Tourist Trap (1979)

A group of young friends stranded at a secluded roadside museum are stalked by a masked assailant who uses his telekenetic powers to control the attraction's mannequins.

Director:

David Schmoeller

Writers:

David Schmoeller, J. Larry Carroll

Stars:

Chuck Connors, Jocelyn Jones, Jon Van Ness

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Chuck Connors	...	Mr. Slausen
Jocelyn Jones	...	Molly
Jon Van Ness	...	Jerry
Robin Sherwood	...	Eileen
Tanya Roberts	...	Becky
Dawn Jeffory	...	Tina
Keith McDermott	...	Woody
Shailar Coby	...	Davey
Arlecchino	...	Mannequin
Victoria Richart	...	Mannequin
Millie Dill	...	Mannequin

Storyline

Teenagers come across a shut-in psychopath with telekinetic powers. He proceeds to use these powers to slay them one by one as well as animate the various mannequins he uses to keep himself company.

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Plot Keywords:

mannequin | group of friends | sexploitation | car trouble | mind games | 

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Taglines:

Every year young people disappear

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 March 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tourist Trap

Filming Locations:

Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Charles Band Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shot in twenty-four days.

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Goofs

In the opening scene, a knife sticks in the wall by the victim's head. In most subsequent close-ups, the knife is not there.

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Quotes

Eileen: Mr. Slausen, can I use your phone?
Mr. Slausen: Oh sure, help yourself... but it doesn't work. I got nobody to call.

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Crazy Credits

In the credits, Mr. Slausen is spelled differently than on all of the signs in the movie with his name.

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Alternate Versions

The Blu-Ray releases from Full Moon Features in the United States and 88 Films in the United Kingdom are missing 5 minutes of footage.

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Connections

Referenced in The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs: Joe Bob's Red Christmas: Black Christmas (2019)

User Reviews

Where have YOU been, little movie!?

It's funny.....you get to middle-age....you have amassed a huge DVD collection, heavy on horror, particularly the 50's through the 80's, and you think you have seen all the "A-list" stuff. All you're trying to do now is round out the collection with obscure "B" and "C" list films....maybe some TV movies. Then, you see "Tourist Trap", and you think 'how did I miss this film?', which could easily be discussed in the same breath with Halloween, Nightmare on Elm St. and Creepshow.

This is a great, fun, scary movie. It helps that mannequins are naturally a bit creepy, being so life-like. I recall that excellent Twilight Zone episode with Anne Francis, with the mannequins moving in the department store. Tourist Trap has a big scare scene very early on, which could have been too much, too soon, but it really worked, and set the unnerving tone that the rest of the film continues. It made me realize how long it's been since I 'jumped' because of an unexpected scene in a scary movie.

Tanya Roberts was very good in this -- much better than she was as "Sheena" a few years later. The gore is not excessive for the sake of titillation, and the tension is unrelenting. The ghastly images of the mannequin mouths dropping so far open, and the screams coming out, will stay burned in my mind for a long time to come.