Inside My Head – Angie’s Sunday Morning Sketch Cinema: Deadly Friend (1986)

Angie’s Sunday Morning Sketch Cinema: Deadly Friend (1986)

630281475801lzzzzzzz I was thinking of some older, random movies that I used to watch during my childhood, mainly with an old friend whom I spent the greater part of growing up with. We had our stock of five or six staple movies that we watched over and over again, though there was never a rhyme or reason to the mix of titles: Adventures in Babysitting, Nadia, and a little-known 1986 horror gem featuring a very, very young Kirsty Swanson called Deadly Friend.

I spent a good amount of time desperately trying to recall the name of the latter film, with only basic plot line knowledge to go on. I remembered a robot. I remembered the scene with the basketball. I remembered Kirsty. Hoping this would be enough, I searched far and wide until I was able to actually find not only the title, but a copy of the movie itself.

And now, to celebrate my find and my trip down memory lane, for this week’s Sunday Morning Sketch Cinema, I bring you Wes Craven’s 1986 horror wonderment, Deadly Friend.

Matthew Laborteaux portrays Paul Conway, a teenager who has just moved into town with his single mother. He happens to be a super-genius of sorts as we soon find that, unlike most kids Paul’s age, Paul doesn’t attend high school but the 11036302_tmb local university, where he’s secured a full scholarship. Oh, and he also has a pet robot named BB who has a bit of a mean streak when it comes to defending his owner.

Paul soon meets Samantha Pringle, his young, blonde and perky next-door neighbor, who does her best to hide the abuse she suffers at the hands of her alcoholic father. The two soon form a quick bond, along with neighborhood friend Tom, and the foursome (with BB, of course) become inseparable in the ‘hood.

They say that dogs are man’s best friend, but in young Paul’s case, it’s his robotic pal BB who soon proves its utter devotion to his human creator. As the various trials and tribulations of dealing with the underdeveloped and angry Mr. Pringle (we never quite learn just why he’s such a prick, which would have been fun), along with the ever-typical paranoid, creepy-old-neighborhood lady unfold, we’re treated to an inside view of BB’s increasing anger at those who bring stress and turmoil to Paul’s life. BB’s true nature is shown when Paul encounters a group of apparently well-known thugs, when BB intervenes with a key crotch grab and saves the day.

2005511942171610358_rs Life for the bizarre threesome quickly takes a solemn turn as Samantha suffers life-ending brain damage after being knocked down the stairs by her father. Having lost BB to the hands of the crazy old lady (who is quite trigger happy and rather protective of her property), Paul can no longer deal and develops his macabre plan to save Sam’s life. How exactly does he plan to do this? Why, by implanting BB’s ‘brain’ into Sam’s lifeless body.

Hilarity ensues as we’re treated to BB’s memories resurfacing in the now robotic and zombie-like Samantha. She/He/It hasn’t forgotten the many incidents that brought darkness to Paul’s world. And she’s hell bent on revenge. Be sure to watch as a basketball is turned into a method of cold-blooded killing – who knew, right?

I went into this sketch cinema voyage with the expectation that, as is usually the case, I’d be left wondering why this movie was such a central part of the repertoire back in the day. As is the case, however, with just about any Wes deadly_friend Craven movie from the 80′s, this film did not disappoint. Lacking the usual cheesy one-liners and wardrobe embarrassments heavily prevalent in the genre of the time, Deadly Friend is a fantastic example of just why we love Wes.