Love the Muff.
After a March that included a couple of cult classics (The Blob, Vamp), an indie slasher (The Ranger) and a franchise misfire (Jason X), Trace and I are ready for a mature, adult get-away with friends, so we celebrated April 1st by revisiting Fred Walton’s classic 1986 flick, April Fool’s Day.
In the revisionist slasher, a group of college friends, including Amy Steel, Clayton Rohner and troubled star Griffin O’Neal, spend a weekend retreat at Muffy St. John (Deborah Foreman)’s secluded island mansion. But what begins as a series of fun pranks quickly turns deadly as the friends are picked off one by one. Or are they?
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Episode 67 – April Fool’s Day (1986)
Who’s ready for a few good pranks?
The boys hit the Canadian West Coast for a weekend retreat at the palatial island home of their Vassar friend, Muffy St. John <snicker>, but the weekend doesn’t go quite as planned. There are secret abortion cassettes, utterly unfathomable sex positions and some of the worst 80s fashion we’ve ever seen. Oh…and murder.
There’s something unusual about this late entry slasher and it’s not just that actor Griffin O’Neal “Rebecca Gayhearted” (or is it “Brandied”?) a member of the Coppola family. There’s also a secret alternative ending, a subtle queer read and no shortage of logistical questions about the plot. Plus: waterskiing, nurse shoes, and plenty of comparisons to the Friday the 13th franchise…including the game?!
Cross out April Fool’s Day!
Coming up on Wednesday: Grab your new business cards, your facial products and your reservation to Dorsia because we’re headed back to the 80s with Mary Harron’s American Psycho just in time for its 20th anniversary.
– Joe & Trace
P.S. Check out this month’s article on 1981’s Roadgames. You can find all of the old articles here.
P.P.S. As an added bonus, if you subscribe to our Patreon you can listen to episodes on Craig Zobel’s The Hunt and, since there are no new theatrical films, we’re kicking off “Trapped In Your House” horror month with Mike Flanagan’s Hush (2016).