Terror on Tour (1980)

User Rating:

3.8/10   

Director:

Don Edmonds

Writer:

Dell Lekus (writer)

Genre:

Crime | Horror | Thriller

Plot:

A rock band called "The Clowns" comes under suspicion of murder when several prostitutes are killed by individuals made up like members of the band. |

Plot Keywords:

Prostitute | Rock Band | Murder | Clown | Music

Cast

Rick Styles	...	Fred
Chip Greenman	...	Ralph
Rick Pemberton	...	Henry
Dave Galluzzo	...	Cherry
Larry Thomas	...	Tim (as Larry Thomasof)
Jeff Morgan	...	Herb
David Thompson	...	Jeff
Lisa Rodríguez	...	Jane
Johnny Green	...	Lt. Lambert
Sylvia Wright	...	Carol
Lindy Leah	...	Nancy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sandy Cobe	...	Band manager
Kalassu	...	Mod girl
John Wintergate	...	Mod guy

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Four Features Partners

Trivia:

This film was made in seven days.

Movie Connections:

References "Peter Gunn" (1958)

Best heavy metal horror movie--by default

This is the first of MANY heavy-metal themed horror movies in the 1980's ("Trick or Treat", "Rocktober Blood", "Rock and Roll Nightmare", "Blood Tracks", "Black Roses", "Shock 'Em Dead", ad infinitum), and it might be the best by default since it doesn't feature any cheesy satanism or crappy special effects, but is simply a straight out slasher movie. A lousy band called "The Clowns" (obviously modeled on "Kiss") is on tour. Wherever they go though someone is knocking off their sleazy groupies, dressed in make-up like the band members. Suspicion naturally falls on the band's nerdy manager who likes to dress like the band in order to get girls (which doesn't seem to ever work too well for him).

Since the protagonists are a hedonistic rock band rather than all-American teenagers like in most slasher movies, there is a lot more sex and nudity than usual here. The movie also might be a little more misogynistic though since ALL the victims are female. Some people also might offended by the way the movie seems to equate rock groupies and prostitutes (prostitutes, after all, have the good sense to ask for money when they give it up to dumbass losers). A subplot where the police force a prostitute they've arrested to go undercover to catch the killer, also really stretches credibility (good luck getting a conviction doing stuff like that). I don't want to insult "Kiss" fans everywhere by saying that "The Clowns" aren't a whole lot worse than their inspiration, but they actually do seem more sinister and dangerous (although maybe that's partly because Gene Simmons nowadays has his own stupid reality show for christsakes).

I would generally suggest one avoid ALL 1980's heavy metal horror movies (there's a big difference between horrifying and horrid, after all), but this might the best of bad bunch.