Trophy Heads

Trophy Heads

Trophy Heads is about real life Scream Queens who starred in numerous horror films throughout the 1980's and 90's. While they have moved on with their lives, an obsessed fan named Max is stuck in the cinematic worlds they starred in decades ago! With the help of his mother, Max begins to collect the Scream Queens one by one and forces them to re-enact scenes from their films. The problem is, they barely remember the dialogue or scenes themselves and Max has new and deadly plans for different outcomes to his favorite movies.

The setup for Trophy Heads is definitely unique and grabbed my attention the second I read about it and left me thinking that I must see this movie! I loved the idea of using real life Scream Queens such as Linnea Quigley, Brinke Stevens, Darcy DeMoss, and others playing themselves and dealing with an obsessed and demented fan, it's a brilliant horror film concept. Now, did it live up to my immediate expectations? Quite simply, yes! It's an absolute blast seeing all of these actresses on screen together and they are undoubtedly having a great time. Seeing a new horror film play out based on the scenes of real, older horror movies with the same actresses had me in horror heaven. It's easy for a horror fan, especially a fan of 1980's and 90's horror, to get so taken with the concept and collection of Scream Queens in Trophy Heads that they just automatically like the film. I mean, come on, we're biased when it comes to these things! Luckily the movie offers a fun script and style that actually recalls the films of the 1980's and 90's. If there exists a studio that could successfully pull this concept off in the right way with the fans in mind, it's Full Moon, who know this sub-genre inside and out. It also helps that a lot of the movies are under their label.

There's all sorts of horror meta going on here and it's a ton of fun. Watching Brinke Stevens and Linnea Quigley watch themselves on screen and make comments about their movies had me smiling from ear to ear. Jacqueline Lovell is a brilliant standout in the film, she's hilarious and has an energy about her that demands your attention. Probably going to hunt down copies of The Killer Eye and Head of the Family just to see her on my screen again! Jacqueline also has great on screen chemistry with Denice Duff when the two go back and forth about their movies while held captive in jail cells, it's so funny and so fun to watch!

There's another aspect of the film that really surprised me and helped solidify Trophy Heads as a must watch for horror fans. The role of Max is perfectly played by Adam Noble Roberts. He is the perfect blend of sympathetic and crazy, I found myself hating him and identifying with him at the same time. There's a scene in the beginning that shows Max in his room watching his beloved horror movies and Scream Queens. When he goes on to his mother about how these old horror movies are his life and that VHS and Scream Queens are all fading away and dying, it's a scene that spoke to me as a fan of this special era in horror. Now, obviously I'm not going to kidnap anyone and chase them and cut heads off, but I do go to conventions and have dozens of autographed photos of horror stars, including Linnea Quigley. And couldn't those be considered my trophy heads? The film turns this sentiment into a horror story itself and takes it to an extreme, and that's what horror is: an extreme.

Watching Trophy Heads was a great experience and I absolutely loved the movie. It's bloody, violent, disturbing, and hilarious and it surprised me and entertained me as someone who loves the genre and its history. I suggest everyone check this out, it's a wonderfully twisted time!