Trapped Ashes

TRAPPED ASHES is a very low budget anthology horror made in the same style as DR TERROR'S HOUSE OF HORRORS or CREEPSHOW. It has an admirably old-fashioned feel to it, but unfortunately the constraints of budget and general cheesiness of the execution means that it disappoints rather than innovates throughout.

Unusually enough for a horror anthology, the best part of the film is the wraparound segment. This is directed by Joe Dante, who can't resist throwing in some old timers like his beloved Dick Miller and Henry Gibson (THE BURBS), who acts as a tour guide showing a group around an old haunted house. The stories that take place are as follows: The first, THE GIRL WITH GOLDEN BREASTS, is an awful bad taste joke about a woman whose breast enlargement operation goes awry. This one's directed by Ken Russell, who also cameos, and it's terrible from beginning to end. The second, JIBAKU, is directed by Friday THE 13TH's Sean S. Cunningham and is a Japanese-set ghost story. Sadly, the events that play out are entirely predictable, although Ryo Ishibashi (SUICIDE CLUB) bags a small role.

The third story, STANLEY'S GIRLFRIEND, arouses some mild interest by tackling the weighty subject of Stanley Kubrick, but it turns out to be routine despite the welcome presence of old-timer John Saxon. The final story, MY TWIN, MY WORM, is another bad taste story and the title tells you everything you need to know about that. I only really enjoyed TRAPPED ASHES for seeing the three old-time actors on-screen but the young cast members are very poor here and the directors appear to be slumming it. It's a pity.