If I could sum up Phantasm IV: Oblivion with just one word, that word would be "flashbacks"! Half of the film is told through flashbacks. And a lot of the flashback footage is actually outtakes from the first Phantasm film. They do a good job weaving the story in and out of flashbacks but in the end the pacing is too slow and the thread that keeps it all together falls apart and confusion ensues. By the very end I barely cared about the story, the characters (except Reggie), and how it all somehow made or did not make sense.

The first dozen minutes of the film are spent refreshing the viewer on the main events and background of the first three movies. This is sort of like an overlong recap. But I liked it, it pumped me up for an awesome movie. I was misled, and this I slowly became aware of, like a slow acting toxin. Darn it! I wanted this to be a kick-ass ride.

So Mike is hanging out in the back of the "Tall Man’s" hearse for almost fifthteen minutes as the hearse drives itself to some remote place in the desert. He is thinking about all sorts of things: flashback after hallucination, after flashback... Please become familiar with this cycle for it pervades through the ENTIRE film. A bit later he learns telekinesis, practicing by crushing midget minions with boulders. His brother shows up as a travel guide through different dimensions. These dimensions are all earth. We don’t see the cool worlds as in the other films. But through these travels we do learn some interesting things.

We delve into the "Tall Man’s" character; not only his background and origin but also his connection to Mike. What we learn I will not spoil because it is quite interesting to finally have some long awaited back- story on the "Tall Man". I will only say that you learn his real name. Now his connection to Mike and his plans for him are revealed through flashbacks and hallucinations, as always, but a lot is still kept secret. The whole ending of the film and it’s meaning are indeed thought provoking, that is if your still with us by this point and haven’t dropped out by the sleepy pace and logic jarring flashback and or hallucination.

Reggie Banister is the real star of the show if you ask me. In this film he‘s the only one that really fights bad guys. Straight from his ice-cream vendor roots to shotgun toting renegade, Reggie takes no prisoners. And he is also a ladies man. In this, as in the other Phantasm movies, he’s paired up with a female, and either sweet talks his way into her pants or strikes out honorably. What happens in the scene where he is in bed with the girl (in this film) is quite original. I bet it was the last thing he was expecting! You can see the screen capture below.

The movie isn’t that bad, but there are people I know, like Jose, that outright dislike the film. It is the worst of the pack. I can give you that.

- Jorge Antonio Lopez