Reading about Massacre At Central High (1976) in Danny Peary’s Cult Movies 2 when I was in high school, leafing through the copy in the school library, really disturbed me. The details of its plot and its accompanying photos made me think of it as a low budget sicko movie about teens killing each other in between displays of nudity. Finally watching the movie in my quest to cross off all the unseen titles from Peary’s book, the movie is just that – but there’s something satisfyingly gonzo about its escalation of murder and destruction. This is helped by the fact that the “teens” are played by actors in their late 20s and the intentional absence of any teachers or adult characters until the very end. Massacre At Central High works as an allegory of cyclical power and oppression. Yet its also still a cheap, nasty, exploitative horror thriller. Opening with a syrupy 1970s ballad over flash forwards of deaths and explosions, the plot starts with new kid David (Derrel Maury) who is a keen runner and a loner who doesn’t take kindly to any injustice. At Central High, he reunites with an old buddy, Mark (Andrew Stevens) and takes a shine to Mark’s girlfriend Theresa (Kimberly Beck) but remains a respectful friend. Eventually David finds difficulty respecting the snooty, tyrannical clique of wealthy dudes who run the school with sadistic glee. Soon enough, David fights back and there’s a game of oneupmanship that eventually turns deadly. The film twists into something more as the power dynamic shifts and the murders continue – and become almost blindly accepted as a matter of course by the student body. It preempts the social satire of Heathers and strays from slasher formula through ‘kills’ caused by traps and bombs – it feels connected to Carrie in some ways and is just as queasy a vision of 1970s all-American sex and violence. As sick as it was, I dug it. Available to see on the Synapse Bluray release. Recommended.
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