All Rise...

Judge Patrick Naugle has a case of the creeps.

The Charge

The most fun you'll ever have learning about Creepshow.

The Case

In 1982, filmmaker George A. Romero (Night of the Living Dead) and author Stephen King ("The Stand") came together to bring audiences their homage to E.C. Comics horror-comedy comic stories: Creepshow. Told in an anthology format, the film became a big hit at the box office and spawned two sequels (one that's pretty good, 1987's better-than-you'd-think Creepshow 2, and one that is not, 2006's terrible Creepshow III).

Just Desserts is essentially one long bonus feature that covers the making of Romero's anthology hit Creepshow. The film includes multiple interviews with Romero, make-up artist Tom Savini (Day of the Dead), producer Richard P. Rubinstein (Dawn of the Dead), actors Adrienne Barbeau (Escape from New York) and Ed Harris (Apollo 13), composer John Harrison, editor Pasquele Buba, cinematographer Michael Gornick (Creepshow 2), and others. Multiple aspects of the productions are covered, from the inception of the idea to the screenwriting and eventual production (which was on a lower budget than most people realize).

Just Desserts—produced in 2007 during Creepshow's 25th anniversary by Blu-ray enthusiast Michael Flesher's Red Shirts Productions is a perfectly nice retrospective that is a pleasant enough 90 minutes for those who are fans of the film. What Just Desserts isn't is a probing, juicy, behind-the-scenes dissection on the making of Creepshow. Watching Just Desserts it's clear that there weren't many tensions or tirades during the film's creation. Everyone seems to have nice things to say about everyone else. There isn't an ounce of vitriol or bitterness to be found in this documentary. Romero himself concedes that his productions are like families, and aside of a few squabbles, this was clear a pretty nice family affair.

The best parts of Just Desserts is hearing how the make-up effects came together. Tom Savini offers a lot of insight into creating the horror seen on screen (including iconic monster in "The Crate"), and Savini discusses his work like a small boy gleefully telling his friends about the first time he saw a Playboy magazine. Romero also gives some solid insights into working with Stephen King (who is conspicuously absent from this feature, and sorely missed), and the two have been friends every since, with Romero even adapting another King story a decade later (1993's The Dark Half).

While Just Desserts will tickle fans of Creepshow, it doesn't really amount to much as a feature film. Once again, I come back to the word "pleasant." This is a pleasant enough documentary. Nothing more, nothing less.

Just Desserts (Blu-ray) is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen in 1080i high definition. The picture quality of this picture is very nice, even if it's not full 1080p. A lot of the film is based on material that is now almost ten yeas old, including interviews and archival photos and footage. Overall the film looks good, though it's not going to blow away viewers. The soundtrack is presented in DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio in English. There isn't a lot to report about this sound mix—the audio track features clearly recorded dialogue, music, and effects.

Extra features including a commentary track with director and editor Michael Flesher, a second commentary featuring interviews with actor John Amplas, property master Bruce Alan Miller, and make-up effects assitant Darryl Ferrucci, an interview with director of photography Michael Gornick, extended interviews with George A. Romero, Tom Savini, and Bernie Wrightson, on-set video footage from Tom Savini, an epsiode of "Horror's Hallowed Grounds" with host Sean Clark, a vintage feature on Savini's make-up effects ("Scream Greats: Volume One—Tom Savini, Master of Horror Effects") which also included an optional commentary with Savini, another vintage featurette ("Evening Magazine Segment"), and a behind-the-scenes Creepshow photo gallery.

Just Desserts is a fine little retrospective documentary on the making of a minor classic. Just don't go into the film expecting any mud slinging or gossip. Synapse Films gives fans a solid Blu-ray release with a fair amount of extra features.

The Verdict

Exactly what it sounds like…light, sweet, and hardly a full course meal.

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