Phantasm 5: Ravager

While the original Phantasm has sentimental value to me and is a good example of low budget 70s genre filmmaking, its far from a great film. The plot is paper thin, its dated in the best and worst ways and its a bit slow and dry. But the film that is essentially a horror-movie-for-kids-about-PTSD spawned a world famous franchise thanks to its iconic villains, charming FX and cool soundtrack. But the sequels kinda suck.

Phantasm 5: Ravager is the final chapter to a saga that was best left at one story and the best entry since the original because its only focused on deconstructing its origins, ignoring the unnecessary and finishing what it started. Ravager reduces all of the sequels to "bad dreams", which would be upsetting and ludicrous in any other sequel, but this is the forgotten motif of the 1st film. This thematic continuity is what makes all great sequels work. Add the fact that this is the most grungy, cheap and personal film since the 70s as creator Don Coscarelli lets a new director make this a fan film and not a commercial cash-in like the rest. Ravager looks back at the series with fondness for the journey, apologizes for the schlockiness and redeems its fans for their loyalty by expanding on the artistic credibility of the original, at least narratively (the production is far below the original's standards). Its a moving tribute to a series that helped define an era and I'm very glad they said their peace and ended it properly before central star Angus Scrimm passed away.

This is my favorite low budget exploitation film of 2016 btw. For a series and era that was defined by its adolescence, this is a mature farewell.