Editing Girlfriend from Hell

{{Short description|1989 movie}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Girlfriend From Hell
| image          = Girlfriend From Hell dvd cover.jpg

| caption        = Main promotional art by [[Enzo Sciotti]]
| director       = Daniel M. Peterson
| producer       = {{ubl|Daniel M. Peterson|Alberto Lensi}}
| writer         = Daniel M. Peterson
| narrator       =
| starring       = {{ubl|[[Dana Ashbrook]]|[[Liane Alexandra Curtis]]|[[Lezlie Deane]]|[[Anthony Barrile]]|[[James Daughton]]}}
| music          = Michael Rapp
| cinematography = [[Gerry Lively]]
| editing        = Beth Conwell
| distributor    = {{ubl|August Entertainment|[[International Video Entertainment]]}}
| released       = {{Film date|1989|4|24|Houston Film Festival}}
| runtime        = 95 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         =
}}

'''''Girlfriend From Hell''''' is a 1989 [[Cinema of the United States|American]] [[comedy horror]] film that was written and directed by Daniel M. Peterson. The film had its world premiere on April 24, 1989 at the Houston Film Festival and was released to video in August of the following year. It starred [[Dana Ashbrook]] and [[Liane Alexandra Curtis|Liane Curtis]], and follows a young high school girl who is possessed by the Devil in order to steal souls.

==Plot==
Maggie ([[Liane Alexandra Curtis|Liane Curtis]]) is a shy woman that isn't very good with men. This changes after she is [[spirit possession|possessed]] by [[Satan]], who uses Maggie's body to seduce the souls out of  men. Enter Chaser ([[Dana Ashbrook]]) a bounty hunter seeking redemption by pursuing Satan and working off his sins for a shot at escaping purgatory.

==Cast and characters==
* [[Dana Ashbrook]] as Chaser
* [[Liane Alexandra Curtis]] as Maggie
* [[Lezlie Deane]] as Diane
* [[Anthony Barrile]] as Carl
* [[James Daughton]] as Thomas J. Harper
* Sarah Kaite Coughlan as Freda 
* [[Gerry Lively]] as God
* [[Daphna Kastner]] as Nun With Gun
* Ken Abraham as Rocco
* Hilary Morse as Alice
* Brad Zutaut as Teddy
* Jack West as Hershel
* Renee Wayne Golden as Mother Superior
* Laura Bruneau as Sister Franks
* Kim North as Sister Beans
* Susan Rome as Nun With Gun
* Jaqueline Robinson as Nun With Gun
* [[James Karen]] as Carl's Dad
* Alba Francesca as Carl's Mom

==Reception==
Initial critical reception was poor and ''[[Allmovie]]'' rated it at two stars.<ref>{{cite web|title=Girlfriend From Hell|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/girlfriend_from_hell/reviews/|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=21 May 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Girlfriend from Hell|url=http://www.allmovie.com/movie/v19841|publisher=Allmovie|access-date=21 May 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Briggs|first=Joe Bob|title=Girlfriend from Hell (review)|url=http://www.joebobbriggs.com/index.php?/girlfriend-from-hell-movie-review.html|publisher=Joe Bob Briggs|access-date=21 May 2014}}</ref>

Screened as part of their 25th Anniversary Project, Paul Freitag-Fey of ''Daily Grindhouse'' wrote it was "the type of film that sets up a mythology for the sake of a few jokes and then doesn't give a shit about it". IE: "The gun-toting nuns have nothing to do with the plot, mind you, and they have no idea they’re shooting at Satan – the filmmakers just wanted to make a joke about gun-toting nuns."<ref name="DGH"/> They felt the viewer would do well to not concentrate on the plot, as the film was intended to be gag-based "goofy, light-hearted exploitation comedy" that did not take itself seriously.<ref name="DGH">{{cite news|last=Freitag-Fey|first=Paul|title=The 25TH Anniversary Project – ''Girlfriend from Hell'' (1989)|url=http://dailygrindhouse.com/thewire/25th-anniversary-project-girlfriend-hell-1989/|access-date=May 27, 2014|newspaper=Daily Grindhouse|date=May 18, 2014}}</ref>

In ''Creature Features: The Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Movie Guide'', author John Stanley praised the film, writing that it was "a supernatural/sci-fi spoof so dumb that it's fun to watch thanks to good performances by an appealing cast."<ref name="book 1">{{cite book|last=Stanley|first=John|title=Creature Features: The Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Movie Guide|year=2000|publisher=[[Berkley Publishing Group]]|isbn=0425175170|page=215}}</ref>

===Stage musical===
In 2011 playwright/composer Sean Matthew Whiteford adapted ''Girlfriend from Hell'' into a stage [[Musical theatre|musical]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Gibbons|first=Anne|title='Girlfriend from Hell' offers devil of a time in Rhinebeck|date=29 June 2013 |url=http://www.dailyfreeman.com/general-news/20130629/girlfriend-from-hell-offers-devil-of-a-time-in-rhinebeck-video|publisher=Daily Freeman|access-date=21 May 2014}}</ref> The transformative musical features 20 songs and a much revamped storyline. It premiered at the Gene Frankel Theatre in the East Village in 2011. In April 2015, a concert version of the musical was presented at 54 Below, Broadway's Supper Club in NYC, following an evening of Patti LuPone. On August 1, 2015, another concert version was presented at The Cutting Room in NYC. A studio cast recording was made in Winter 2016 featuring Justin Matthew Sargent, Josephine Rose Roberts & Neka Zang. In 2019, Deb Miller of DC Metro Theatre Arts raved that “Whiteford’s hilarious high school horror show has the makings of a rock musical cult classic.” A website for the musical, girlfriendfromhellmusical.com was launched in 2020.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0099664|Girlfriend From Hell}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|id=girlfriend_from_hell|title=Girlfriend from Hell}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Girlfriend From Hell}}
[[Category:1989 films]]
[[Category:1989 comedy horror films]]
[[Category:1980s high school films]]
[[Category:American comedy horror films]]
[[Category:American independent films]]
[[Category:1980s English-language films]]
[[Category:1980s American films]]
[[Category:Films about spirit possession]]
[[Category:The Devil in film]]
[[Category:English-language comedy horror films]]