Pumpkinhead (character)
| Pumpkinhead | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Stan Winston |
| Produced by | Bill Blake |
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| Starring | |
| Music by | Richard Stone |
| Cinematography | Bojan Bazelli |
| Edited by | Marcus Manton |
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Production
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| Distributed by |
United Artists Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM/UA Communications Co.) |
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Release date
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Running time
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86 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $4.4 million (US) |
Pumpkinhead is a 1988 American dark fantasy horror film. It was the directorial debut of special effects artist Stan Winston. The film has built up a cult following in the years since its release. The first in the Pumpkinhead franchise, it was followed by a direct-to-video sequel, two TV film sequels, and a comic book series.
In the prologue set in 1957, Tom Harley waits inside his farm cabin with his wife and young son, Ed. A doomed man seeks sanctuary at Tom's cabin, but Tom refuses and threatens to shoot him if he does not leave. Watching through a window, Ed witnesses the man caught and killed by a grotesque monster.
In the present, Ed Harley owns a small store in the country. He briefly leaves his young son alone while he runs an errand. A group of teenage campers stop by Harley's, and, while riding their dirt bikes, they mortally injure Harley's son. One teen, Steve, stays with the boy until his father's return; the rest flee the scene. At their cabin, the campers fight about whether or not to call the police. Joel, who is personally responsible for the boy's injury and is on probation for a similar incident, rips out the phone cord, knocks one of his friends unconscious and locks him and another girl in the closet to stop them from contacting the authorities.
Harley, with his pet dog Gypsy, goes to see a supposed witch, who says she cannot bring his son back. Instead, Harley says that he wants revenge; the witch agrees to help Harley, but she warns him that vengeance comes with a terrible price. On her orders, Harley goes to an old graveyard in the mountains, digs up a disfigured corpse, and brings it back to the witch's home. The witch uses blood from father and son to resurrect the corpse, which rises as a gigantic, spindly demonic monster named Pumpkinhead.
Back at the cabin, Joel begins to experience remorse for his actions and determines to turn himself in to the police. The monster, however, has already arrived. One of the girls, Maggie, hears a voice whispering her name. Seemingly hypnotized, she follows the voice outside the cabin. Steve brings her out of her trance, but Pumpkinhead kills him. Harley experiences the murder through the monster's eyes. While the campers search for Steve, Pumpkinhead drags away Maggie, and Harley again experiences the ensuing murder. He returns to the witch and begs her to stop the monster's actions. The witch laughs mockingly and says that Pumpkinhead cannot be stopped, and warns that Harley will die if he interferes with the killing spree.
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Wikipedia