Plot: What’s it about?
A man named Bill Margot, who lectures on anthropology, has planned a special excavation excursion into some remote desert lands. He won’t arrive at the site until a few days later, but his team of six students is en route. Three girls and three dudes are out on the open highway, driving toward an isolated, mysterious stretch of desert landscape. A stop just before the destination allows them to load up on supplies, as well as talk with a local. A Native American known as Billy Ironwing (George Randall) warns the students about legends of an evil spirit, one of a shaman who preys on those who disturb the land. A visit isn’t bad, but if shovels and artifacts are involved, the spirit is said to cause serious trouble for folks. Not just some scares and jolts either, but intense visitations and yes, even death is rumored. The students listen to his tale, but laugh it off and continue to the site with their plans intact. Just before the site, the kids notice an abandoned truck by the roadside, as well as a skeleton. This spooks them of course, but no one is affected more than D.J. (Jo-Ann Robinson), who is convinced the excavation should be canceled. The others ignore her wishes however, which means the excavation continues. Is there a shamanic spirit out in the desert, or is it just a legend?
As Hollywood scrambles to remake all kinds of horror movies from the 70s & 80s, its a shame no one has looked into Scalps. Fred Olen Ray’s often censored Scalps has a much better premise than most low rent genre pictures, but his lack of budget holds back the production. Well, that and the fact that the crew seems to allow an endless parade of continuity errors to appear. So in a single scene, we might see the darkness night turn to bright daylight and then back again, as if no one bothered to pay attention. The blame rests on the director of course, but these mistakes could have been repaired in post production also. Even with all the production slips, Scalps is a fun movie once the action picks up, without question. The film starts off slow and only gets slower, but once we arrive in the desert, the movie turns the corner. Of course, this is a Fred Olen Ray picture, which means laughable special effects and hilarious performances, but with a film like Scalps, the more schlock, the better. The gore is passable for a movie of this budget, while the performances aren’t too bad, given the material involved. I love the premise of Scalps, so perhaps someone will decide to revisit the material and spruce it up a shade. But fans of low rent horror will still want to own the original, so Scalps is recommended.
Video: How does it look?
Scalps is presented in 1.85:1 widescreen, which is not enhanced for widescreen televisions. In order to present the most complete version possible, Retromedia has utilized multiple sources and as such, some variance is evident. I’ve never seen a passable treatment of Scalps however, as all previous editions have been soft and washed out. Not just a little either, but to the degree where detail is minimal at best. That is due in part to production limitations, but as shown in this release, a solid presentation is possible. The print is still worn and soft, but adequate detail is visible and this is a sizable improvement over prior releases. You’ll see some variance between scenes, as I mentioned, but at least we have a nice treatment at last.
Audio: How does it sound?
You won’t want to use this to showcase your home theater, but the included audio option is stable, so no real complaints. The materials seem a little dated and the low budget roots can be heard, but on the whole, this is a more than solid effort. Aside from the obvious sound sync errors, which have always been present, there’s no issues to report, as sound effects and dialogue seem in order, I think. This isn’t the crispest track I’ve heard, but it is more than sufficient and never falters much, so no serious complaints.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The featured supplement is an audio commentary track, in which director Fred Olen Ray and Lee Lankford discuss the production. As always, Ray is open and candid, so we learn a lot about not only this production, but his filmmaking approach on the whole. He covers the film’s shoot, how it has been cut in previous editions, and his overall thoughts on the finished picture. This disc also includes the film’s theatrical trailer.
