Not as nightmarish as the tape cover promises to be.
13 April 1999
Okay, "Rumpelstiltskin" is another one of those horror films that aren't really scary or terrifying, just plain silly and funny with a script filled in with a bunch of lame one-liners. However, I found this film rather entertaining since it's directed and co-scripted by Mark Jones, the creator of "Leprechaun", though this was the third and last film he ever wrote and directed.

What we have here is a grotesque Freddy Krueger-like hunchbacked baby-stealing punk whose name is the movie's title, who (loosely based on the children's fairytale) is cursed by an old hag who imprisons him in a brownish-green rock for one-thousand years for trying to steal the Baby John's soul so that he could live on for eternity and never be killed. One-thousand years later in present day Los Angeles, a woman's police officer husband is killed by an armed carjacker in the line of duty. A few days later she finds the stone that Rumpelstiltskin is imprisoned, drops a tear on it (that's what you have to do to release him, with a tear and a true wish) when crying and remembering her dead husband. Somehow, Rumpelstiltskin is released from his imprisonment, transforms into the woman's husdband, makes love to her, and turns back into himself to suck her baby's soul out. Later on we have a whole hell of a lot of exciting things going on, including Rumpelstiltskin chasing after her and her baby and a sleazy television host in a huge truck wreaking even further havoc till the very end.

Despite its low-budget and amateurish acting, the picture does have its great moments and memorable situations, but refuses to deliver any real shocks or a lick of redeeming value though it does have some excellent special make-up effects by Kevin Yagher (Child's Play 1, 2, 3 and Bride of Chucky).

So give "Rumpelstiltskin" a chance and you'll have a good time with this fast-paced flick.
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