Deadly Friend (1986)

Directed by Wes Craven. Starring Matthew Laborteaux, Kristy Swanson, Michael Sharrett, Anne Twomey, Richard Marcus, Russ Marin, Anne Ramsey, Andrew Roperto. [R]

Here’s an idea that can’t miss: a high school student (Laborteaux) builds a highly sophisticated, talking robot (whose voice sounds a lot like Stripe from Gremlins), and when the girl next door (Swanson) ends up brain-dead after her father beats the hell out of her, the kid steals her corpse and sticks his robot’s hard drive inside her skull, bringing her back to, um, life? Oh, and then the “reborn” young lady proceeds to go on a neighborhood killing spree. Despite the alleged interference of studio executives demanding more gore because of the director’s reputation, it’s difficult to see how this story could have ever worked outside of accidental camp comedy. In its most notorious scene, Swanson doesn’t simply behead a victim with a basketball—the noggin explodes on contact! Then there’s the ending, which makes absolutely no sense, but at that point, what the heck, right? Should go without saying that this bizarre jumble has gained a cult following in the years since.

33/100