Scalps (1983)

User Rating:

2.4/10   

Director:

Fred Olen Ray

Writers:

T.L. Lankford (story)
Fred Olen Ray (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

December 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

They came out of the grave to get revenge.

Plot:

Silly group of college science students go an dig around in an indian burial ground for artifacts. Unfortunately...

Plot Keywords:

Student | Burial Ground | Male Rear Nudity | Nudity | Scalp

Cast

Jo-Ann Robinson	...	D.J.
Richard Hench	...	Randy / Black Claw
Roger Maycock	...	Kershaw Ellerbe
Frank McDonald	...	Ben Murphy
Carol Sue Flockhart	...	Louise Landon
Barbara Magnusson	...	Ellen Corman
Kirk Alyn	...	Prof. Machen
Carroll Borland	...	Dr. Sharon Reynolds
Cynthia Hartline	...	Ann
Forrest J Ackerman	...	Prof. Trentwood
George Randall	...	Billy Ironwing
Jay Walker	...	Kyle Dunne
Frank Scott	...	Prospector
Pepi	...	Little Kid
Romeo Rodriguis	...	Cashier
Jesus De Luigi	...	His Buddy

Directed by
Fred Olen Ray

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
T.L. Lankford		story
Fred Olen Ray		screenplay
Fred Olen Ray		story
John Ray		story

Produced by
T.L. Lankford	....	producer
Tim McCanlies	....	associate producer
Ralph Stevens	....	associate producer
Alec Wisner	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Drew Neumann
Eric Rasmussen

Cinematography by
Larry Van Loon		(as Larry P. Van Loon)
Brett Webster

Film Editing by
John Barr		(as John R. Barr)

Makeup Department
R. Christopher Biggs	....	special makeup effects artist (as Chris Biggs)
Jon McCallum	....	special makeup effects artist
Bart Mixon	....	special makeup effects artist (as Bart J. Mixon)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
T.L. Lankford	....	second unit director
Jeff Vernon	....	assistant director

Sound Department
John Mitchell	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Bryan England	....	additional cinematographer

Production Companies

• American Partnership

Distributors

• 21st Century Film Corporation (1983) (USA) (theatrical)
• Continental Video (1985) (USA) (VHS)
• Imperial Entertainment (USA) (VHS)
• Marquis Video (198?) (Canada) (VHS)
• Planet Video (USA) (VHS)
• Retromedia Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Agua Dulce, California, USA

Company:

American Partnership

Trivia:

According to director Fred Olen Ray this film was severely re-edited without his consent by the distributor at the time of its release. Scenes were added out of context which threw off continuity and gave away major spoilers such the fates of most of the characters, as well as the shots of chanting Indian ghost's head, which was haphazardly overlayed over such scenes as the old man cutting his own throat. Also all but one of the scenes showing the ghost with the lion's head were shot as test footage and were never intended to be included in the released film.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Before one man's decapitation, his head comes off before it's supposed to.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Terror on Tape (1983)

A haircut anyone??

The movie starts with a guys head being chopped off, this happens in the very first scene so i guess it's a reminder of the movies R certification. Some students go on a expedition or as their teacher prefer to call it a field-trip. Close to their destination the car breaks downs and they go to a near by gas station, there they come across an native-American old man that warns them about the hills, about the killings that went on in the past. As you can expect, they aren't concerned with the warnings and continue their search for artifacts at what they now know to be an native-American burial ground. After a successful afternoon collecting artifacts, one of the guys is possessed by an native-American spirit, that gradually transforms him physically... let the scalping begin.

i found the gory scenes by far the best aspect of the movie. the location is also nice, reminding me of movies such as the "hills have eyes", the hot, dry california desert helps create some tension, the vulnerability of the open spaces. there's not much acting going on but the actors did a reasonable job. a good way to spend 80 minutes, if you're a horror fan.