When I saw Shocker back in the day, I had no way of recognizing Mitch "Skinner" Pileggi from The X-Files (it was 3-4 years away), but what a hoot to do so on rewatch decades later! And he does such a good job as a demented serial killer that I actively resent the movie going into supernatural territory and turning him into an electric ghost that, like Fallen (NINE years away) jumps into various other actors and loses all the visceral energy of his horror killing by using guns and electro-blasts. It's quite obvious that Wes Craven is trying to - all together now - capture lightning in a bottle and remixing elements from A Nightmare on Elm Street - vivid dreams that connect to the mass murderer, sins of the parent, and a super-powered revenant - but in terms of mythology, it's all over the place, and the crazy climax is nonsense that doesn't follow any rules, not even those internal to the flick. I respect the ballsy insanity, but I kind of unplugged from the story once Pileggi zapped himself out of it.
watching this movie feels like being inside one of wes craven's dreams... he probably should have edited it a little for the big screen tho. a guilty pleasure.
Why do the bodies he possesses develop a limp? It makes no sense. It's a physical condition specific to his original body and shouldn't be transferable.
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Siskoid
When I saw Shocker back in the day, I had no way of recognizing Mitch "Skinner" Pileggi from The X-Files (it was 3-4 years away), but what a hoot to do so on rewatch decades later! And he does such a good job as a demented serial killer that I actively resent the movie going into supernatural territory and turning him into an electric ghost that, like Fallen (NINE years away) jumps into various other actors and loses all the visceral energy of his horror killing by using guns and electro-blasts. It's quite obvious that Wes Craven is trying to - all together now - capture lightning in a bottle and remixing elements from A Nightmare on Elm Street - vivid dreams that connect to the mass murderer, sins of the parent, and a super-powered revenant - but in terms of mythology, it's all over the place, and the crazy climax is nonsense that doesn't follow any rules, not even those internal to the flick. I respect the ballsy insanity, but I kind of unplugged from the story once Pileggi zapped himself out of it.panagos
Utterly laughable script, the only horror i got, was the idea that this movie will never end...goellnerd
What prison let a death row inmate have candles AND jumper cables??But overall, what a silly movie, I fully enjoyed myself.
nick121235
watching this movie feels like being inside one of wes craven's dreams... he probably should have edited it a little for the big screen tho. a guilty pleasure.neocowboy
This movie really is a shocker.Why do the bodies he possesses develop a limp? It makes no sense. It's a physical condition specific to his original body and shouldn't be transferable.