# Jack-O > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Jack-O > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Jack-O.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack-O > Source revision: 1349599421 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) For other uses, see [Jacko (disambiguation)](/source/Jacko_(disambiguation)). ***Jack-O*** a 1995 American [horror film](/source/Horror_film) directed and co-produced by [Steve Latshaw](/source/Steve_Latshaw) and executive produced by [Fred Olen Ray](/source/Fred_Olen_Ray). It is the third collaboration between Latshaw as director and Ray as executive producer, following 1993's *[Dark Universe](/source/Dark_Universe_(film))* and 1994's *[Biohazard: The Alien Force](/source/Biohazard:_The_Alien_Force)*. *Jack-O* stars [Linnea Quigley](/source/Linnea_Quigley), Maddisen K. Krown, Gary Doles, Ryan Latshaw and [Catherine Walsh](/source/Catherine_Walsh_(actress)), with [cameo appearances](/source/Cameo_appearance) by [John Carradine](/source/John_Carradine), [Cameron Mitchell](/source/Cameron_Mitchell_(actor)) (both posthumous appearances) and [Brinke Stevens](/source/Brinke_Stevens). The film was released [direct-to-video](/source/Direct-to-video). ## Plot The Kelly family lives in the fictional town of Oakmoor Crossing, just before and during [Halloween](/source/Halloween). The family, consisting of father David, mother Linda, and son Sean, live a normal suburban life, but are eventually visited by a stranger who identifies herself as Vivian Machen. Both the Machens and the Kellys have a long ancestral history in Oakmoor Crossing, and Vivian reveals that one of the Kelly's ancestors hanged a supposed [warlock](/source/Warlock) named Walter Machen, who raised up a pumpkinhead scarecrow, named Jack-O, from hell to take revenge on the Kellys. The Kelly ancestor ended up burying the monster in a shallow grave. But, through the antics of several teenagers, Jack-O is raised again and seeks revenge on the Kellys. ## Cast - Patrick Moran as Jack-O-Lantern - [Linnea Quigley](/source/Linnea_Quigley) as Carolyn Miller - Maddisen K. Krown as Linda Kelly (credited as Rebecca Wicks) - Gary Doles as David Kelly - Ryan Latshaw as Sean/David Kelly - [Catherine Walsh](/source/Catherine_Walsh_(actress)) as Vivian Machen - Rachel Carter as Julie Miller - Tom Ferda as Jim - Bill Cross as Richard Watson - Helen Keeling as Amanda Watson - Thor Schweigerath as Robbie - Christina Connell as Sarah - Mike Conner as Arthur Kelly - Katy Maznicki as Eunice Kelly - [John Carradine](/source/John_Carradine) as Walter Machen - [Cameron Mitchell](/source/Cameron_Mitchell_(actor)) as Dr. Cadaver - [Brinke Stevens](/source/Brinke_Stevens) as Witch ## Production *Jack-O* features several notable low-budget film actors. [Linnea Quigley](/source/Linnea_Quigley) plays a prominent role, and both [Cameron Mitchell](/source/Cameron_Mitchell_(actor)) and [John Carradine](/source/John_Carradine) make posthumous [cameo appearances](/source/Cameo_appearance).[1] Director [Steve Latshaw](/source/Steve_Latshaw) had several cast and crew members that joined him on three film projects: *[Dark Universe](/source/Dark_Universe_(film))* (1993), *[Biohazard: The Alien Force](/source/Biohazard:_The_Alien_Force)* (1994), and *Jack-O*. [Fred Olen Ray](/source/Fred_Olen_Ray) served as executive producer for all three films, and [Patrick Moran](/source/Patrick_Moran_(screenwriter)), who played Jack-O, had writing credits on all three as well. Additionally, Wicks and Walsh both appeared in *Jack-O* and *Biohazard: The Alien Force*. Latshaw's son, [Ryan Latshaw](/source/Ryan_Latshaw), also appeared in all three films. ## Critical response *Jack-O* received largely negative reviews. According to a commentary track by Latshaw and Ray, one reviewer referred to the film as a "shit pickle".[2] J.R. Taylor of *[Entertainment Weekly](/source/Entertainment_Weekly)* gave it a grade of "B", calling it an "entertaining disaster".[3] The film has been unfavorably compared to the 1989 horror film *[Pumpkinhead](/source/Pumpkinhead_(film))*, with Taylor writing that *Jack-O* "may be ripped off from the more atmospheric *Pumpkinhead*",[3] and author [John Kenneth Muir](/source/John_Kenneth_Muir) calling *Jack-O* "a low-budget variation on the much superior" 1989 film.[4] Muir also wrote that, while *Jack-O* is "undeniably ambitious"—arguing that the film "labors to make a point about political polarization and the culture war in 1990s America" through its conservative suburbanite characters[5]—it contains "virtually no suspense and pretty bad acting too. In execution, the film is pretty indefensible [...] neither particularly scary nor particularly well-made."[6] ## Home media *Jack-O* was released on [VHS](/source/VHS). In 2005, the film received a "10th Anniversary Edition" [DVD](/source/DVD) release, which includes such additional content as a commentary by Steve Latshaw and Fred Olen Ray, and footage from a failed Latshaw project titled *Gator Babes*.[7] The commentary by Latshaw and Ray has been noted for the combativeness between the two, up to and including "a heated argument that results in Latshaw storming out."[8] ## See also - [List of films set around Halloween](/source/List_of_films_set_around_Halloween) ## References 1. ["Jack-O"](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/jack-o/cast/2030043961/). *TVGuide.com*. Retrieved 2025-09-02. 1. Latshaw, Steve (Director of *Jack-O*); Ray, Fred Olen (Executive Producer of *Jack-O*) (2005). *Jack-O* (Audio commentary). Retromedia Entertainment, Inc. pp. 1:16:09. 1. Taylor, J.R. (October 6, 1995). ["Jack-O"](https://web.archive.org/web/20220121102004/https://ew.com/article/1995/10/06/jack-o/). *[Entertainment Weekly](/source/Entertainment_Weekly)*. Archived from [the original](https://ew.com/article/1995/10/06/jack-o/) on January 21, 2022. Retrieved May 25, 2021. 1. Muir 2011, p. 387. 1. Muir 2011, p. 388. 1. Muir 2011, pp. 387–388. 1. ["Jack O (Special Edition) by Image Entertainment \[DVD\]"](https://www.amazon.com/Jack-Special-Image-Entertainment/dp/B00UGQMIX0). *[Amazon.com](/source/Amazon.com)*. Retrieved May 25, 2021. 1. Salisbury, Brian (December 2, 2011). ["Interview: Adam Green and Joe Lynch Take Over The Alamo"](https://filmschoolrejects.com/interview-adam-green-and-joe-lynch-take-over-the-alamo-eba5da3c564a/). *[Film School Rejects](/source/Film_School_Rejects)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20220811020110/https://filmschoolrejects.com/interview-adam-green-and-joe-lynch-take-over-the-alamo-eba5da3c564a/) August 11, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved August 10, 2022. ### Bibliography - Muir, John Kenneth (2011). [*Horror Films of the 1990s*](https://books.google.com/books?id=Q60poKxIN7cC). [McFarland & Company](/source/McFarland_%26_Company). ISBN 978-0786440122. ## External links - [Jack-O](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113449/) at IMDb --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Jack-O](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack-O) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack-O?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.