Thoroughly enjoyed that.
Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls is created with the hallmark of someone with a deep love for the horror-comedy classics of the late 80s. You can see influences of Beetlejuice, Killer Klowns From Outer Space, and Evil Dead 2, to name just the obvious. Full of practical effects and Henson-like puppetry, it follows the hapless journey of Marcus aka Onyx the Fortuitous, as he tries to escape his life a loser in a dead end job at a burger joint to become something more, in service of his dark master, the mysterious occult guru Bartok the Great.
This film is so much fun. From the Bartok the Great dark wizard’s workout video to Onyx’s obsession with what-for-legal-reasons-we’re-not-calling-Thundercats cartoon show. When they first show up at Bartok’s spooky mansion, Onyx declares it looks like the Michael Bay directed music video for the 1993 hit I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That) by Meat Loaf. As a Meat Loaf fan, that line was worth the price of admission alone.
I adored the cast who played the group of misfits summoned alongside Onyx to Bartok’s lair. Terrence Carson was amazing as Mr. Duke, a tweed-jacketed scholarly seeker of knowledge in the best Lovecraftian style. He seemed so smoothly benign but with this undercurrent of ambiguity you were never sure to trust, and what a voice! I was like, “I’m sure I know his voice from somewhere” and a quick Google later, he’s only motherfucking Kratos! Added to this, we get the embarrassment of riches that is seeing a reunion of the stars of Reanimator, Jeffrey Coombs and Barbara Compton. Can we just pause here so I can say how much I love Jeffrey Coombs? He is incredible, playing Bartok here (and Onyx’s dad, blink and you’ll miss it) and doing it with all the energy and barely-contained madness you’ve come to expect. Also, I loved that this film is quietly queer, with Marcus having an enby love interest played by non-binary actor Rivkah Reyes.
Gotta confess, before seeing the movie, the only thing I knew of actor/writer/director Andrew Bowser was a 10-second viral vid on TikTok my sister sent me, so I had that doubt of, will this online personality/character be enough to hold a nearly 2-hour-long movie? But as soon as you’re in it, you’ve got this main character with a really clear, unique voice, and all these other characters with all their own strengths and talents, and it’s really funny.
If like me, you love the horror-comedies of the 80s, you’re gonna love this.