Terror Train/Review

While “The Shining” was building its place in horror history, the slasher boom was taking its course. Never mind the classic flicks like Friday The 13th which would become big juggernauts throughout the decade. This year alone gave us two cult Canuxploitation slicers all headlights by the scream queen herself - Jamie Lee Curtis. Those movies in particular being Prom Night and the one we’re talking about today, Terror Train.

We begin at Sigma Phi University on Christmas Eve with a college fraternity headed by a jokester named Doc. And I’m really emphasizing jokester here as he pulls antics like pranking people with dead body parts (Charles Addams much?). Enter Kenny Hampson, a dorky outcast who just wants to know what kissing a girl is like. He gets set up by Doc for a literal airplane landing-like seduction by Alana, the cute girl (Jamie Lee Curtis). But to his horror, it’s a prank where in her place on the bed is a female corpse. Naturally Kenny is traumatized into a freakout, spinning the sheets at the thought of doing the special necrophile’s version of the No Pants dance.

Cut to three years later and the Sigma Phi crew are celebrating New Year’s Eve with a train ride. This steam-engined party has everything from quirky engineers longing for the classic days of trains to even David Copperfield! (Even if he’s just basically playing himself.) It’s all fun and games til some of them are butchered by a unknown killer taking on the costumes of his victims after they’re disposed of. Because of this, it’s damn near impossible to find the fiend responsible. Will Alana be able to save the day or has she taken her last train to Clarksville?!

All jokes aside, “Terror Train” is a surprisingly well-made slice’em up film that honestly better than “Prom Night” (sorry, guys). The kills range from chilling to downright gory in some instances. There’s even some bits such as the killer in disguise giving the conductor a bottle to cover up by passing off as a drunk that’s honestly pretty clever. Characters like Doc and Mo are quirky with their jokey attitudes and Alana is lovable as a woman trying to reconcile with her guilt over the past.

Two main highlights are the cinematography and the gimmick of the masks switched between kills. The shots of the train at night are beautiful with the look of a foggy locomotive drifting off into the shadowy darkness. Almost akin to the image of the ghost train urban legend to a certain extent. Plus you’re being stuck on a moving vehicle in the middle of nowhere with a creep that can be in any uniform. If that thought alone doesn’t scare people off from taking night trains, then I don’t know what will.

Overall “Terror Train” is a one of those surprise gems that gets buried in the glut of slashers between the 70’s and 80’s. Underrated to a tee, this flick is guaranteed to entertain those looking for some suspense and those for want some gore with their killings. You could say that this is (and apologies for the Dad joke) the little slasher that could.

5/5 stars - check it out

Ken Hegarty is a contributor to the Grindhouse Cinema Database. You can find a list of his reviews HERE.