Contains Spoilers
On the extras of Vestron Video’s new release, The Wraith, director Mike Marvin is open about liberally borrowing ideas from across cinema – something you won’t catch many directors admitting. And, in putting together all these ideas and threads, including a surprising nod to Clint Eastwood’s High Plains Drifter, he crafted something original. Taking that at face value, if you mix that Eastwood classic with killer car Christine, teen romance, a gang movie, and street racing, then the Wraith would be the fruity cocktail of choice. Whether it is original – as the director claimed – or just a white-hot mix of 1980s-isms remains up for debate.
In Brooks, Arizona, Keri (Sherilynn Fenn) is being driven around the badlands by her boyfriend, Jamie (Christopher Bradley), only to be surrounded by a street gang led by Packard (Nick Cassavettes) and an oddball selection of wasters, preppy boys, punks and Ron Howard’s brother, Clint. They threaten Jamie into racing, and, if he doesn’t, Packard openly threatens that his friends may well have their way with his girlfriend. Jamie loses after Packard cheats. Taking his car, Jamie ends up missing & Keri ends up abandoned on the roadside with memory loss. We learn later that Jamie was killed. Packard is in a violent and abusive “relationship” with Keri, Charlie Sheen (Jake) has turned up in town, and a mysterious black turbo interceptor is challenging the gang to race across the rocky desert terrain – races that end with a trail of dead bodies. Also, throw in the mix and ineffectual but intense sheriff in Randy Quaid’s Loomis, and you have all the components of what is simultaneously a simple & convoluted story.
I wouldn’t usually spoil a twist, but I have to talk about this one. The script technically questions whether the arrival of the mysterious black turbo interceptor has anything to do with Jake. They are the same person let’s not kid anyone here. However, to go further into the spoilers – Jake is Jamie, a vengeful spirit al a High Plains Drifter only one who couldn’t use the same face he did when he was alive. Sheen had some bit-part roles by that point in history but was far from a star actor, making the “recasting” of a central role an odd choice. And on a narrative level, the script has every character who knew Jamie confused by the reveal. Even now, a day after watching the film, I don’t quite get why this happens. It’s not sold as a red herring or teased as Quaid’s Loomis attempts to figure out who is murdering all these kids. On the contrary, before the big final race, he comes clean. Just like that. Weird, and all the weirder with him only being in around 3 or 4 scenes – much more time is spent with the gang.
There’s some slasher DNA too – with a gang of teenagers being killed off one by one by someone they wronged in the past. Only the person they wronged is a ghost who has the wrong face and is also a car.
The 1980s depicted in American teen cinema is of an alternate reality; one with all the campy fashion, pop music needle drops, mullets, burger joints where all the teenagers hang out & all the pretty girls work as rollerskating waitresses. An alternate reality where no one goes to school & the only adults are the police. It’s a magical reality, one which will always mean this generation of cinema holds a special place in the hearts of many. The Wraith is part of this alternate reality. Yes, it is dated, but this brand of teen cinema will never fail to be fun to spend 90 minutes in, even if there’s a character who throws around crass gay slurs.
As the credits roll, the first thing to hit the screen is a dedication to Bruce Ingram: a camera operator who died filming a car chase. To jump back to that interview with Mike Marvin (one of many in the packed extras), he talks about this being from an era before CG, and all the races, chases and explosions are real. Tragically, this cost the life of one man and seriously hurt another. Removing the finished film from its problems sees their creative choices turning this into quite an impressive feat. Whenever it is going full tilt into the 80s camp or racing scenes, the Wraith sings. The scene with the exploding garage being the most shocking inclusion upon this theme, and I imagine it is where an awful lot of the $2,700,000 budget (estimated) went. Outside of these instances, Marvin’s film isn’t quite as successful.
Part Christine, part High Plains Drifter, with many over-long kissing scenes and a bit of boob to get more teenage boys in, too. There’s some slasher DNA too – with a gang of teenagers being killed off one by one by someone they wronged in the past. Only the person they wronged is a ghost who has the wrong face and is also a car. Yeah, the Wraith makes no sense whatsoever. If you know what you are in for going in, there are worse ways to spend 90 minutes than with some campy 80s nonsense – emphasis on the “nonsense”. Fair play to Vestron Video for taking a chance on it.
THE WRAITH IS OUT NOW ON VESTRON VIDEO BLU-RAY
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