A new form of “ghoulies” emerge in the first of Charles Band’s recently made Deadly Ten Collection.
It is Halloween night and a trio of college students, in an attempt to pay their tuition, plan to hold a party in a hotel. Their plan is to not only party but have a scavenger hunt where the trio will hide various sources of cannabis. A fourth student, the nerdy Claude, has successfully developed a new brand dubbed “The Golden Hub”, which he guarantees will make one fly. He seems to have a bit of a crush on one of the girls, Dallas, who constantly rebuffs him. As the party begins, the group finds an unexpected visitor.
A mysterious woman known as the Baroness arrives to the party and brings a gift for the group of students. A mysterious Ouija board is the gift and the students try it out. They soon learn that the board opens a portal in which little creatures known as the “Weedjies” have come out and are ready to play and wreak havoc. The enigmatic master of the board, Ganja, tells the students that they have until midnight to capture all of the Weedjies and bring them back to the board. If they are unsuccessful in this mission, they will all have to be sacrificed to the board and become Weedjies themselves. The group decides to make sure they have them all before the stroke of midnight.
Whoever thought the world would expect practically an update of the cult classic Ghoulies franchise with the major twist of cannabis being involved? Well, it is here and much like the 80’s film series, this film is more about being a fun popcorn movie than wanting to take itself seriously. If that is the intent, then Full Moon has succeeded, because this is a fun 75-minute ride in which we see four college students having to capture the titular creatures before they become them.
The core cast all seem to display different personalities, which works for the film. Victoria Strange’s Dallas is the outspoken member of the group, who constantly rebuffs the nerdy Claude, played by Johnny Lee. Yo Ying’s Frankie is the somewhat double-edged sword, smart one minute but dim-witted the next. She has good ideas but tends to fall a little short when it comes time to execute. Brett Hargrave’s Madison is the most grounded of the trio, who serves more as a leader type. James Adam Tucker’s take on the Ganja ghost brings hysterics into the forefront as he becomes the students’ guide in the mission at hand while Denise Milfort is undeniably evil as the Baroness, who looks like, well as the film’s title may indicate, a female version of The Princess and the Frog’s Dr. Facilier obviously on something.
1313 FX brings the titular Weedjies to life and much like their ancestor Ghoulies, they look cute but dangerous. There take on many shapes and forms, including a “weedwolf”, played by someone credited as “The Don”. While the creatures are introduced in the film’s prologue, set on Halloween in 1978, this scene is vital due to the appearance of not only the Baroness but one of the creatures who have escaped and stayed in the outside world for four decades. There are some pretty nifty death scenes including one that is so crazy and unexpected that its sure to strike a chord with the fans.
Weedjies: Halloweed Night takes the Ghoulies story and successfully makes it what it’s intended to be: a fun wild modern update with some comic relief, cute but deadly creatures, and some pretty crazy kills, all in a smooth running 75-minute runtime.
WFG RATING: B
Full Moon Features presents a Deadly Ten production. Director: Danny Draven. Producer: Charles Band. Writer: Shane Bitterling; story by Charles Band, Danny Draven, and Brockton McKinney. Cinematography: Howard Wexler.
Cast: Victoria Strange, Johnny Lee, Brett Hargrave, Yo Ying, Denise Milfort, James Adam Tucker, Nelson Hayne, Derek Petropolis, Chad Ridgely, Roy Abramsohn, Shellie Sterling, Sebastian Fernandez.
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