Terror In the Aisles

  

     Not many have seen or even heard of, for that matter, "Terror In the Aisles"- what is it, you ask?  It's a compilation of some of the most famous clips in horror movie history that was released in theaters way back in 1984.  Donald Pleasance and Nancy Allen are your hosts, providing a running commentary on why people love scary movies.  And tons of clips.  It's nothing too deep or insightful, basically just an excuse to see clips from such classic shockers as "Psycho", "Jaws", "Alien", "Carrie", and "Halloween".  It's put together rather nicely, although some of the "theater" scenes with Allen and Pleasance come across as somewhat cheesy.  Still, it's a fun ride.  Some of the selections are strange ("Abbot & Costello Meet Frankenstein"?  "To Catch A Thief"?  "Vice Squad"?  Really?...), but overall it hits most of the classics.  Now this should most definitely be redone today- primarily because we've had some pretty good horror movies released since 1984.    Towards the end, it does lose a bit of steam, but I still think if you can come across a copy, it's worth a look.
      I would have loved to have seen this in a theater back then- even though at a mere 84 minutes I might have felt a bit cheated.  There's no rhyme or reason to "Terror In the Aisles"- they show many clips from "Friday the 13th Part 2", yet the only clip from the original is when Jason jumps out of the lake at the end.  Some movies are represented alot- "Halloween", "JAWS", and "Psycho" come to mind, while others such as "Suspiria" and "Night of the Living Dead" are only shown briefly.  And oddly enough they do not identify the movies.  It took me years to figure out what movies some of these clips were from.  But it was kind of fun tracking down some of these particular movies.  This is a total guilty pleasure of mine, as I've seen it hundreds of times.  I genuinely enjoy watching this, flawed as it is.   It's still the most comprehensive look at horror movies in general that I've ever come across.   And the fact that this was released theatrically is quite astonishing.  I've seen other cheesy compilations- "Boogeymen" for one.  Yuck.  In that respect, "Terror In the Aisles" is far superior.  If you can find a copy, get it!

Here's a taste of the fun that awaits you in "Terror In the Aisles"...