OnTV: The Pumpkinhead Saga Continues
Sci Fi Premieres the Third Sequel in the Revenge Series
… about four months too late or nine months too early, depending on how you look at it. After all, isn’t a horror movie with the word “pumpkin” in the title just begging for a Halloween-ish premiere? I thought so. Maybe the Sci Fi Channel couldn’t wait that long or get it ready that early.
The original 1989 cult flick, titled simply Pumpkinhead, is notable primarily because it marked the first time that special FX master Stan Winston stepped behind the camera to direct. The next best thing about the movie is its star, Lance Henriksen (of the last two Alien sequels and the X-Files spinoff Millennium), an accomplished and versatile actor who can instantly make a film or television show interesting to me as soon as I know he’s in it.
Pumpkinhead has a very simple plot: after a rural man’s son is accidentally killed by annoying teenaged interlopers from the city who promptly attempt to hide their crime, he summons a demon with the help of a local witch to exact revenge and kill the killers. The creature is called Pumpkinhead not because it has a giganormous head (which is what a lot of folks think before they get in the know, including yours truly), but because the name of the cemetery it’s buried in is Pumpkin Patch Graveyard.
Two sequels followed the original movie—Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings in 1994 and Pumpkinhead: Ashes to Ashes last October—making tonight’s 9pm Sci Fi Original Movie Pumpkinhead: Blood Feud the fourth installment in the series. The latest plot is quite the Shakespearean backwoods horror-romance, too, as Lance Henriksen resumes the Ed Harley role for performance number three, just in time to witness the havoc wreaked when a young man conjures Pumpkinhead to kill his fiancée’s family, who happen to be mortal enemies of his own clan. Forget Halloween. This stuff sounds like good times tailor-made for next week’s Valentine’s Day.
Other Supernatural and Vengeance Flicks on TV Tonight
- Bitter Vengeance: Nothing says “I love you” like robbing a bank, faking your own death, and then framing your spouse for both. [Lifetime Movie Network/8:00]
- Deceiver: Brit Tim Roth messes with the minds of two detectives who suspect him of brutally slaying a hooker. [MyNet/8:00]
- Final Destination 3: After viewing the Grim Reaper’s twisted terror techniques in this surprisingly good-ish sequel, amusement parks and roller coaster rides will never seem quite the same to you again. [HBO/8:00]
- Men in Black II: Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith return to their interstellar investigative gig to stop the alien widely known as Lara Flynn Boyle. [TBS/8:00]
- Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings: Enjoyed Pumpkinhead: Blood Feud? Then check out the first sequel in the series, which tells the tale of some more irritating teenagers who inadvertently summon another revenge-seeking spirit, this time of a murdered boy from the ’50s. [Sci Fi/11:00]
- The Punisher: Thomas Jane gets his vengeance on big time against a murderous John Travolta. [FX/8:00]
- Saw II: Sadism and gore still reign supreme in the second part of this series about a cunning serial killer with a wicked penchant for kidnapping, torture, and horrific mind games. Part 2′s not as good as the original, though. [Showtime/8:25]
- Sleepy Hollow: Johnny Depp braves oodles of headless bodies in ye olden days and still manages to look just as cute as ever. [TNT/8:00]
Other New Stuff on TV Tonight
- CBS: AFC-NFC Pro Bowl (6:00); 48 Hours Mystery (10:00)
- CNBC: The Suze Orman Show (9:00)
- CNN: CNN: Special Investigations Unit (8:00)
- Cartoon Network: Naruto (9:00); One Piece (9:30); The Prince of Tennis (10:00); Mar (10:30)
- Disney: Kim Possible (8:00/8:30/9:00/9:30)
- ESPN: College Basketball (9:00)
- Fox: NASCAR Racing Nextel Cup: Budweiser Shootout (8:00)
- HGTV: reDesign (8:00); Design on a Dime (10:00)
- NBC: Dateline NBC (8:00)
- Nickelodeon: The Naked Brothers Band (8:30)
- TLC: Moving Up (8:00); Trading Spaces (10:00)
- Travel: Not Your Average Travel Guide (10:00/10:30)
All times are PM and EST/Eastern Standard Time
Pumpkinhead: Blood Feud photo courtesy of the Sci Fi Channel
