Crawlspace (1986) Empire Pictures/Horror-Thriller RT: 81 minutes Rated R (language, violence, nudity, sexual content) Director: David Schmoeller Screenplay: David Schmoeller Music: Pino Donaggio Cinematography: Sergio Salvati Release date: May 21, 1986 (US) Cast: Klaus Kinski, Talia Balsam, Barbara Whinnery, Carol Francis, Tane, Sally Brown, Kenneth Robert Shippey, Jack Heller, David Abbott, David Schmoeller. Box Office: N/A
Rating: ** ½
How did I miss this twisted little oddity? It’s not like I never heard of Crawlspace until now. I used to see the box sitting on the video store shelf all the time and I’m sure that it’s been shown on late night cable TV countless times. Its official theatrical release date is May ’86, but I could have sworn that it played in Philadelphia-area theaters later than that (early ’87 perhaps).
The point is I just never bothered with Crawlspace until recently. I have to say that it’s not half bad. The highlight, of course, is a delightfully campy performance by the late Klaus Kinski (Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Nosferatu the Vampyre) as the sadistic, voyeuristic landlord. Let me tell you, this creepy little German guy has some peculiar ways of spending his free time. You won’t believe what he keeps hidden in the attic. He certainly prefers to keep this a secret as (a) he has the place booby trapped and (b) makes quick work of a nosy tenant he discovers snooping around in the movie’s opening scene.
The demise of the aforementioned nosy tenant leaves a vacancy at the apartment building owned by Karl Guenther (Kinski). I guess nobody finds it strange that he rents only to young women. College student Lori Bancroft (Balsam, The Kindred) responds to the ad and moves in. The other tenants include soap opera actress Jessica (Francis, Fingers), personable secretary Harriet (Whinnery, Hot to Trot) and sexually promiscuous pianist Sophie (Tane, Legally Blonde). Karl watches out for them …. perhaps a bit more than he should. He hides in the crawlspace above their rooms and spies on them through the air vents. He claims that it’s only rats when they complain about the tapping sounds they hear at night. He even keeps a few rats on hand. Naturally, the tenants start meeting gruesome ends at the hands of Karl.
Meanwhile, a strangely-acting man (Shippey) starts coming around and asking questions about Karl. I suppose it’s not giving away too much to tell you that he’s a Nazi hunter and very interested in Karl’s family history. He’s also interested in Karl’s former profession as a medical doctor. I’ll say no more about this part of the story. As for what’s going on in his attic, I choose to remain silent on that as well. What I can tell you is that the landlord is a real freak and Lori would do well to steer clear of him.
Overall, Crawlspace isn’t too bad for a low budget horror flick from Empire Pictures, the studio behind such “classics” as Ghoulies I & II, Re-Animator, Troll, Eliminators, TerrorVision, From Beyond and Rawhead Rex. I have to give them credit, they sure knew how to economize when it came to filmmaking. If the apartment building in Crawlspace seems familiar, that’s because they reused the sets from Troll. Spotting details like this constitutes one of the many joys of watching cheap exploitation flicks.
All I can say is that I’m glad I finally watched Crawlspace. It’s a nifty if unexceptional horror-thriller that allows Kinski to do what he does best. Nothing wrong with that.
