The story of America's first Halloween theme park, Spookyworld, and its founder David Bertolino, who began as a salesman in a Boston joke shop and moved into Halloween products and costuming before...
Devotees of haunted houses and all things horror will get a kick out of director Quinn Monahan‘s “Spooktacular!,” a fanboy documentary about America’s first Halloween theme park, Spooky World. The film tells the story of David Bertolino and his wacky idea to create a place where enthusiasts could go and meet their favorite scary characters (and actors) in person, all while getting frightened in a Massachusetts cornfield that sat in the middle of nowhere.
When he created this “Disneyland for horror fans” in 1991, Bertolino tapped into an audience nobody knew was there. The grand opening featured celebrity guests like icon Tom Savini as well as a haunted hayride that featured hired actors to pop out and scare patrons. It was one of the first of its kind, a crazy idea that sounded like a bust. The people behind the attraction were worried that nobody would come, but traffic was backed up for hours on the highway when over 2,000 showed up. Word quickly spread about Spooky World, and it became a popular place for the misfits, weirdos, and people with a love for all things spine-chilling could come and feel like they belonged. The fans and the creators were on the same page, sharing a common interest and adoration for Halloween, costumes, makeup, horror movies, and props. The park paved the way to today’s multi-billion dollar haunted attraction industry.
Monahan’s documentary isn’t perfect, but it definitely is a product that comes from the heart. The film is organized well, from interviews with interesting subjects that feel like welcome, casual conversations to featured footage of old videos of the original hayrides and local news clips. The movie is filled with tidbits from the people who made the place tick, including recollections from the paid actors and former patrons of Spooky World who recount the most entertaining stories of the past. The joy is not only fun, it’s contagious.
The film delves into the head-butting that often went on with the local community, including the chain of events that led to the park’s permanent closure. There’s a certain melancholy over the place shutting down, and you can tell how much it was truly cherished by those who worked behind the scenes.
As one former employee puts it so well, it was a dream to be able to “dress up, scare people, and get paid.” In the end, that’s what “Spooktacular!” is all about: a love story about the art of scaring people.
