and turns, trying to confuse, but I stuck with it all the way through for the atmosphere. There are some great scenes, paired with some cheesy acting and dialogue. Nice cheap appearances by George Clooney, Maureen McCormick and Alex Rocco. This film promises a great massacre but only gives us some bits and pieces. There's no real cohesive plot, only a series of set-piece killings. Hysterical schlock horror curiosity from the 80's. I laughed.
John M

Senseless, boring, not funny, not horror, not gory.
Anthony V

A riot for slasher fans. Lots of inside gags.
paganchild1979 p

Low budget filming that does actually turn out pretty good.

Read all 10 featured audience ratings

Cast

            Lori Lethin as Callie Cassidy

            Brendan Hughes as Steven Blake

            Alex Rocco as Harry Sleerik

            Scott Jacoby as Josh Forbes

            Andy Romano as Principal Kastleman

            Richard Brestoff as Arthur Lyman Kastleman

            Al Fann as Amos

            Pepper Martin as Chif Deyner

            Maureen McCormick as Officer Tyler

            Vince Edwards as Richard Birnbaum

            George Clooney as Oliver

            Darcy de Moss as Sheri Haines

            Cliff Emmich as Dillon

            Panchito Gomez as Choo Choo

            Michael Eric Kramer as Donny Porter

            Marvin J. McIntyre as Robbie Rice

            Philip McKeon as Richard Farley

            Remy O'Neill as Esther Molvania

            Kristi Somers as Ginny McCall

            Larry Spinak as Peter

            Will Etra as Mangled Face/Hatchet Face

            Dexter Hamlett as Freddie

            Joy Heston as Becky

            Frank Kniest as Camera Assistant

            John B. Mueller as Jimmy

            Alison Noble as Jeanine

            George Fisher as Masked Figure
See full cast

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