Editorials
Master of Monsters: Celebrating the Work of Horror Legend John Carl Buechler
It’s impossible to be an avid horror fan and not be familiar with the work of John Carl Buechler, even if you may not be familiar with the artist behind the work. His passion for genre and the filmmaking process meant that he delivered hundreds of great horror memories over the decades. A special effects and makeup artist that specialized in creature work and design, Buechler also wrote, directed, and acted in movies as well. From the late ‘70s to the present, only a devastating battle with cancer would slow him down from his prolific output in film. A friendly, enthusiastic voice that matched his extensive work ethic in spades, Buechler is gone too soon, but his lengthy filmography has left us with countless movie memories that shaped generations of horror lovers.
If you’re a regular reader of our It Came From the 80s column, then you already are aware of Buechler’s enduring relationship with producer Charles Band, especially during the era of Empire International Pictures. He’s the mind behind the monsters of Ghoulies, TerrorVision, Troll, Cellar Dweller, The Garbage Pail Kids Movie, and Dolls. Many of which shaped my own love of horror as a child obsessed with monsters. He also worked on special effects on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Prison, Crawlspace, From Beyond, Re-Animator, Ghost Town, Trancers, and more throughout the years.
While Buechler directed a segment in the anthology The Dungeonmaster in ’84, Troll marked his feature directorial debut followed by Cellar Dweller. Often the productions of these films overlapped, meaning that Buechler was almost always juggling multiple projects at once. He somehow made it seem effortless, despite the insane scope of work involved.
Buechler also brought his expertise to all three major horror franchises in the ‘80s and ‘90s. A special effects artist on A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, in which he had a hand on Alice’s aged makeups, the impressive effect of Freddy’s chests of souls, and the humorously grotesque horror soul pizza, this ambitious special effect driven sequel was made all the better by his contributions. He handled the special effects design for Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare with his studio Magical Media Industries, Inc. Then there was Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, made more impressive by Buechler’s role as special makeup effects supervisor and designer. Though Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers has proven divisive, the kills can be downright gory, attributed in part to Buechler.
In Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood, Buechler stepped into the director’s seat. Having worked with stuntman and stunt coordinator Kane Hodder on previous films like Prison, Buechler wanted Hodder to don the mask of Jason Voorhees, a move that meant Hodder would irrevocably become intertwined with the character. While this sequel has a fun tone overall thanks to the telekinetic protagonist that would battle Voorhees, it was originally much, much bloodier. A lot of the gore and death scenes had to be trimmed to avoid an X-rating. Meaning that while the MPAA dampened Buechler’s vision, it’s clear he understood this series (thankfully a lot of the gore can be found in the deleted scenes of the boxed set).
Hodder and Buechler reteamed again in 2006 in Adam Green’s Hatchet. This time Buechler would be working on the great gore effects and playing the lovable Jack Cracker, while Hodder would assume the role of a modern horror icon in Victor Crowley. The character of Jack Cracker appeared again in Hatchet II, though for a brief, unforgettable scene.
These are just some of the highlights of Buechler’s expansive career. He was a classically trained filmmaker with a degree in fine art, cinema and theater. As much as he loved and gave himself to the art of film, he also gave freely to budding talent in the industry. Many other notable artists working in special effects were given their start by Buechler. All of this to say that Buechler was and is just as important to horror fandom as he is to the people working in horror films. The profound impact he’s had on the genre ripples out so far, and has touched so many, that his presence will forever be embedded in the DNA of horror cinema.
A master of monsters and a genuinely kind person with a contagious sense of humor, John Carl Buechler will be greatly missed.
Editorials
Not Another ‘Scary Movie’: Revisiting Forgotten Parody ‘Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th’
After Scream (1996) made a killing at the box office, as well as won over critics and audiences, a lot of folks in the movie biz thought they could do the same thing (and yield similar results). That thing, of course, being a slasher. Most of these opportunists wound up being pretty straightforward; they were low on humor or commentary. Yet others, like Scary Movie (2000), saw the potential for spoofing Scream, and acted on that impulse with both haste and excitement.
A few months after the Wayans’ comedy first hit theaters, Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th landed on the USA Network, as part of the channel’s “Shriek Week” programming. That straight-to-cable (then home video) destination is possibly why many people still don’t know about this one. Or they simply chose to forget. Whatever the reason, only one of these two horror parodies came out on top—and it’s certainly not the movie where Coolio channeled Prince, and Tom Arnold saved the day.
Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th previously went by the name of I Know What You Screamed Last Semester. That Trimark acquisition then settled on a wordier title, just so it could avoid the litigious wrath of Miramax Films. Folks may or may not remember that Columbia Pictures was sued over the “implied connection” between I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) and Scream. So, yeah, there was no way that this competing Scream parody wasn’t going to be kept on a tight rein.
A Heavy Reliance on Late ’90s TV References
Simon Rex, Julie Benz, Majandra Delfino, Harley Cross, Danny Strong, Tom Arnold and Tiffani-Amber Thiesen in Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th.
Naturally, there would be similarities between Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th and Scary Movie—their scripts are built on the backs of the same two movies. It goes without saying that the other big slasher of the 1990s, I Know What You Did Last Summer, was as much of a target as Scream. However,the film pads itself with more TV references than Scary Movie did.
Half the cast coming off of (and in some cases, returning to) a WB show could be a reason why. Dawson’s Creek is particularly zeroed in on, based on how there’s a central character named “Dawson Deery“, and how the teen drama’s teacher-student affair plotline is satirized to the nth degree. As if there weren’t enough nods to television, Baywatch, VH1’s Pop Up Video, and even those cheesy Mentos commercials all serve as joke prompts.
Shriek director John Blanchard and writers Sue Bailey and Joe Nelms all hailed from television, so it’s understandable that they would stick close to home. The movie’s humor in general makes more sense, in light of learning that Blanchard worked on SCTV, Kids in the Hall, and MADtv. The writers, on the other hand, were each fairly green, with Bailey being the most experienced of the two; she wrote and produced the game show BattleBots. Nevertheless, they, plus Blanchard, churned out a passable, joke-a-minute movie. The whole thing is staggeringly of its time, but no one here was aiming for longevity.
Having seen enough of these kinds of movies, we know to expect jokes of the low-hanging fruit variety. That’s the parody’s whole prime directive. From the characters having names like “Screw Frombehind” and “Doughy Primesuspect”, to stereotyping that feels taboo nowadays, this is a movie from a different era of comedy. Its coarse, corny, and unapologetic sense of humor won’t sit well with everyone in these more enlightened times. In which case, Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th can be treated as a time capsule.
Does Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th Humor Still Hold Up Today?
“You may already be a victim”—Someone receives a most peculiar threatening piece of mail in Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th.
Although Shriek doesn’t live up to its own claims of being so funny that you’ll die of laughter, its bawdier parts could still lead to some nervous laughter. For instance, after this movie’s parallel to Drew Barrymore’s Scream character is done in—not by the killer but by a bug zapper—the movie throws a newspaper next to the victim’s fresh corpse. The headline? “Popular slut killed! Football team mourns”.
We then move on to the wacky and inappropriate goings-on at Bulimia Falls High School, home of the Hurlers. At this nexus of constant absurdity, indecency, and surrealism, students are seen fornicating on the lawn, cheerleading squad applicants are advised to be comfortable with partial nudity, and terrorists openly prepare for an anthrax attack. It can be a tad jarring to watch, especially if you didn’t grow up witnessing this style of comedy firsthand. Hell, even if you did, you may still have a “what the hell were they thinking?” reaction.
It’s not just the aggressively edgy humor here that can make you chuckle—the slapstick, the sight gags, and the ribaldry all have a decent chance of landing. The movie’s own villain, whose hockey mask was instantly transformed into a crudely Ghostface-esque one after coming in contact with an open flame, commits more cheap laughs than kills. His and his victims’ chase sequences, most of which are cartoonish in nature, left this writer grinning. The Scooby-Doo fan in me also totally ate up that clever unmasking joke.
Final Thoughts on This Forgotten Horror Parody
Shriek If You Know What Did Last Friday the 13th
Now, the jury is still out on whether these comedies are to blame for the death of the first slasher revival. There is more to consider than some parodies. At the very least, the likes of Scary Movie didn’t exactly encourage big studios to put their money on a trend that was being derided to death (and not as profitable as the spoofs). These sorts of movies also felt unnecessary at the time, given how their principal inspiration is already a deconstruction of the genre. But like anything else that quickly becomes popular, mockery is unavoidable.
Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th is indeed a movie nobody asked for, much less needed. As a sample of pre-millennium humor and cultural attitudes, it’s not always precise. But as I’ve laid out, your mileage may vary. Horror parodies typically don’t have the best track record, so managing one’s own expectations here is recommended.
Upon rewatching, I for one laughed a bit more than I did back then. Only this time, I responded to the jokes that my younger self didn’t notice or find all that amusing. So it just goes to show that the movies don’t change—we do.
Harley Cross and Majandra Delfino must unmask the killer a number of times in Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th before learning their true identity.
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