Latex Movie Review: From Beyond

In 1985 writer/director Stuart Gordon took a story written by the celebrated science fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft and turned it into the movie Re-Animator. The story was perfect material for a mindless 80's gross out horror movie where dead body parts are brought back to life. With Re-Animator going on to becoming a cult classic as well as making millions in profit, Gordon decided that instead of a sequel he would adapt another Lovecraft story using much of the same cast. The chosen short story called From Beyond was not actually gory, but Stuart changed that by expanding the story to include a new character called Dr. Edward Pretorius ( Ted Sorel ) a perverted scientist with his own sex dungeon room, who after inventing the device called the Resonator is pulled into another dimension where he becomes a mutating lump of flesh. Jeffery Combs from Re-Animator returns as Dr. Crawford Tillinghast

The film opens with Dr. Crawford ( who was actually the villain in the short story ) telling Dr. Pretorius that he was able to get the Resonator to work. The machine is turned on and something eats the head off Pretorius before Crawford can shut the Resonator down. taken away to a mental ward and suspected of murdering the now headless Pretorius, Crawford tells a visiting Psychiatrist Dr. Katherine McMichaels ( Barbara Crampton who also starred in Re-Animator ) about the Resonator. It was suppose to activate the Pineal gland, a supposed third eye in the center of the brain that once working would allow the person in question to see into another dimension. Instead they saw flesh eating creatures of different shapes and sizes, one which ate the head of Pretorius. McMichaels decides to take Crawford back to Pretorius' house to recreate the experiment. The head of the asylum Dr. Bloch objects but the chief of police allows it, sending along one of his men, Detective Bubba Brownlee ( Ken Foree ) along to keep his eye on Crawford. Once at the house the Resonator is turned on and not only does Katherine and Brownlee see that what Crawford was saying was the truth, but are sexually turned on by the magnetic waves the machine is giving off. They also run in to Pretorius who has somehow bonded with the creature who ate him and is now a mutating creature in the other dimension who wants nothing more than to have sex with Katherine. Crawford quickly turns the Resonator off which causes Pretorius and the other monsters to disappear.

Katherine becomes obsessed with turning the Resonator on again. But when Crawford refuses she sneaks off and does it by herself. There is a very nice scene here where her nightgown is back lit so that you can see through it, followed by Pretorius returning and this time grabbing Katherine and attempting to rape her. Crawford attempts to shut the Resonator down again but is partially eaten by a worm from the next dimension. Brownlee manages to yank the power cable out of the wall and the Resonator shuts down, leaving an injured and bald Crawford on the floor. Needless to say the dangerous machine winds up being turned on again and again each time bringing back the ever slimy and mutating Pretorius.

From Beyond is heavy on slimy creatures and gore, but is not in the least bit scary. A pale followup to the much superior Re-Animator. While an interesting film to watch it is a near miss in the Cult Classic category. The material here was tough enough for Stuart Gordon to earn the movie an X rating for sex and violence. The movie was quickly edited by the distributor to change the rating to an R. Strangely enough Stuart would go on to write one of the 80's most beloved children's movie, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.

THE SCENE:
Since the version I watched was reported to have had footage cut out of the original release restored running times may vary depending on which version you watch. The scene begins at about 48 minutes in the version I watched. Dr. Katherine McMichaels ( Barbara Crampton ) is in what was once a sex room with various bondage accessories hanging about where she is attending the injured Dr. Crawford. She is pretty much still on an orgasmic high from her last encounter with the Resonator and begins to look around and get turned on by the different bondage devices. She backs into a closet which opens to reveal a leather outfit. Seeing it turns her on even more as she grabs one of the gloves and begins caressing it against her face. There is an immediate cut to a high heel shoe panning up the leg until it reveals that Katherine has just finished changing into the bondage outfit. It is a leather bustier and a leather thong bottom with stockings attached with garters. The outfit also includes a thick leather choker and long leather gloves that are partially cut off at the hands so they are more like leather arm warmers. Staring at herself in the mirror Katherine completes the outfit by applying makeup. She then heads over to the unconscious Dr. Crawford and sits on his chest. She sticks her hands down between his legs then removes her hand and sniffs it. Detective Brownlee enters the room to find her making out with Crawford and demands to know what the hell she is doing. When she tries to seduce him he drags her to a mirror and asks her to look at herself. Meanwhile Dr. Pretorius is somehow able to get the cables to re-attach to the Resonator and it turns on again. Crawford wakes up and alerts the other two that the dangerous machine is on again. At this point Katherine puts a bathrobe over her outfit. It is still visible every now and then but pretty much covered up. Some killer wasp like creatures from the other dimension attack Katherine and Crawford while Brownlee tries to cut the cable with an ax. The wasps then attack him, this time eating away most of his flesh leaving behind mostly his bones. Pretorious returns and once again tries to make out with Katherine, but while being dragged across the floor she is able to grab a fire extinguisher and freeze the Resonator causing it once again to shut off. Crawford and Katherine are taken back to the hospital where she tries to convince them about what had happened. Dr. Bloch calls her unethical and to prove it Momentarily pulls her robe open to reveal to everyone else the outfit she is still wearing. She then orders the nurse to give Katherine shock treatment. Katherine tries to run away but is stopped by two orderlies. From this point on she is no longer wearing the outfit.