Tales from the Crypt (TV Series) For Cryin' Out Loud (1990) User Reviews

"What? This is all I get for a f*cking 200 dollar visit?" Fantastic tale from the crypt.

[poolandrews · 8/10 · 17 March 2007]

Tales from the Crypt: For Cryin' Out Loud starts as rock concert promoter Marty Slash (Lee Arenberg) is visiting an ear specialist (Mark Lowenthal) about a strange sound he keeps hearing, the doctor advises him to give up the rock business as he has damaged his hearing. That night while at an Iggy Pop & the Weazel's gig that is supposed to raise money for charity Marty decides to steal the 1 million dollars that the concert raised, however things don't work out exactly as he planned as his equally greedy banker Mrs Kilbasser (Katey Segal) wants a piece of it & that strange noise in his ears almost seems to develop a life of it's own...

This Tales from the Crypt story was episode 8 from season 2, co-written & directed by Jeffrey Price For Cryin' Out Loud is one of my favourite Tales from the Crypt stories I've seen so far. The script by Price & Peter S. Seaman was based on a comic book story in 'Shock SuspenStories' & has a fantastic streak of black humour running through it that really entertains & amuses, some of the dialogue is very funny. This tale from the crypt also has a nice moral message about listening to your conscience otherwise it'll play on your mind, obviously it relays this in a highly entertaining, bizarre & unique way that most Tales from the Crypt do so well & it doesn't take itself seriously. I like everything about For Cryin' Out Loud, the plot & the great twist ending, the over-the-top character's that feel like they belong in a comic strip & they suit the material perfectly. I loved this episode, it's funny, it's dark, it's very entertaining, it's a whole load of fun, at only 30 odd minutes it moves along like a rocket & even the musically themed Crypt Keeper (John Kassir) opening & closing segments are good fun as usual.

This one looks great & like most Tales from the Crypt episodes it has strong production values throughout, there's some gore as someone has their head bashed in with a guitar & a broken swab in someone's ear is slowly pulled out but this episode is more about the story which is great. The acting is strong especially Arenberg who is simply brilliant in an energetic & highly entertaining performance that's virtually makes this episode worth watching on it's own, rocker Iggy Pop has a cameo & swears a lot.

For Cryin' Out Loud is a brilliant tale from the crypt & one of my favourite's out of the ones that I've seen, an absolute must for fans of the show & I'm sure many would enjoy this story in it's on right, definitely worth a watch for those with a twisted sense of humour.

One of the most frustrating episodes yet

[SleepTight666 · 7/10 · 1 July 2009]

An entertaining, if not one of the most frustrating episodes yet.

It is about a rock 'n roll manager planning to steal all the money he had raised for charity, but is all of a sudden disturbed by his conscious. It talks to him and tries to prevent him from escaping with the money.

He is later seduced by no one other than Katey Segal, who turns out to be his banker and wants half of the money. He kills her with a guitar. It's all downhill from there, his conscious drives him mad into a confession in front of an Iggy Pop concert.

The episode basically begins at the end, with Marty being happy about his execution.

Overall, a fun annoying episode.

Not bad but a bit annoying

[bellino-angelo2014 · 7/10 · 14 June 2021]

This installment begins in the end as we see Marty Slash that goes to the electric chair and then his story is told. He was a rock promoter that one day wanted to go away with all the money achieved with a fund-raising concert but one day is visited by his banker (Katey Sagal) and, in a moment of anger, kills her bludgeoning her with a guitar. After hiding the body in a case, he tries to go away with all the money but he is also tormented by his conscience and ends up telling everything in front of the crowd during a Iggy Pop concert.

This episode was funny at some points but the fact that his conscience annoyed Marty annoyed me too. Still another funny entry in the show.

Alright

[shellytwade · 6/10 · 30 March 2022]

I wasn't in love with this episode but it wasn't bad either. Seeing all the different actors/musicians involved with this is where the main fun is. Iggy Pop, Sam Kinison etc. I wouldn't say this is the best first episode to watch but if you're used to the show it's definitely one you don't mind watching.

One of the most entertaining comedic episodes.

[TOMNEL · 9/10 · 28 July 2006]

This has to be one of the most entertaining episodes. It's about a music producer, who has planned to steal a million dollars from an Amazon benefit, but his banker (Katey Segall) figured it out, so he must kill her first. To top all of that off, his conscience (voiced to perfection by the late but great comedian Sam Kinison) is buzzing in his head telling him what to do and singing songs just to annoy him. It's a very funny episode, and a very amusing episode too. It's well done and so over the top, it's just an all out great episode. It's got some fun violence too! My rating: 9/10. 29 mins. Contains violence and language.

Heavy Conscience

[mattressman_pdl · 9/10 · 25 June 2011]

Marty Slash, a sleazy rock promoter, is about to make away with a million dollars in misappropriated charity cash. But somebody isn't going to let him get very far...his loud, obnoxious conscience.

Lee Arenberg is manic and impressive as the promoter but an off-screen Sam Kinison steals the show as he truly delivers an hilarious performance worthy of the Crypt hall of fame. Look out for Katey Sagal as Marty's banker who stumbles onto his scheme and wants in and a cameo from Iggy Pop as himself.

One of the best season two episodes and belongs in the top ten favorite episode of this reviewer.

Excellent comic episode

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 16 February 2011]

Greedy and sleazy rock concert promoter Marty Slash (deliciously played to the sublimely slimy hilt by Lee Arenberg) tries to steal a cool million from a benefit concert, but can't get his extremely vocal and abrasive conscience (marvelously voiced with dead-on full-throttle thunderous brio by late, great wildman stand-up comedian Sam Kinison) to shut up. Director/co-writer Jeffrey Price adeptly mines a savagely funny line in spot-on sharp and spiky humor; the scenes with Marty struggling to ignore his conscience and jamming q-tips into his ears are both priceless and hilarious. Arenberg totally excels as the wormy Marty; it's a real treat to see this odious toad succumb to the incessant nagging of his ferocious conscience. The lovely Katey Sagal has a nice sexy part as pesky blackmailing banker Ms. Kilbasser. As an added bonus, the almighty Iggy Pop appears as himself and belts out a few choice thrashin' songs. A total riot.

Fun and suspenseful tale

[scoobyboobruh · 10/10 · 15 July 2021]

I didnt expect much from this episode in first third. Ive seen similar premises done in horror before. Stuff where the protagonist hears voices and cuts off or mutilates their ears to get the sounds to stop. I can say without a doubt, THIS pulls off that trope the best. It perfectly balances horror and real suspense/unease, and the main actor gives a 110% performance.

Kinison

[BandSAboutMovies · 4/10 · 5 January 2024]

"I always wanted to play guitar but I could never quite master the fingering. So I won't be a rock star. I'll just have to settle for being a shock star. My groupies. Tonight's little riff is rife with sex, death and rock and roll. Now, that's entertainment! You'll meet a putrefied promoter of pop with an ear for a hit. I don't want to kill it for you. Let's just say we come into the story just when his career is getting real hot!"

Directed by Jeffrey Price (the writer of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?; this was his only directorial job), who wrote this episode along with Peter S. Seaman (who wrote Wild Wild West, Shrek The Third and How the Grinch Stole Christmas with Price) and Steven Dodd, this is the tale of Marty Slash (Lee Arenberg), a promoter who runs off with all the money from a charity concert only to be blackmailed by a banker by the name of Ms. Kilbasser (Katey Segal) while fighting the voice in his head (Sam Kinison).

It also has Iggy Pop in it, which is fun. I wonder if Katey Segal wondered if she would be in any more projects with Sam after doing Married With Children with him just five months before filming this.

This is based on the story of the same name from Shock SuspenStories #15. It was written by Al Feldstein and William Gaines and drawn by Reed Crandall. That story has no rock promoter but everything else is similar.

If Al Bundy had seen this episode, his life would have changed forever

[gridoon2024 · 8/10 · 3 August 2018]

Because it features a leather-clad Peggy Bundy (aka Katey Sagal), and she is drop dead (no pun intended) sexy. I mean, seriously, what a body! But that's not the only reason to see this episode. It's a laugh-out-loud black comedy ("what's the matter, did you brown out your bermudas?"), cleverly written, expertly directed (you won't even notice the "right ear camera angle" until a rewind), and with a perfectly "paranoid" performance by Lee Arenberg. *** out of 4.

laughed out loud

[eincrouknight · 8/10 · 11 January 2023]

I barely watch TV or cinema, but this episode really highlighted just how many actors and actresses I've seen in more recent roles as middle-aged or elderly have passed through Tales from the Crypt.

I've seen Katey Segal in Sons of Anarchy, so I recognized her name on the title credits. She's not exactly "young" here in her mid-30s and was still older than I am now, but her "younger" self was impressive. What a sight she must have been 10-15 years before this episode.

The main actor, Lee Arenberg is a man I've never seen or heard of, but he did very well. His facial expressions were funny in themselves.

Honestly, the main reason I'm writing this review is because the other reviews struggled to identify what his job was in this episode. People said he was a "music producer" a "manager" and a "promoter." All of these are wrong.

He episode made his job was very, very clear: he was the owner of a trashy club/venue. That bathroom!

This is why he complained about being a "gopher for a bunch of drooling morons just because they can play three chords on a guitar" and that artists would rebuke him for having red M&Ms in the bowl (a reference to an infamous Van Halen contract rider)

Anyways, I enjoyed the episode and laughed out loud throughout.

"Jab away deep inside your brain, just so you can get at me!"

[Foreverisacastironmess123 · 5/10 · 25 April 2012]

Always let your conscience be your guide! This mainly comedic episode starts where it ends, which is always an interesting if somewhat odd way to begin. It shows a suicide/execution, with a man very eager to get to old sparky, which is quite the contrast to the opening of season one's "The Man who was Death!" Anyway, it shows us exactly where the lead is ending up. The twist of "For 'cryin out Loud" is so lame, though. Wow, so all the people were actually looking at something Marty had stuck in his ear the whole time and couldn't actually hear the ravings in his head! That's actually what the twist is, a miserable little stick of gory wood. Lame! I must admit though, didn't see it coming, so kudos the surprise I guess, something this show frequently managed to pull off so well. I've seen this one a couple of times before years ago, but didn't remember it at all, so it must not be very memorable. This episodes definitely not for me. The rock and roll themed episodes were never my cup of tea... The cast alright, with only one awesome gal and one rock star I had ever hoid of. I thought Katey Sagal was good in her bit part as a conniving banker, (his banker?! Why didn't they just have her be another con artist?) who unfortunately for her, crosses the soon-to-be totally insane Marty Slash. I think the manner of her demise, the most violent moment in the tale, was possibly lifted from Friday the 13th part 8, as that is the only other guitar slaying that I've ever seen. It sounded just like "Leela" talking! I'd recognise that voice anywhere. I thought Iggy Pop was also pretty "f*****g" amusing in a lively cameo as himself. :::3::: The to say the least, energetic performance of Lee Arenberg as a con man driven mad by his own conscience is definitely the highlight of the episode and makes it worth watching. He played a guy going crazier by the minute very well. Not really a scary kind of crazy, more campy and humorous kind. But for me he rapidly became plain annoying, and the voice is at times cheesy, but still pretty fun to watch. I'd not exactly call the guy a great actor, but he's so loud and enthusiastic it works. I find it mildly interesting how you never really know if Marty is a schizo, or if the voice is something supernatural. The spectacle of his pressure-cooker of a meltdown is certainly something to see. I'ts definitely what I like the best about this story. ::: This is basically a good episode, but I do 'em a little less retarded. Stupid, ear-splitting and obnoxious, but still one of the more enjoyably bad episodes. Thanks!