Customer Reviews

Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Okay, it's hokey. Yeah, the special effects blow, even for the timeframe when it was originally made. Okay, I'm not even what is considered a member of KISS Army.

When I was a little kid, though, at a Halloween Party having just bypassed the obviously non-productive way of bobbing for apples by simply shoving my entire head in the bucket, pinning an apple to the bottom and winning the damned bobbing kudos; well, I was fairly soaked and removed from the garage while somebody tried to dry me off.

What were the adults doing? They were watching this film. I was too young to be into any form of music, I had no idea who these guys were, but they were cool. I spent the remainder of the party slipping in to watch bits and pieces of it before being sent back out only to repeat the cycle.

I mainly remember liking Peter Kriss's make-up and his singing of "Beth". A few years later I was into music and got Destroyer, and in adulthood they put the movie on to VHS format so I could see the whole thing. I had the slight cringe one sometimes gets when viewing a movie as an adult that you thought was incredibly awesome as a child, but I couldn't let it go.

It's a pure nostalgia thing. Adding to the nostalgia is the filming location at Magic Mountain, home of the most awesome rollercoasters ever, though it would be a long time before I really went there. Magic Mountain, now owned by Six Flags, is shutting down at the end of 2006, so now there's double nostalgia involvement.

Regardless, it's just plain fun - good music, a mythical like approach to the characters of KISS, a plot to take over the world, and really horrible production and effects that you let slide because of the 'to hell with it, let's have fun' mindset this was made in.

It's not for people who don't like at least a little KISS, nor for those who hate gaping plot holes and lousy special effects; but as a time capsule of oddly more innocent times despite the fact that the heroes did things like barf blood and growl, it's a wonderful thing.

Well I received my copy of this bootleg and I can't believe Amazon allowed this. The DVD cover is phony, the disk is store bought. The audio is awful and the video is just ok.

I should have known. Hopefully this will eventually be remastered even though the movie is not that great. But it is KISS!

Not happy guys.

This low budget Hannah Barbara film is a must have for die-hard KISS fans (I stress the die-hard bit!). Storyline is on par with cerca 1970s Doctor Who episodes. Great on-stage music footage of KISS though, and you get to see them "acting". Thay are superheros, each with their own unique power. Very funny and great for kids to watch. I loved it when I was a kid, and I love it now!

This movie was shown in our (German) cinemas in 1979. I was seven years old and it was the first time ever to go and watch a movie without being guided by my parents. I was definitely the youngest one at the pictures.
The movie was for a seven-year-old Kiss fan the most energetic and unforgettable experience I can remember. Although the movie now is, well, let's be honest - cheesy and poorly produced - Ace barely speaks except some sounds like "ack", Peter Criss' voice was synchronised by somebody else - for a die-hard Kiss fan a must-have though.
I remember running around like a maniac after the movie, just letting everbody know that I've just seen the greatest band all over the world.
Not much of a review but rather a little story of a now 36-year-old Kiss fan and his first encounter with the best band ever :-)

I saw this movie years ago when it first came out and although it is kinda cheesey it is a great cult classic. I put it right up there on the cult list with Rocky Horror Picture Show and the Ramones Rock'n'Roll High School. But I love any thing Kiss. Diehard Fan Since 1977

IT SEEMS TO ME SOME OF YOU GUYS HAVE FORGOTTEN A FEW THINGS 1) THIS MOVIE WAS TARGETED AT HEADBANGING 10 YEAR OLDS,JUST ABOUT EVERY KID IN THE 4TH GRADE HAD A KISS ALBUM AT HOME..SOME EVEN RAN AROUND DRESSED UP LIKE KISS FOR HALLOWEEN SOME JUST FOR FUN 2) IT WAS MADE FOR TV AND WE WERE DAMN LUCKY I DONT REMEMBER ANY OTHER TIME A HIT HEAVY METAL AIRED ON NATIONAL TV DURING PRIME TIME...SURE THE DVD IS POOR QUALITY..THEY COULD HAVE REMASTERED IT,SADLY THEY DID'NT, I STILL ENJOYED IT JUST THE SAME.I DONT THINK WASTED MY MONEY..ITS WHAT IT IS ,A TIME CAPSULE TO BACK IN THE DAY...ENJOY

Unless I have been seriously hoodwinked, KISS Meets The Phantom Of The Park is only available in DVD-R format. While this campy 70's rock 'n' roll sci-fi flick plays just fine, some potential customers may be discouraged by the fact that it is not a professionally-produced DVD. This film is still, however, recommended for cult movie fanatics and die-hard KISS fans alike. Unfortunately, the presentation leaves alot to be desired.

I am not sure I am a Kiss fan or not, but I thoroughly love their Dressed to Kill CD and play it often. When I do, I always look forward to hearing the final song, Rock and Roll All Night. I suppose that is what caused me to watch their movie and I loved it from beginning to end. I suppose I taped it when it played on TV because I did not purchase it. I did purchase a DVD recorder so I do have it on DVD. Not the best quality as it was an old VHS tape I recorded it on, but it is still worth watching. Imagine my surprise when I read on Wikipedia the group hated the film and how it portrayed them more as clowns than superheroes. That was not my impression as I saw four guys really connected to each other, each using his own specialized power to help Melinda find her boyfriend. Turns out he had been put under a spell by a mad scientist to steal the Kiss talismans to transmit their powers to the clones created to take their places. Perhaps a bit corny and childish, but I still like watching it, especially in the end when the real Kiss, having destroyed their clones, performs Rock and Roll All Night to the amusement park audience. Now, there was something else I learned from Wikipedia and that is according to them the idea the group's name KISS stands for Knights in Satan's Service, and that the name is only in caps because that is how it appears in their logo, but the group's name is really what it spells out -- Kiss. I was not surprised that one of those who inspired them was another big favorite of mine, Alice Cooper. I was glad that most reviewrs can take the film's weaknesses in stride and just enjoy a look at an amazing hard rock band.

...but that's about it. Each of the 4 band members have special superpowers that come from their 4 magical talisman. An evil scientist who specializes in robotics creates fake Kiss clones & steals said talisman. The real Kiss is captured while the clones perform a dreadful concert, replacing the song "Hotter Than Hell" with "Rip And Destroy" (same music, different lyrics). This incites the fans to rebel against Kiss (and the amusement park this all takes place at) by rioting. Kiss regains their talisman, kick the crap out of the clones, find the evil scientist and...well, I couldn't even print a spoiler on this if I wanted to, because nobody (including Kiss themselves, when asked about the movie in interviews over the last 25 years) understood the ending.

So that's the plot. Even taking the "Ok, its a sci-fi comic book style movie" outlook, there are still 2 major reasons I only give this 2/5 stars...

1) The end made no sense
2) The acting is atrocious...not just Kiss, but just about everyone in this movie

...if the acting & ending were up to par, I'd have definitely given it 4, maybe even a full 5 stars.

There is one point of particular interest...in this movie, Kiss plays an (incomplete) acoustic version of Beth for the first time ever (this wasn't done again until Peter Criss released his 1994 solo record "Cat #1")

I remember seeing this movie at the cinema in 1979.I was 12 so i thought it was a sensational movie.Now when i watch it,i think its a bit childish.
I think they should have used Kiss music as the background music,as some of that was pretty crappy.I think Kiss themselves acted very well in this movie,but the overall plot of the movie was made for children.
I still enjoy it though cause im a kid at heart and a Kiss fanatic.
I like the scene where Kiss first appear,what they did in the movie went quite well.The idea of a mad scientist making robots to take over Kiss,as you can see the plot is a bit thin.But i still get a laugh out of this movie,and its enjoyable.