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 Heavy metal rocker Billy "Eye" Harper (Tray Loren) goes on a killing spree and snuffs 25 people before being captured and executed. The only survivor of Billy's rampage is Lynn Starling (Donna Scoggins), back up singer and part-time groupie. Two years after the murders, Lynn is preparing her new band, Headmistress, for the Rocktober Blood Tour. But the fans aren't the only ones waiting for Lynn's return to the concert stage. Billy Eye has come back and he's ready to slay the audience with a bloody encore.
Rocktober Blood is the film offspring of the Sebastians, Beverly directed and co-wrote the screenplay with husband Ferd. A heavy metal slasher sounds like a great idea but this baby has a major case of brain damage. Moments of tension are quickly killed by insane bits of dialogue or unintentional laughs. A slow death by dismemberment, which should be disturbing as hell, is interrupted with a close up of Scoggins boney white ass as she gets ready for a bath. A scene playing the old "the calls are coming from inside the house" bit changes from creepy to ridiculous when the killer utters the line "I want your hot steaming pussy blood all over my face." Ick. Even worse, the Sebastions never capture the excitement of life in a rock band or the terror of being stalked by a deranged lunatic.
I don't know what acting schools Tray Loren and Donna Scoggins attended but they should sue for refunds. Neither has the charisma to pull off performances as rock stars or villain and heroine. Loren spends much of his screen time going through an over acting tour de force. The guy comes across more like Rocky Horror than Rock and Horror. Scoggins is a little better at acting but fails to make Lynn into a sympathetic character. The most amazing thing about Scoggins performance is her willingness to get naked early and often during the film.
The gore killings, while pretty basic, still pack a punch. There's a really nice impaling and a pretty good decapitation. Throw in some eviscerations during the concert and you have a surprising amount of blood and guts by the end of the film. One weak spot in the special effects department is a cheesy skeleton posing as a disinterred corpse. Putting a cheap wig on the damn thing and covering it with worms does nothing to enhance the illusion.
Watching Rocktober Blood is like opening a time capsule from the early 1980's. Nostalgia fans can ride a tidal wave of memories with the assorted images of ancient arcade games, wild fashions, bad dance fads, and men using more make up and hairspray than women. Fans of no budget wonders will also find plenty to laugh about with the horrible dialogue and terrible acting. Serious slasher fans might want to skip over Rocktober Blood. Really, how can you be scared of a killer who dresses like he's going to see Lover Boy in concert? This film is similar to Terror on Tour but has a better soundtrack. Look for a cameo by Jack Daniels during the opening credits.
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