Director: David Schmoeller
Screenplay: David Schmoeller and J. Larry Carroll
Starring: Chuck Connors, Jocelyn Jones, Jon Van Ness, Robin Sherwood, Tanya Roberts, Keith McDermott, Dawn Jeffory
Country: United States
Running Time: 90 min
Year: 1979
BBFC Certificate: 15
Legendary cult low-budget film producer and director Charles Band feels he’s never made a slasher movie. Horror and sci-fi fans revere him for his quick shoots that grab lighting in a bottle and show he has his finger on the pulse of what is, or is about to become, popular (take his release of Trancers, a quick shoot to rush it out in time for the release of The Terminator). He’s produced some incredibly memorable films, from that aforementioned Trancers franchise to the Puppet Master series and the H.P. Lovecraft-inspired classics Re-Animator and From Beyond.
So, you would think that he’d be a prime candidate for having produced or directed a slasher film. Whilst his films may have elements of that genre that really took hold of horror fans’ imaginations in the 1980s, he’d say that none was an outright slasher, but perhaps the closest he got was 1979’s Tourist Trap, which he executive produced and was directed by David Schmoeller.
Tourist Trap focuses on a group of young friends whose car mysteriously breaks down outside a roadside wax museum, the titular tourist trap, called Slausen’s Lost Oasis, run by the strange Mr Slausen. As the plot unfolds, we discover that the eccentric Mr Slausen is a killer with telekinetic powers who begins to murder the group, one by one, in elaborate ways.
That’s the set-up for a very memorable horror film, which opens in excellent fashion with one of the young people stopping at a gas station and going into the backroom, where mannequins randomly appear and move of their own accord, and objects are flung at him from the shelves of a cabinet before he is killed by a metal pipe (though the cause of this strange activity is unclear). It’s a very effective opening that introduces the supernatural elements and the grotesque waxworks.
This scene gives a sense of what you’re in for with Tourist Trap; the killer’s telekinesis ability to make items move, which leads to the murders of members of the group of young people and also provides some incredibly effective moments, mostly involving the mannequins and wax figure characters that populate his museum.
Yet, what you may not be prepared for going into a horror film is quite how tame it is. There’s very little blood and no nudity, and whilst some may argue it would have benefited from more of these elements, I think it works well as it is, with a creepy atmosphere and mood created, and some jump scares and very unsettling moments.
The setting is one of the keys to the success of the film, and hats off to the production team, for not only identifying a really great isolated location, but also for creating the waxworks in the museum which are at times whimsical and at others (to be honest, at most times) terrifying. Cinematographer Nicholas von Sternberg captures this all well, finding beauty in the macabre, lensing the film in style with some decent shots on location and close-ups of the iconic wax characters.
The cast give good gusto to bring their roles to life, and it’s worth highlighting some of those who appear. Firstly, Chuck Connors, who plays Mr Slausen, was one of only a handful of athletes who played in both Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association before transitioning to a successful 40-year acting career. He played the lead in the popular 1950s and 1960s TV series The Rifleman and was nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of a slave owner in the acclaimed 1977 miniseries Roots. He plays the eccentric loner Mr Slausen really well; initially as a wide-eyed museum owner who is excited to show people round, and then as a psychotic killer, creating lots of unsettling scenes of terror.
The group of young people who stumble upon the museum include Joceyln Jones, who became an acting teacher and best-selling author but also appeared in classics like The Enforcer, with Clint Eastwood, and Serpico, with Al Pacino. Also appearing is Tanya Roberts, who played Bond girl Stacey Sutton in Roger Moore’s final outing as James Bond 007, A View to a Kill, amongst other roles.
No review of Tourist Trap would be complete without mentioning the score by Brian De Palma’s favourite composer Pino Donaggio. It’s a fabulous suite of music that helps no end with the success of the film. It often plays up the strangeness of the set-up and the playful elements of a wax museum, but still finds time to underscore the more terrifying scenes. Fans of horror and Donaggio will know that he also composed the score for Carrie, which clearly shares its telekinesis and horror elements with Tourist Trap.
In closing, I have a lot of time for Tourist Trap. It’s a really effective and creepy supernatural horror, that dips its toes into slasher territory at times. As well as elements of Carrie, and waxworks horrors like 1933’s Mystery of the Wax Museum, and the Vincent Price-starring House of Wax, there’s a feel of my favourite horror film, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, at times in the set-up, and other elements which I won’t spoil. Yet Tourist Trap is very much its own beast with some memorable set pieces involving the carnival of grotesque waxworks and the telekinetic powers of the killer that get under your skin, with a bonkers and brilliant lead performance by Chuck Connors.
Film: 
Tourist Trap is released by 101 Films on limited edition Blu-ray on 7th July 2025, a slight delay from its original 23rd June release date. The film was previously released by 88 Films, containing a print that was cut by five minutes, a commentary, interview with the director and trailer. Those extras are ported over for the new 101 Films release, which also contains the uncut version that first appeared on a US disc in 2020.
The transfer on the 101 Films release is solid overall. The image is mostly clean throughout though there is some print damage, mostly in the second half of the film, and some softness on occasion. The skin and colour tones are natural with lots of fine detail, and there is plenty of grain, which will please some and not others.
The five minutes of footage which make the film uncut are more character scenes and snippets; there’s no extra horror, but be prepared that they’re from a standard definition print, so the quality noticeably tips for these, but those sequences are still perfectly watchable. The audio is fine too, and I had no issues with it.
Special features:
“Dolls, Toys, Mannequins!” – Brand new interview with Full Moon founder Charles Band
“Texas Tourist Trap!” Brand new interview with editor Ted Nicolaou
“They’re Alive!” – Brand new interview with actress Jocelyn Jones
“Holiday Horror” – Brand new interview with film critic Chris Alexander
Archival audio commentary with director David Schmoeller
Archival interview with director David Schmoeller
Trailer
The new interview with Charles Band runs for nine minutes and sees the executive producer on fine form, placing the film in the context of his wider career, how it came about, and how he doesn’t feel as though he’s ever made a slasher film. Band also talks about film distribution and what led to the birth of his distribution company, Empire International Pictures, and packs plenty more into a very good interview, despite its short length.
Next is a 19-minute new interview with actress Jocelyn Jones, who starts by explaining how she gets more fan mail for this role then any other she played. She explains how she came to star in the film, and shares plenty of anecdotes and background to the film. It’s another really solid interview.
Editor Ted Nicolaou addresses links between the film and Tobe Hooper’s classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre in his 15-minute interview, and shares a bit of the history of his own career in film-making, the score, the fact Stephen King loves the film, the lack of nudity and blood and plenty of other elements. He’s fun to spend time with and provides an enjoyable interview.
Film critic Chris Alexander provided a fascinating interview on the Trancers release from 101 Films and he pops up again here for another outstanding 17-minute interview. He touches on some of the other films Band produced, and what drew him to want to see Tourist Trap as a teenager. He provides plenty of other thoughts on the film and what makes it so striking. Alexander is always great value and I hope he’ll appear on more discs in the future, as he’s very insightful and enthusiastic. This was my favourite extra on the disc, in the same way as it was for the Trancers release.
Director David Schmoeller provided an informative commentary, which appeared on the 2014 release by 88 Films. It covers the genesis of the film, touches on actors and other members of the crew, why there’s a lack of nudity, some of the story elements and a look at some of the scenes, amongst much more. There are moments of silence at times, but the track is mostly quite a packed listen. The commentary was recorded for a release of the cut version of the film but plays until the end of this uncut version, so I wonder if the silences are edits to make the commentary cover the extra five minute runtime.
The archival interview with director Schmoeller is another carryover from the 88 Films release. Running for seven minutes, there’s not a lot of time to glean much, but the director gives some insight into the mannequins and their creation, his favourite effect in the film and other anecdotes.
The trailer runs for one minute and was created for the 2020 release of the uncut version of the film. It highlights the inclusion of five minutes of lost footage in the uncut release and also plays on a quote from Stephen King which really sells the movie.
In closing, 101 Films have provided a fantastic package for an underappreciated but excellent supernatural slasher horror which is incredibly creepy and unsettling. 101 bring us the uncut version of the film for the first time in the UK, a solid transfer overall, around an hour of new interviews, which are all excellent, and an archival commentary and interview with the director. Fans of the film and Charles Band productions should be very pleased indeed.
Disc/Package
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