A family - high school student Amy Fulton (Pavlovich), her mother Martha (Nascar), her father Forrest (Williams), and Forrest's elderly mother Virginia (Kane) - move into a house in southern California. The problem is, they're constantly moving from place to place because of the completely unhinged Martha. This evil non-stepmother is a psychotic lunatic, and her drinking problem only exacerbates the situation. Everyone knows she's mentally unstable, so Forrest visits a psychiatrist, Shirley (Tucker-Smith), on Martha's behalf. Shirley then decides to go undercover and pretend to be Martha's friend so she can see what's really going on. But what's really going on is DEADLY! Meanwhile, personable, athletic high school student Wayne Hollander (Keller) takes a shine to Amy and they begin to forge a relationship together. But Martha fanatically insists that Amy not speak to any boys at school, much less have a normal relationship. Wayne seems to be the last link to reality that Amy has to try and escape the smothering household she comes from. Will she do it? We're fans of the proto-PM outfit City Lights, and we believe this is one of their best. While its low-budget look may put off some superficial people, we found Epitaph to be engaging, unique and even fascinating at times. Writer/director Merhi blended a melodramatic family drama with some classic horror elements. It wins the audience over when we can see that the filmmakers and performers were earnestly trying. Maybe that's what's so endearing about the City Lights phase in Pepin and Merhi's careers. While some technical aspects may be somewhat lacking, effort certainly isn't, and that should count for something. But that aside, we think this trumps their other horror title, Hollow Gate.Delores Nascar, not to be confused with the popular racing organization, does indeed put in an over-the-top performance. While Nascar did a more-than-competent job, we also felt Karen Black or Sean Young could have played the mother. But while she was busy with her histrionics, Natasha Pavlovich quietly steals the movie. Pavlovich basically carries Epitaph - you relate to her, you feel for her, and she shows a lot of emotion. And this was one of her first roles, she's clearly a natural actress. She also has good chemistry with good old Flint Keller, who that same year, 1987, got more of a starring role in Fresh Kill (1987).So while the dialogue may be delivered in a way that many viewers are unused to hearing (especially when there's tinkling piano behind most of it), we say that's all part of the charm of Epitaph. It's a solid, worthwhile movie, and features a torture scene unlike any other we've seen. Add that to the 70's-style downbeat ending, and you have an under-the-radar horror concoction that more people should see. Although, granted, only a certain segment of the viewing populace, especially today, is likely to truly appreciate Epitaph. That's a shame - if only more people got a chance to see it, more people would appreciate it and talk about it. So that's what we're trying to do here, shine some light on an all-but-forgotten gem.Featuring a show-stopping cameo by Richard Munchkin as a guy at the mall named Warren, we say check out Epitaph.For more action insanity, drop by: www.comeuppancereviews.com

Everything about EPITAPH is low key, to the point of being almost inert BUT I was surprised by how much I liked it. Unlike most horror films with a serial killer type, EPITAPH is actually more realistic. Yes, the part of the painter was stretching it a bit but the mother's deadly antics never blossom to the point of being incredulously silly. What she does at times is really gruesome (the rat scene) but never exaggerated like so many horror films out there. Because of this, the low key approach never veers off into "eye rolling" territory and it maintains its offbeat credibility until the very end. The film's best asset is actually its low key approach and the almost obscurity of everything and everyone involved with this project, which many viewers out there could translate as, first, boring, or second, worthless. EPITAPH is like one of those movies you watch late at night, and you know nothing about it and the fact you know nothing about it is a plus. It gives a certain sense of realism to the film that horror movies with big names and big budget cannot duplicate. Because it's so low key, watching EPITAPH has an almost voyeuristic feel to it. It's as if you're really watching a truly dysfunctional family trying to deal with the psycho mother/wife. EPITAPH is more lurid kitchen-sink drama with a psycho inhabiting that drama than a standard horror film with an unstoppable killer. And because I'm partial to kitchen-sink dramas with a sick twist, I got into this movie quite easily.The mother is one nasty bitch. The things she does are twisted. I liked seeing how the family tried to co-exist with her psychotic behavior. Again, this approach is much different than most films. It doesn't even pretend to play it as a black comedy, which is a relief because a lot of horror movies with twisted families always end-up being black comedies. Not this one. It's straight from beginning to end. The fact that the film was trying to be serious is probably another reason why many don't like it. I'm sure many thought it's too humorless for its own sake or because of the lack of talent or budget involved, that it shouldn't even have pretended to be this serious. But I see this as a quality. Like I said, EPITAPH is VERY low key.There are some moments of lurid black comedy here and there, like when the mother is trying to be sexy to the young men around her. You can't help but smile and take pleasure in the embarrassing situations. She's nuts because she ain't even close to being sexy but she goes on and on and try to seduce these young men. Arf! This aspect is never played over-the-top though. Also, seeing the daughter cry and whimper throughout the movie gave the film a sorta funny, in a twisted kind of way, feel to it. I've never seen an actress cry so much for so long. The best actor in the movie was the shrink. She was very good in her role. And her death scene is hard to take because it is well acted. I even liked the hokey dialogue. People in denial don't spout fantastic dialogue, you know. And the structure of the story was interesting. There's a good portion of the movie when nothing gruesome happens. It's just a drama. I was wondering for a moment where this movie was going, which is a good thing. It wasn't too predictable.Anyway, if you watch EPITAPH expecting a Texas CHAINSAW MASSACRE type of horror movie, you'll be disappointed. If you expect a black comedy, well, you won't like it either. But if you watch it as a somewhat lurid voyeuristic kitchen-sink drama with a bloody twist, you might be pleasantly surprised. EPITAPH is not a great movie but I liked this obscure gory drama.

(*1/2 out of *****)It seems the Fulton family has to keep moving from one town to another, because the mother is a homicidal maniac who murders any man who doesn't submit to her drunken seductions. And Mr. Fulton, like any good, caring husband, never thinks twice about burying her victims in the backyard, packing up the family car, and setting off for a brand-new destination. This is an extraordinary movie, and when I say extraordinary, I mean it's extraordinarily moronic. If it had been presented as a dark comedy (in the vein of, say, John Waters's "Serial Mom"), then they might have had something to work with, but, unfortunately, the cast plays it dead-serious. Thus, it is extremely difficult to believe that Mr. Fulton, his traumatized teen-age daughter, and his scared old mother would put up with this madwoman's homicidal tendencies. We're supposed to accept that they would rather keep covering up her murders and moving from place to place than see her `locked up.' Mrs. Fulton offers no redeemable qualities whatsoever to warrant such absurd protection -- she constantly browbeats her daughter about her clothes and boys, she threatens her pathetic mother-in-law around the clock, and she's not exactly a hell-cat in the bedroom with Mr. Fulton (maybe if she looked like Michelle Pfeiffer, I could buy it -- but Michelle Pfeiffer she ain't.) Flint Keller, as the daughter's unlikely boyfriend, Wayne, does the most passable acting job out of this ugly group, and whoever plays Warren (who only has about a 20-second scene) sports the most amazing pompadour-mullet I've ever seen (it is almost -- I repeat, almost -- worth the rental).Lowlight: In the ghastliest scene (and one of the more gruesome scenes I've ever witnessed in one of these kinds of movies), the crazy mother hangs a bucket with a hungry rat inside it over a woman's torso and heats up the bottom with a blowtorch until the rat has to eat its way through the woman's stomach to get out. I guess that should score points for creativity (especially in cheap and otherwise unimaginative crud like this), but it didn't exactly make the movie any more endearing. Go figure.

By most standards "Epitaph" is not a good film. The production values look cheap, the acting in extremely over-the-top and campy, and the plot extremely implausible. Still, as crazy as it may be, this film remains one of my guilty pleasures and I thoroughly enjoy each viewing.Very few people probably even know "Epitaph" exists, and I suppose there is good reason for that. Most will immediately latch onto and not be able to get past the film's flaws, as "Epitaph" defines cheesy cinema at its worse. It looks like it was filmed with a home video camera, which will be a turn off to many.The film centers around a family consisting of a father, mother, teenage daughter, and mother-in law, who have to keep moving from town to town because Mommy is a psychokiller who does away with practically any guy she can get her hands on because she thinks they all want to rape her. This is the main weakness with the plot of the film; we are led to believe that the Mother has killed many many men, yet has never been caught because the family simply up and moves? The mother herself is a sight to behold and acts like a combination of Piper Laurie in "Carrie" and Faye Dunaway in "Mommie Dearest." It is such an overblown, hammy performance that I seriously think the actress (Delores Nascar) truly believe she would be nominated for an Oscar for her performance. She treats her family, including her kind and caring elderly mother-in-law like dirt, which makes it even more unbelievable that they would keep covering her murders. Her husband hires a psychiatrist to secretly observe her because he realizes just out of hand she is. Shortly after this, a painter shows up to paint a room on the house. Crazy Momma tries to seduce him, but he refuses. In return, she stabs him multiple time with a butcher's knife and claims he tried to rape her. In an interesting plot twist, when the father goes to bury the body, he realizes (a tad late) that the dude is not dead and ends up with a pick-ax in his chest. You would think this would be the last straw for the daughter and the mother-in-law and that they would notify the police, but nope. They continue to cover for her and obey her, with dire consequences. When the daughter starts dating a boy at her school, the mother becomes obsessive. And when she finds out that her husband hired a psychiatrist, all hell certainly breaks loose.One thing that makes this film stand out is that the killings in the film are VERY violent and cruel, including one of the most creative and disturbing death scenes I have ever witnessed in a horror film (involving at rat, a bucket, and a blow torch). This alone scores the films some points for creativity, on top of the fact the really nobody is safe from the mother's rage. The ending becomes a frantic and frenzied experience for the viewer because we are just not sure how it will end up and who will be left standing. "Epitaph" also becomes more effective than it should be because it never falters from its serious tone. Some can argue that a movie of this budget and quality SHOULDN'T have taken itself so seriously, but the fact that "Epitaph" does, coupled with the almost documentary feel of the film (due to the low production values) makes it seem almost like we are watching a truly dysfunctional family. The fact that the death scenes are pretty brutal and realistic only helps to create an uneasy and dirty feeling in the viewer. It is a strange, rare instance where a films flaws become beneficial and make the film even more effective. "Epitaph" is far from a great film, but I still give the film high marks. The serious tone of the film and the viciousness of the mother's murders, as well as the interaction between the family members is interesting to watch and almost voyeuristic in feel. The result is a film that had everyone thing going against it before it was popped into your DVD/VHS player, but ends up becoming much more memorable and effective that it should have.FrightMeter Grade: C+