Movie Reviews : Keep the Door Shut on ‘Cameron’s Closet’

“Cameron’s Closet” (citywide) never should have come out of the closet. It’s been locked in for about two years, if the 1987 copyright date is any indication, and lead actress Mel Harris, now a star thanks to TV’s “thirtysomething,” is probably praying no one noticed this shelved horror oldie slipping quietly into theaters over the weekend. It’s a good bet she’s safe on that account.

The Cameron of the title is a 10-year-old boy with telekenetic powers who, in the course of some experiments conducted by his dad, has accidentally loosed a loudly gargling demon. Yes, this slave to Beelzebub does like to nestle behind the shirts in Cameron’s closet (where you keep expecting it to growl, “No more wire hangers!”), and yes, all the adult characters in the film do seem to spend most of their free time in Cameron’s room, despite its increasing notoriety as an easy gateway to hell.

In the script by Gary Brandner, based on his novel, plenty of strange and gory events occur from the get-go, but it takes an hour to get to the point in the screenplay where a minor character hands psychiatrist Harris a helpful documentary videotape which (sort of) explains everything that’s been going on. “Cameron’s Closet’ is the kind of picture that keeps you keep wondering whether you dozed off and missed big chunks of exposition--not, of course, a bad idea.

Watching Tab Hunter in a tiny part as a zombie from hell is inherently amusing, though it’s hard to tell if director Armand Mastroianni thought so as well. Much less entertaining are the disappointing creatures by Carlo Rambaldi; the final shots of the vanquished devil-monster recall the infamous rug in “The Creeping Terror” more than Rambaldi’s “Alien.” In “Cameron’s Closet” (MPAA-rated R for gore), the netherworld just isn’t what it used to be.