Eddie is a marginalized student who finds solace in rock music and, especially, in his idol Sammi Curr. When Eddie learns of the rock star's death in an arson fire, he sinks into depression. A friend of his, the owner of a radio station, gives him the master of an unpublished Curr vinyl record, and when Eddie discovers that by playing the record backward he can communicate with the deceased singer, he decides to use this power to take revenge on those who had mistreated him.
A typical youthful and fashionable product like many that appeared at the end of the 1980s, "Trick or Treat" starts with an interesting and rather original opening that, little by little, ends up descending into the implausible. Surely in the first part the film is very pleasant and fun, but when the zombie rocker enters the scene, the film takes a turn too close to fantasy, partly ruining the premises. Moreover, it would have been interesting if the theme of hidden messages in records, audible only by playing the record backward, had been explored, but, excluding a small mention in the introductory part, the subject is then completely abandoned.
The special effects are decent, but there is no presence of bloody scenes, a characteristic that makes the film an innocuous "film for all". Moreover, the character of Sammi Curr, the non-dead rocker who should be the main driving force of the film (played by Tony Fields), does not have much charisma and a memorable look (messy hair, torn clothes, and some burns on the face). Decent is the directorial performance of Charles Martin Smith, certainly more known to the public in the role of actor, indeed in his career there are important parts in cult films like "American Graffiti", "Starman" and "The Untouchables".
The strong point of the film is undoubtedly the soundtrack, composed of catchy rock-metal pieces very much of the 1980s. Moreover, the pleasant cameo of Ozzy Osbourne as a moralist who demonizes rock music is remembered.
In short, "Trick or Treat" is a modest film without pretensions, not particularly memorable although not to be failed that could have certainly exploited better the potential of the fascinating plot.
More fantasy than horror.
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