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Cellar Dweller
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Wikipedia article
'Cellar Dweller' is a 1988 American monster horror film about a comic book artist who unleashes a demon after drawing it. It was directed by John Carl Buechler, written by Don Mancini (credited as Kit Du Bois), and stars Debrah Farentino and Brian Robbins.
Plot
Colin Childress (Jeffrey Combs), a highly successful comic book artist who gains inspiration from a mystical book of horrific drawings, inadvertently summons an evil spirit into his basement studio. Decades later, his house has become a small art institute run by the stern Mrs. Briggs (Yvonne De Carlo). One night, comely student Whitney Taylor (Debrah Farentino) goes rooting around the sealed boxes in the cellar and releases the supernatural forces trapped there.
Cast
*Debrah Farentino - Whitney Taylor (credited as Debrah Mullowney)
*Brian Robbins - Phillip Lemley
*Vince Edwards - Norman Meshelski
*Cheryl-Ann Wilson - Lisa
*Jeffrey Combs - Colin Childress
*Pamela Bellwood - Amanda
*Yvonne De Carlo - Mrs. Briggs
Release
The film was released directly to videocassette and laserdisc on September 20, 1988 by New World Video. In 1991, Starmaker Video released a tape in the EP Mode. After that, MGM released an Amazon.com Exclusive VHS of the film.
On October 29, 2013, it was released on DVD by Scream Factory, along with 'Contamination .7', 'Catacombs', and 'The Dungeonmaster' as part of the second volume of their Scream Factory All-Night Horror Marathon series. It was released again by Scream Factory with 'Catacombs' as a Blu-ray double feature on July 14, 2015.
Reception
Anthony Arrigo from 'Dread Central' awarded the film 3/5 stars, writing, "'Cellar Dweller' might not be quite up to the level some of Empires celebrated cult classics have attained, but with equivocal production design and a few familiar faces not to mention great FX work its another unique picture worth watching." TV Guide awarded the film a negative 1/5 stars, writing, "An enjoyable although not particularly distinguished effort, CELLAR DWELLER has a number of small worthwhile moments. Director Buechler gets the most out of a somewhat-limited script, pacing the action nicely, and the special effects are adequate--but, like everything else in this film, small and limited in scale."
References
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