The Daily Dig: Dead Girls (1990)

Venture into the woods with “Dead Girls” — an all-women death metal band from the late eighties who forgot to bring a plot along with them.

A metal band takes a nature-filled vacation at a cabin in the woods and is stalked by a Don Post mask-wearing killer. Let’s dig into 1990’s DEAD GIRLS, directed by Dennis Devine!

As I See It

The woods are an endless source of fear and horror for writers. A masked killer, an evil ancient book, zombies, a pumpkin-headed demon, and even a well-oiled human sacrifice operation (Cabin in the Woods) have been thrust upon teens and unsuspecting campers for decades now.

Why not subject a “death metal” band to the same?

Death metal is a major misnomer for the style of music portrayed in the film. It reminds me of a kid in high school who used to make fun of the skateboarder with Pennywise and Metallica patches on his backpack. He used to invoke Satan as if Metallica was the most evil band in the world, completely unaware of the black metal and Norwegian horror that lay deeper within the abyss.

It’s not like there weren’t any well-established bands in the death metal genre before this film. Kreator, Celtic Frost, Death, and even Sepultura had successful albums pre-1990.

It takes a solid thirty-five minutes before we get to the cabin in a cabin-based horror film, which is a big no-no. There’s no reason to waste time with the early exposition. Get to the cabin and have some fun.

I can’t move on without mentioning just how terrible the audio is on this transfer. I’m sure they weren’t working with crisp, clear sound with the original print.

A little tidbit of extra trivia: Apparently, this film was inspired by the tragic, self-inflicted death of John David McCollum in 1984, which saw metal legend Ozzy Osbourne in litigation after the family of McCollum sued Ozzy because of his song “Suicide Solution” — which they said had influenced John to commit the act.

Famous Faces

Robert Harden (Sheriff) was Leroy in the Troma classic Surf Nazis Must Die.

Both Angela Eads (Dana) and Kay Schraber (Nancy Napalm) were in another Dennis Devine film, Fatal Images, which features a very 80s paperback-esque cover of skeleton hands holding a camera.

Of Gratuitous Nature

There is no way this film flies today, especially with the cavalier attitude around $uicide. Of course, no film like this would be complete without some nude sunbathing.

Heartthrob

A sunbathing scene with what sounds like music for the boss level of an NES game may be a nerd fantasy I didn’t know existed.

Ripe for a Remake

Metal and horror are wonderful bedfellows. I’m for them teaming up almost completely in spite of quality; almost.

Spawns

No progeny to report.

Where to Watch

Vinegar Syndrome released Dead Girls on Blu-ray as part of their Homegrown Horrors Vol. 2. You may also be able to find it on YouTube. There’s also a documentary called Dead Girls Rock: Looking Back at Dead Girls featuring the cast and crew of the film.