by A.J.
Night 5: Reggie Bannister Memorial Night
"You play a good game, boy, but the game is finished.
Now you die."
Earlier this year, musician, actor, and producer Reggie Bannister passed away at the age of 80. That name might not be familiar to
many, but to horror fans Reggie Bannister is beloved for his role in the Phantasm
films as Reggie, the pony-tail sporting guitar playing ice cream man turned
monster fighting action hero. Though Reggie became the unlikely lead and
co-star of rest of the Phantasm series, which had is most recent and
likely final entry only a few years ago, his character began as a supporting
character in the first Phantasm, which is the only space to start the
Phantasm series since each sequel is part of one continuous story. And it's also the
best of the series.
Phantasm is a great example of a cult classic: it may
not have mainstream recognition, and it may have flaws, but it has enthusiastic
fans. Describing individual scenes and plot points can make Phantasm
sound odd or even ridiculous and the plot itself does not hold up to scrutiny.
Yet, Phantasm is effectively creepy and scary because it relies more on
atmosphere and the main character’s fear and fascination with the things he
witnesses and encounters than on plot. Dreams, nightmares, and the line between
fantasy and reality also play a large part. I suppose this is what some would call a vibes
movie.
On that front, writer-director Don Coscarelli does a great
job keeping us in the emotional and mental space of the main character,
13-year-old Mike (A. Michael Baldwin), who is still dealing with the death of
parents. He also has anxiety that his older brother Jody (Bill Thornbury), a
musician, secretly wants to leave him with a relative. After witnessing strange
things around the local cemetery, Mike comes to believe that the tall,
grim-faced undertaker has a sinister plan that
involves stealing recently buried bodies. Of course, Jody is skeptical but as
danger mounts, he and his friend, Reggie (Reggie Bannister), the local ice
cream man, join Mike to stop the undertaker, also known as The Tall Man.
Coscarelli makes great use of long shots that play out
slowly. He also uses slow motion with eerie effectiveness when Mike sees The
Tall Man walking through town. At first, it is jarring to see him out
in daylight then he pauses by Reggie’s ice cream truck to savor the cool air from
the freezer. The slow motion and exaggerated sound design make a simple moment
unnerving and surreal.
On the more ostentatious side of Phantasm are the
flying metallic orbs that stab people in the face with daggers and then drill a
hole in their head and make blood shoot out the back. There purpose is clear:
elaborate, horrific death. But like many things about Phantasm the “why”
remains a mystery. There are also the hooded dwarves that Mike sees running
around the cemetery. They resemble the Jawas from Star Wars, released only two
years before Phantasm, but Coscarelli said this was a coincidence. Next to the
orbs, what everyone remembers about Phantasm is Angus Scrimm as The Tall
Man. Tall, slender, dressed in black, imposing and intimidating, he is like a
personification of the boogeyman. The most frighting sight in Phantasm is
Mike’s nightmare of The Tall Man looming over his bed.
Phantasm is more than the sum of its parts. From
scene to scene its flaws are easy to overlook because the story is already on
to the next thing. After the credits roll, it still casts a creepy spell.
Horror spectacle does not stand in the way of exploring an adolescent’s fear
and fascination with growing up and with death. The final scenes seem to come
out of nowhere and close the film on an ambiguous note, but tonally and
thematically they match everything that has come before.
It is in these quiet and emotional scenes that Reggie has
more lines and character depth than has in the whole movie and he and Mike
develop a deep bond. Reggie and Mike’s relationship, essentially becoming an
adopted family, is what drives the rest of the Phantasm films. Each is a horror film but Part II, made nine years
later, is a horror-action movie (this is where Reggie combines two double
barreled shotguns to make a super 4-barrelled shotgun, which of course becomes
his signature weapon through the sequels). Part III: Lord of the Dead
leans into comedy and is also a road trip movie. Part IV: Oblivion goes
back to the meditative side of the original and even uses unused footage from
the original shoot. The final entry, Ravager, which Coscarelli did not
direct, aims for both action and esoteric meditation. Each is entertaining in its
own way. Each has Reggie and Mike fighting The Tall Man and looking out for
each other. Reggie Bannister is a most unlikely action hero and that is the
appeal. He’s just a ponytail wearing, guitar playing ice-cream man who has
to protect the people he cares about.
