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| The Tall Man raises the dead to make them into his army of zombie slaves as our heroes try to thwart his evil plans. He also has a flying, silver, pointy, razor-bladed killing ball. --Dr. Z
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Films starring kids don't have to be immature, but Phantasm struck me as such. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but in this case, the relatively immature feel of the film it does have a tendency to take some of the enjoyment out of it. For me, at least, Phantasm seems to try too hard to be a film that will appeal to teenagers, and it suceeds, to a minor degree. Phantasm has some decent characters, and the ocassional burst of imagination, but it suffers from its lack of a scary antagonist. The Tall Man, with his lethal flying ball, is menacing, sure, but he's not in the film enough to form a truly oppressive presence. In fact, the narrative itself is too diffused--it's all over the place, eventually ending with a twist that I found jolting and upsetting, but perhaps not unfitting. (Jan 19, 2000) 
I love the Phantasm movies. This first one introduces the especially creepy Tall Man, one of the most underrated villians in horror (Freddy and Jason got all the good press). Most of us will remember the hearse and the flying killer silver ball. This has the cool effect of brain impalment for all you gore fans. The story gets a bit lost in the surreal (that's why I don't give it 5 stars). Overall, a sure-fire renter's treat. (Oct 17, 1999)
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Followed by three sequels--Phantasm II, Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead, and Phantasm IV: Oblivion.
