I Love ’80s Slashers: A Look Back At ‘The Burning’ (1981)

Much in the same way that Sean Cunningham ripped off John Carpenter’s Halloween, many filmmakers since have ripped off Friday The 13th (1980). In my opinion, one of the best F13 ripoffs is 1981’s The Burning. In just the past few years, The Burning has gained quite a cult following. New and long time horror fans are discovering—and rediscovering—all of these obscure slashers from the ’80s. So, let’s go back to the 1981, reminiscing on why so many people love The Burning and are still talking about the film today.

The Cast Of The Burning

Directed by Tony Maylam (The Sins Of Dorian Gray 1983) from a story written by Harvey Weinstein of all people, The Burning might have one of the largest casts in a slasher film. I’m not going to mention everyone involved, but I will point out actors that stood out. You might recognize Seinfeld’s Jason Alexander as the jokester, Dave. Holly Hunter’s (Raising Arizona 1987) first cinematic role was in this film as Sophie. Some might remember Leah Ayres (Bloodsport 1988) as camp leader, Michelle. Then there’s Brian Backer (Fast Times At Ridgemont High 1982), who played the perverted Peeping Tom, Alfred.

Rounding out the rest of the main cast is Lou David (The Exterminator 1980), who did an amazing job as Cropsey. We have the odd couple, Glazer (Larry Joshua: Dances With Wolves 1990) and Sally (Carrick Glenn: Girls Nite Out 1982). There is the funny and quirky camper, Woodstock, played by Fisher Stevens (Short Circuit 1986), and finally, we have the final girl—or, in this case, the final guy—in Todd (Brian Matthews: Miracle At Beekman’s Place 1988).

The Origin Of Cropsey

When it comes to slasher origins, I believe one of the strongest is Cropsey’s. In fact, my favorite scenes in The Burning are in the first ten minutes of the film. After some fellow campers pull a prank on Cropsey, he ends up with severe burns all over his body, and afterwards, he spends time in the burn ward of a hospital. In my opinion, this is the creepiest scene in the movie. I’ve always had a weak stomach when it comes to seeing real burn victims on television.

In the burn ward, we follow a medical student and an experienced orderly who teases the former by making him look in on Cropsey. They finally make it to his bed, where Cropsey grabs the orderly’s arm.

When the deformed deviant leaves the hospital, we can sense his loneliness. He eventually meets up with a prostitute, but once she sees Cropsey’s face for the first time, she screams in horror. The intro to The Burning is one of the most well done in any slasher film.

The Gore Effects Of Tom Savini

A lot of The Burning’s success can be traced back to Tom Savini’s iconic kill scenes in F13. Savini’s next job was to do the special effects on Friday The 13th part two. The FX guru didn’t like the script because they had Jason, who was supposed to be dead, running around Crystal Lake. So, he decided to work on The Burning instead. You can tell that Savini had a limited amount of time to create the kill scenes, and that he probably used some of the FX from F13.

If there is one scene I recommend watching, it’s when Cropsey jumps out of the water and kills a group of kids in a canoe. It’s one of the best kill scenes ever made.

Savini also did the makeup for Cropsey. He says that when he was younger, he met a beggar on the street who had a burnt face, and that’s where the inspiration for the killer’s look came from.

Closing Thoughts

While The Burning isn’t the best slasher from the ’80s, it does have a good cast, amazing gore effects from Tom Savini, and a brilliant killer in the burnt faced of Cropsey. In the grand scope of all the ’80s slashers, The Burning deserves to be mentioned.