For what it is, though, Cellar Dweller remains an excellent example of the type of content that would litter the horror section of Mom and Pop video stores in the 1980s.
30 years ago, comic book artist Colin Childress (Jeffrey Combs) was drawing for Cellar Dweller, a collection of illustrated horror stories in the vein of EC Comics. One of his pieces was inspired by a book of spells he kept handy by his desk. Unfortunately, when he read one of the incantations aloud, the demon he’s drawn entered the real world and murdered his girlfriend. Once he realized what he’d done, he burned the offending comic to rid the world of his creation. In his haste, accidentally catches himself on fire and dies.
In the present-day of 1988, comic book aficionado and artist Whitney Taylor (Debrah Farentino) travels to Childress’ studio. The house in which he lived has been transformed into an art school for a collection of misfits. Run by Mrs. Briggs (Yvonne De Carlo,) a no-nonsense woman who favors some students over others, the school’s board of directors has accepted Whitney, even though her chosen art form — comics — is looked down upon by most of the attending artists.
Whitney, drawn to the school by a love of Childress’ work, doesn’t believe the stories that he murdered his girlfriend and started a fire to cover it up. She takes up residence in his old basement studio and attempts to revive the Cellar Dweller comic. When she discovers the book of spells locked in a forgotten chest, she makes the same mistake as Childress and reads the identical spell. Soon, her drawings become reality and, one by one, her fellow students begin disappearing.
Cellar Dweller, the movie, was directed by make-up effects artist John Carl Buechler. So, it’s no surprise that the film revolves around a character brought to life by a wonderful assemblage of 1980s prosthetic effects. Essentially, the movie acts as a showcase for Buechler’s talent. The simplistic script reads like a highlight reel of effects shots more than anything approaching a compelling story. In fact, had the film not included Buechler’s gore effects and the copious amount of nudity, it could have very easily been an episode of the Goosebumps TV series.
For what it is, though, Cellar Dweller remains an excellent example of the type of content that would litter the horror section of Mom and Pop video stores in the 1980s. Quickly written and quickly produced horror films that still manage to entertain despite not being very deep or logical.
3.0 out of 5.0 stars
