The film is about a monstrous pagan gods bloody rampage through the irish countryside, and based on the short story by clive barker that originally appeared in vol. Leprechauns, shamrock, guinness, horses running through council estates, toothless simpletons, people with eyebrows on their cheeks, badly tarmaced drives in this country, men in platform. It falls to an american anthropologist to attempt to stop the. Scenes of strong gory violence include sight of severed limbs and blood spraying from a mans neck as he is bitten by a monster. The insane obrien catches coot and forces him upstairs to be sacrificed to rawhead. This gory horror film, an adaptation from one of noted britishauthor clive barkers short stories, follows what happens next.
With david dukes, kelly piper, hugh oconor, cora venus lunny. Castors underrated hallows eve gems rawhead rex 1987. A farmer unleashes a demon known as rawhead rex, who proceeds to go on the rampage across rural ireland. Rawhead rex is a 1986 british fantasy horror film directed by george pavlou, produced by kevin attew and don hawkins, and was written by clive barker, based upon the short story of the same name by barker. Rawhead rex is a 1987 british monster horror film directed by george pavlou, produced by kevin attew and don hawkins, and was written by clive barker, based upon the short story of the same name by barker. What makes this film different from others of its like is the eerie atmospheric photography and general meanspiritedness. Rawhead rex, adapted from clive barkers own short story, was the second, with the other being underworldtransmutations 1985 the original clive barker short story that the film is based on. The police arrive at the church and prepare to open fire on rawhead, but they hesitate because he is carrying coot.
An irish farmer moves an ancient stone, unwittingly freeing a gigantic, terrible, bloodthirsty pagan demon known as rawhead rex. Rawhead rex 1987 george pavlou cast and crew allmovie. Ireland will never be the same after rawhead rex, a particularly nasty demon, is released from his underground prison by an unwitting farmer. What the film lacks in terms of suspense, it makes up for with the rex rampage scenes. Before hellraiser, clive barker helped adapt another of his stories for the big screen with rawhead rex 1986, and hes regretted it ever since. It falls to an american anthropologist to attempt to stop the demons rampage in this gory horror film, based upon a clive barker short story. While rawhead rex may not win over new fans, especially those who dont take kindly to low budget film making and practical effects done on the cheap but i had a good time watching this 89 minute monster movie. Rawhead rex is a 1986 british fantasy horror film directed by george pavlou, produced by. Directed by george pavlou transmutations, 1985, it was released in 1987 to a. The film focuses on a monstrous pagan gods bloody rampage through the irish countryside. Shock take on another of our monster frankensteinian episodes to discuss some lesserloved 80s horror movies, including obscurities like a demonic beastly freak flick called rawhead rex 1987 and slime city 1988 and street trash 1987. Rawhead rex is horror thriller, from 1986, in which a monstrous spirit awakens and terrorises a village in ireland.
This film is steeped in local irish color and contains some truly offbeat characters. A monster materializes to wreak havoc on a tiny irish town. After a freak lightning bolt strikes the ground where the remains of rex, buried during the prechristian era, is inadvertently dug up by a potato farmer, the pagan god descends upon the. Overview of rawhead rex, 1987, with michael ford, john olohan, maeve germaine, at turner classic movies. Adapted for the screen by george pavlou in 1987, rawhead rex first appeared in clive barkers books of blood. Rawhead rex was created by clive barker who is a genius through words, yet his film adaptations seem to fall short of his novels intensity. Play in new window download in episode 025 of horror movie podcast, where were dead serious about horror movies, jay of the dead and dr. The film goes by quickly with a high body count, even. Its one of the strongest tales of any in those groundbreaking, gamechanging horror anthologies.
The film follows rex s cross country rampage, while a. Theres a local priest who wants to help rawhead rex and is not above murdering people and spewing filthy language. The film follows rexs cross country rampage, while a man struggles to stop it. No sooner does he move the rock when out rushes an enormous, bloodthirsty pagan demon, rawhead rex, who immediately goes berserk and begins biting people left and right. While titles like 1973s the wicker man and 1971s the blood on satans claw may immediately come to mind, there is one often overlooked and easily dismissed film that deserves a bit more attention. Ireland will never be the same after rawhead rex, a particularly nasty demon. There are two good reasons why british horror author clive barker decided to direct his own stories beginning with hellraiser 1987. As there is no method to his madness, whenever rex encounters a human he just goes apeshit.
Castors underrated hallows eve gems rawhead rex 1987 october 8, 2019 interjected leave a comment though the adaptations are less frequent, clive barkers booktoscreen translations have been much more consistently spectacular. Rawhead rex 1987 british board of film classification. Rawhead rex is a demon, alive for millennia, trapped in the depths of hell, and waiting for release. I miss massive dudes dressed in rubber suits stomping around like their hellish, western versions of godzilla, wiping out people in caravans along the way. This dissatisfaction inspired him to take a more central role when making hellraiser. He also explains that he bought the ownership of the film rights because he was sick of seeing it presented in pan and scan.
The rawhead mask is oddly enchanting, as you can never put your finger on what its supposed to resemble. Rawhead rex may be restored after 30 years, but should it. Coot finds the missing parish records, showing what appears to be some kind of blueprint of rawhead himself. The lads from thc provide a lively commentary full of facts about the filming and is rawhead rex, a slasher film. Winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival central all events. Rawhead rex is a 1986 british and irish horror film directed by george pavlou and written by clive barker. He is held by an ancient seal, imprisoned for centuries in a barren field near the hamlet of. Rawhead rex certainly is a stupid film, but thats a huge chunk of the fun. Find release information for rawhead rex 1987 george pavlou on allmovie. There is an unwritten rule in horror filmmaking that you dont reveal your monster too soon or too suddenly. When a farmer removes a stone from a field, he awakens rawhead rex, an ancient pagan god. Rawhead rex 1986 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. An egyptian prince has lost his beloved wife and he has sought a.
A photographer from america must unravel the mystery of the monsters origin, and return rawhead to his resting. I loved the story so much that, when george pavlous film adaptation came along, i deliberately avoided it. Find movie and film cast and crew information for rawhead rex 1987 george pavlou on allmovie. Volume 3 and is a towering ninefoottall humanoidlike creature with a face full of sharp teeth. The film was released limited in the us by empire pictures on 17 april 1987, and the same year it was released on vhs by vestron video. Theres a local priest who wants to help rawhead rex and is. He is the devil incarnate who has the local vicars assistant as his mortal assistant. Rawhead urinates on the priest while he begs for more. While he wrote the screenplay and it is mostly faithful to the original story, he was very unhappy with some of the acting and especially with rawhead rex s ogrelike design, as he intended the monster to look like a giant phallus. Rawhead proceeds to unleash a murderous rampage across the irish countryside, while possessing a priest to be his servant.
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