Cameron's Closet Review

MPAA Rating: R
Released: 1989

Cameron's Closet brings a common childhood phobia to the big screen: the existence of a monster in the closet. When a psychic child summons forth an ominous demon that resides in his closet, people close to him start dying in violent ways. But when the demon turns his evil intentions towards Cameron, the boy soon discovers that just as he was the only one that could summon the demon, he too is the only one that can put a stop to its rampage.

Young Cameron Lansing (Scott Curtis) is a gifted and relatively happy child. Although his parents are divorced, he shares a close relationship with his father, Owen Lansing (Tab Hunter), who happens to be a scientist that discovered inherent psychic abilities within his son. Over the years he and his partner, Ben Majors (Chuck McCann), experimented with Cameron in an effort to strengthen his mysterious powers.

One ill-advised experiment had the unfortunate side effect of inadvertently summoning a vile demon to our plane of existence. Owen comes to the horrifying realization that he must kill his son who is unknowingly serving as the demon's conduit to this world, but before he can do so he accidentally severs his own head… with a little help from the demon, of course.

After the mysterious death of his father, Cameron is sent to live with his mother, Dory (Kim Lankford). The new accommodations are anything but pleasant though, for Dory has shacked up with a bullying boyfriend, Bob Froelich (Gary Hudson), who takes out his annoyances with life on the child. Don't worry… the demon inevitably dishes out some bloody justice to the bully.

Anyhow, after the unexplainable death occurs, Detective Sam Taliaferro (Cotter Smith) and psychologist Nora Haley (Mel Harris) take the child under their wing in an effort to protect him from whatever has been killing people in his room. They soon discover that they aren't protecting the child from a human, but rather from a demonic force. And that demonic force is now no longer content with targeting people around Cameron. It no longer has a need for Cameron, so it has decided to take care of the pesky kid.

Cameron's Closet is a horror B-movie that receives a bit more criticism from some critics than it deserves. While it certainly doesn't deserve a position on a "Best Horror Flicks of All Time" list, it delivers what it sets out to: cheesy horror fun. If you expect a smart script or story here, you'll be disappointed, but if you sit back and just try to enjoy the ride you'll probably have a good time.

This film isn't as violent as many other horror films, and perhaps this is the reason why some horror fans have dismissed it. Cameron's Closet tries to incorporate an unsettling atmosphere and storyline (albeit a campy one) into the mix. I thought it worked well enough, though if you're in the mood for a pure bloodbath this might not be the film for you. That having been said, I should point out that the kills in this film are graphic enough to please any horror fan.

It's usually the ultimate insult to state that a child actor outperformed most of the adult actors in the movie since most child actors annoy me. But in the case of Cameron's Closet, such a claim isn't really an insult because Scott Curtis actually did a darn good job with his role. His performance was proficient and likeable – quite a pleasant surprise! At the age of 14 Curtis decided to leave behind the world of acting and pursue a music career, which was surprising since he actually had natural talent. He might have been a darn good actor had he remained in the business. But I digress…

The other performances ranged from grating (Mel Harris) to campy (Cotter Smith), but for the most part the acting was passable in a campy sort of way. Gary Hudson did a great job playing a bulky meathead – viewers will love to hate him.

Cameron's Closet isn't the most original horror film in the world, nor is it terribly chilling. But it's a technically sound flick that B-movie fans will probably find worth checking out.

Movie rating: 6 stars

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