In my opinion, the 80’s had it all: great movies, laughable clothing, TV that was worth watching, Nintendo, and hair bands.  Even though I was too young to remember the 80’s (I was born in 84), I’ve always held a soft spot for this backwards decade.  A good chunk of the films on my shelf are from this era, as is a large portion of the songs on my iPod.  So when I heard some buzz on the HorrorDVDs forum about a film called Black Roses being released on DVD, I was instantly intrigued.  According to the forum members, this film had combined two things that I love: cheesy low budget 80’s horror and hair bands.  Needless to say, this was a recipe for a good time and the DVD was immediately added to my wish list.  Here is my review for the epic 80’s heavy metal cheese fest Black Roses:

The Plot:

The town of Mill Basin was your normal "Anywhere, USA" small town.  However, word starts to spread that the ultra-popular heavy metal band Black Roses are showing up to town to perform a series of concerts to prepare the band for their world tour.  Without missing a beat, the town’s school board is heavily debating as to whether or not they should let this group play in their town due to the group’s controversial (and quite possibly evil) lyrics and images.  On the opposite end, Mill Basin’s youth is understandably excited that these big haired metal giants chose to play their shitty town. 

What neither group knows is that Black Roses are actually a band of demons that possess the listeners of their music.  After the band convinces the school board and the town’s parents that they’re not a threat (through a hilarious power ballad which causes all of the adults to conveniently leave a concert at the same time), Black Roses soon target the town’s youth.   Matt Moorehouse, an English teacher at the high school, starts to notice the teens’ increasingly erratic behavior and suspects the band may be at fault.  His suspicions turn out to be correct, as the teens start to kill their parents and turn into demons themselves.  Of course, it’s up to Matt to destroy the evil band and kick the Devil and all of his rubber faced minions out of Mill Basin.

The DVD:

•  Image
  • Synapse Films once again gives such an obscure low budget film the deluxe treatment in the video department.  The image is crisp and clear of grain, and this 80’s film looks as if it could been released fairly recently (if you discount the fashion on display here of course).  Some of the night scenes are a little dark, but that barely detracts from the fact that this film looks a lot better than many of it’s horror counterparts on DVD.   9 out of 10

• Sound
  • Black Roses is presented in a Dolby Stereo 2.0 track.  While this track is fine, I would have liked to see a 5.1 track so I could get the full effect of those cheesy hair band songs.  However, if you’re itching to get the full effect of the soundtrack, look no further than the bottom of this post to download it!   7 out of 10
    

• Extras
  • Extras here include two trailers, actor audition tapes, and an audio commentary.  I didn’t expect a monumental amount of extras for a film like this, so these are fine with me. The audition feature is probably the best feature out of the pack.    7 out of 10

The Bottom Line:

Believe it or not, heavy metal horror was actually a legitimate sub-genre in the 80’s.  Movies like Shock Em’ Dead, Trick or Treat, and Rock ‘N’ Roll Nightmare (who’s director also directed this film) all featured a good vs. evil plot with a heavy dose of hair metal.  Does Black Roses have enough hairspray to stand up to these cheese-fests?

The plot here is pretty straight forward: evil force invades small town and only one man can (with a wicked mustache) can stop it.   But taking into account the film’s budget and premise, you should know that a movie like this isn’t going to be high art.   Considering that you have very  rubber-looking monsters (which is even more apparent with this film’s excellent video transfer), cringe inducing acting (mostly by actors in their late 20’s playing high school kids), and a bare-chested lead singer with the oh-so-clever name of Damian, you should go into this film expecting a healthy helping of cheese.

If you’re anything like me though, 80’s cheese flicks are always a good time and Black Roses drips cheese from all angles.  In the first 15 minutes of the film there is a blatant tongue-in-cheek reference to the PMRC via the overly cautious school board. However, if you actually listen to the lyrics of the songs, they’re more laughable than violent or satanic as these adults claim.  You even have kids that end up killing their parents as a result of being under the influence of this evil music group.  Considering that this long standing parental concern is actually taking place here, it makes all the more room for unintentional comedic moments. 

So how does Black Roses fare overall?  Well quite simply, this movie rocks.  Whether it be the over the top music, the intentional attack on conservative small town values, or monsters that look so fake Jim Henson would be proud, Black Roses delivers the goods. The video transfer is amazing for a film like this, and the overall package is very satisfying.  If you’re looking for a film that you can enjoy with a six pack of beer and some nostalgia, look no further and pick this one up. 

Last but certainly not least, don’t forget to download this film’s long out of print soundtrack right here:

8 out of 10

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