Forget
about Michael Jackson and the Brat Pack. The man who really made 1980s pop
culture awesome was Tom Savini. His gory effects kicked off the slasher movie
craze and then he helped take the genre to the next level. The great makeup and
effect artist reflects on his work and his place horror history throughout Jason
Baker’s documentary profile, Smoke and Mirrors: The Tom Savini Story,
which premieres today on Shudder.
Like
the great George Romero (who gave him his first big break as a gore artist), Tom
Savini was raised in Pittsburgh and he never left town for long. For years, it
was home to his workshop and the Savini School of Special Effects is now based
just outside of town. These days, Savini spends most of his time teaching and
consulting, but he made his name doing makeup and effects for films like Friday
the 13th I and IV, Creepshow 1 & 2, Dawn of the Dead (technically
from 1978, but most of us saw in for the first time in the 80s), Day of the
Dead, Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, and a host of lesser known gorefests, as
well as a few vintage Cannon action films. Yet, for many admirers, the revelation
that Savini has also done so much work for the legit stage (a great deal of it
in Pittsburgh) will be quite a surprise. In fact, his stage Dracula sounds
like some of his best work.
As
fans would hope, Savini is willing to revisit the making of many of his career
highlights. He is also surprisingly candid when it comes to his personal life. Many
fans might have heard how his service in Vietnam inspired some of gorier work,
he also explains its impact on his personal relationships. Yet, Savini now
seems remarkably grounded and at peace with himself. In fact, you have to give
him credit for taking a lot of subsequent family drama in stride.
That
is all admirable and great, but the whole point of a film like this is the
greatest hits clips. Baker shows us plenty of Savini’s work but he and Mitch
Cleaver sometimes edit them together too quickly, giving us rapid cuts that do
not provide full context for the effect’s impact or shock value. Still, a lot
of the footage definitely inspires waves of nostalgia. Perhaps the most
surprising example is the video of one of Savini’s appearances on the old David
Letterman show, which reminds us of when late night talk shows used to be funny
and entertaining.
Baker
also incorporates interview footage with a who’s-who of horror, including Tom
Atkins, Doug Bradley, Alice Cooper, the late Sid Haig, Bill Mosley, Greg
Nicotero, Tony Todd, and archival footage of Romero. Admittedly, this is a
fannish movie, intended for fans. Arguably, Smoke and Mirrors would be a
little lightweight for a theatrical release, but it is perfectly suited for
Shudder’s programming. Recommended for anyone who knows the master’s work, Smoke
and Mirrors: The Story of Tom Savini is now streaming on Shudder.
