“If you think that’s bad, wait until you get my bill.”
Guilty Pleasure: a movie or piece of music that one enjoys despite feeling that it is not generally held in high regard.
For me there are a few horror films that are simply guilty pleasures. Mainly horror films from the 90’s; one such film is the one and only ‘Dr. Giggles’. Sure I love ‘The Godfather’, ‘Amadeus’, ‘Doctor Zhivago’, ‘The Shining’, and ‘The Mission’, but even my dark side requires some sick and twisted films to appreciate those Oscar worthy films. ‘Dr. Giggles’ is such a sick and twisted film.
After the success of the Elm Street films, many film studios tried to make their own horror mascots. Some attempts were fruitful like Candyman, Chucky, and Pinhead. Though a lot of attempts were less than desirable. Do you remember ‘The Dentist’, ‘Jack Frost’, or ‘Ice Cream Man’? Some do, but most don’t. ‘Dr. Giggles’ is one of the more entertaining attempts to recreate the next Freddy Krueger. The crazed doctor is played by the great late Larry Drake (Darkman, Darkman II). He truly goes over the top with his performance and his one-liners during his kill scenes are hilarious. For example:
I remember seeing an advert on the back of my ‘Robocop 2’ comic and I instantly wanted to see the film. That poster really gave off some killer slasher vibes. I begged my father to let me see it. He gave in. He didn’t much care for it, but man did I ever love it. Unlike ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ I still very much to this day enjoy ‘Dr. Giggles’.
The film is directed by Manny Coto, the man behind the 1997 box-office smash ‘Star Kid’… wait it was a box office disaster, but that too will forever be a guilty pleasure. Sadly both ‘Dr. Giggles’ and ‘Star Kid’ made him become one of those directors that only made Disney Channel movies before hanging it up as a director. Which is sad because he was a good director. Brian May composed the score, no not the Brian May of Queen fame, who also composed ‘Mad Max’ and ‘Freddy’s Dead’.
The film is an extraordinary and highly enjoyable slasher film. It’s goofy, over-the-top and tries way too hard, but I’ll be damned I love the film. It’s stupidly funny, full of gore, tons of great one liners, and has some creative kills. Then there’s that laugh he makes throughout the film. So yeah check it out because…
Laughter really is the best medicine.
5 out of 5 Scalpels
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