Death Spa (1988)

Sadly Over-hyped

Lack of good storyline.

n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

I like going to the gym. It's something I would have hated as a geeky kid, being surrounded by people working out, but today, I really find myself looking forward to doing cardio or situps and even lifting weights. I may hate that my gym serves pizza or that so many people text while they should be doing sets, but at least a demonic woman has never taken my gym over and tried to kill everyone. That happens? Well, have you seen Death Spa?Also known as Witch Bitch, this feels like the most 80's movie ever. However, it came out in 1989, which means it feels instantly dated. But hey, Ken Foree (Dawn of the Dead) is in it!Michael Evans owns the titular spa. He's just lost his wife, who had a pregnancy gone wrong and became paraplegic, so she set herself on fire in a field. As you do. Now, she is possessing the Starbody Health Spa. From turning a shower murderous to overloading a computerized Universal style machine to tear a man apart, this is one gym that demands that you spray down the machines and use proper etiquette. There's also a possessed blender and a freezer with murderous fish, which look like no seafood I've ever seen before.If you're coming looking for nudity, this movie is packed with it. Oh the late 80's, when the internet was just a dream and kids found porn in the woods and rented movies like this.The film also features Merritt Butrick in his last role. He played Captain Kirk's son in the Star Trek movies and was Richie in Fright Night Part II. And hey! That's Rosalind Cash from The Omega Man as a police officer!There's also a love scene involving asparagus if you're into that.

After a near miss at the Starbody Health Spa, the police investigate. Things escalate until there is a body count with all the evidence pointing at David (Merritt Butrick). At 52 minutes into the film we know the culprit as the film changes gears.The film is very 80's from the cars to the hairdos. It is a blast from the past with the green script computer screens. No sex or swearing, but plenty of nudity (Brenda Bakke of Hot Shots Part 2, Tane McClure of Vice Academy 5, Chelsea Field of Prison, Vanessa Bell Calloway)

Things are starting to go seriously awry at the Starbody Health Spa. When patron Laura Danvers (Brenda Bakke) is blinded in a sauna accident, that's merely a sign of things to come. Soon people are perishing in bizarre ways. What's the cause of all this? Could it be the computer system running things, or the weirdo, David Avery (Merritt Butrick, in his final film) who designed this damn system? Or maybe a year old suicide by self-immolation has something to do with it.The script is really rather poor, but if one is a fan of the silly cheeseball horror of the 1980s, that shouldn't matter too much. The movie itself is clumsy and crude, with less than slick direction by Michael Fischa. But there's plenty to be amused with, nevertheless, as the fairly lean 88 minute run time contains a smattering of bare breasts and entertainingly tacky mechanical and makeup effects. The acting is mostly underwhelming, to put it charitably. William Bumiller as spa owner Michael Evans is a hunky but stiff lead. Actresses such as Bakke, Alexa Hamilton, and Shari Shattuck provide delectable eye candy. The cast is full of familiar faces: Ken Foree, Rosalind Cash, Francis X. McCarthy, Chelsea Field, Joseph Whipp, Tane McClure, Vanessa Bell Calloway, and Karyn Parsons. Peter D. Kaye contributes a passable music score. The movie features what has to be one of the worst closing credits tunes ever heard by this viewer. The pacing is so-so; the proceedings get particularly goofy when the parapsychologist played by Whipp is brought into the plot. At least "Death Spa" delivers a respectably wild finale and reasonably high body count. The routine ending is pretty much par for the course.Worth a gander for completists of '80s horror.Six out of 10.

(Credit IMDb) Michael's health club is besieged with a series of terrible murders involving killer saunas and other grisly devices. Michael's wife killed herself a while before and her brother holds Michael responsible. Michael needs to stop the bloodshed before he loses all of his clients. I loved this movie. It's horrendously bad, but incredibly enjoyable. The 80's were the golden age when it comes to horror movies. There were so many delightfully cheesy horror movies coming out all the time. This movie is eerily similar to another "Gym" related slasher, called Killer Workout. I enjoyed that one as well, but this one is much better. You get what you expect when it comes to this stuff. Hot women in aerobics gear, nonsensical plotting, stupid characters, amateurish acting, cheesy 80's music; this movie has a little bit of everything, possession, exorcism, slashing, and dream sequences. We also get some amazing nudity. The shower sequence is unforgettable. It even throws in flying bathroom tiles right after the shower scene. Brenda Bakke is the typical "clueless" blonde heroine. Shari Shattruck is wonderfully delicious and OTT as the bewitched Catherine. Horror favorite Ken Foree (Dawn of The Dead) also has a bit part as a gym caretaker. The gore is very creative. Someone's head explodes by shattering glass, a hand is mangled in a blender, we get a nasty death involving weights, a face is boiled in graphic detail, a spike is impaled in someone's neck, and more. This one is heavy on the red sauce. My only real complaint about this movie is that everybody acts so complacent when they learn Catherine is at large. A dead woman is causing havoc, why are you acting like it's an everyday thing? That sort of thing is to be expected from a low budget horror film like this one, but that did bug me a bit. Overall, if you love cheesy movies like I do, this one will be right up your alley. It's highly entertaining, especially if invite a few friends over. If you can find it, it's worth it7/10