"Tales from the Crypt" Retro Recap: "Dead Wait"

Written by Scotty

There are things in life that everyone strives to get and one of these things is respect.  For some people, they want to get respect from everyone that they possibly can, while others only care about receiving it from a select few.  Either way, it is an upward battle to gain respect from others as they all have different feelings about what warrants it.  Even if you are able to get this from one person, the next person may have different thoughts about what you have done do earn it, and wind up not giving you what you believe you justly deserve. 

Red Buckley has heard about a score that will get him all of the respect that he has ever been looking for.  As a small time hood, he wants to make a name for himself by pulling off the biggest score that nobody has been able to accomplish before him.  Hearing about a large black pearl being held by a plantation owner, Red has come up with a plan to gain access to the pearl and escape without ever being discovered.  Waiting in a small restaurant outside of the plantation, Red finds his mark and gets his affairs in order.

Meeting with Duval about a job, Red is taken back by the old man’s young wife, Kathrine.  Needing to gain approval from the couple to get the job, Kathrine seems to be taken back by Red and his red hair and encourages her husband to hire the foreigner. Upon arriving at the plantation, Red is introduced to Peligre, a priestess on the island who only wants the best for the out of place man.  Being shown to his home away from home, Red is shocked by the local customs and does not want any part of them, even if it means he will be protected from evil.  Although Peligre takes offense to his mannerisms, she is still keeping an eye on the red headed man and strives to keep him safe.

Late one night, Red takes a venture to Duval’s home and finds what he is looking for, the oversized black pearl he has heard so much about.  But Duval warns the young man not to disturb his treasure, since the alarm is hardwired to the local army and even though they are fighting the rebels, they are very fast on their response time.  When leaving the house, Red bumps into Kathrine and finds out that they are both looking for the same thing, the pearl and money.  Becoming partners, the two formulate a new plan to get the pearl away from Duval and escape, but the rebel fighting is getting closer and Duval is preparing to leave his estate.  When the couple notice that the pearl has gone missing, Red confronts Duval about its whereabouts, but the old man is not willing to divulge any information about where the priceless artifact has gone.  Killing his employer, Red finds that he is not the only one wanting to profit from the loss, as Kathrine holds a gun to his head as well.  Even with the promise of happiness off of the island, Red is not able to convince the new widow not to kill him, but Peligre is able to help in her own special way.

Wow, talk about a messed up love triangle, but not the way you would expect.  With the pearl being the only reason that Red even came down to the island, he finds that there might be more to life than just money as he finds love as well.  But nothing is as it seems on the plantation as Peligre is more worried about Red’s well being than anything else and will stop at nothing to protect him from the horrors around him, including himself.  Starring James Remar as Red Buckley, John Rhys-Davies as Duval, Vanity as Kathrine and Whoopi Goldberg as Peligre, there is nothing else to be wanted from the stars, or much less the story.  There are a couple takeaways from this story, but the main one that I got from it, is to never lose your head, especially over something you should have never seen.  Until next time kiddies, Stay Scared.

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