Into the Darkness (1986)

... aka: Der Mannequin Killer (The Mannequin Killer)

... aka: Pimeyden painajainen (A Nightmare of Darkness)

... aka: Suspense en las sombras (Suspense in the Shadows)

... aka: Vingança Mortal (Mortal Revenge)

Directed by:

David Kent-Watson

Donald Pleasence, in a top-billed supporting role, is clearly the big draw here, but one wonders what would make him sign on to do a shot-on-video slasher flick. It's not as if he was struggling for work in the 80s and, though he did act in quite a few terrible films around this same time, none were anywhere near this cheap! That automatically makes one assume he must have taken some kind of pay cut to appear. If they could afford his usual salary (he'd been paid 20,000 to appear in the 300,000 budgeted HALLOWEEN and that was nearly a decade earlier) then surely they also could have afforded to shoot this on film too, right? So I have a few other theories as to why he's even in this. Initially, I thought that since this was filmed on the Mediterranean island of Malta (which was a UK territory until 1964), he simply wanted a vacation there and this was as good an excuse as any. There's also the fact they would have needed something of a budget to take the mostly British cast and crew to Malta and film this in the first place, so there's that. However, once I saw the rest of the cast list, I had another idea...

A much more likely scenario is that he agreed to do this in exchange for them giving a role to his aspiring actress daughter, Polly Jo Pleasence. She curiously also receives star billing on the video box despite the fact she's only in two brief scenes, plus is given an "introducing" credit. The father-daughter casting has the feel of a two-for-one package deal if you catch my drift. That said, there's another fairly big name in the cast here: Ronald Lacey. Just a few years earlier, he had a major role in Raiders of the Lost Ark; the #1 global box office draw of 1981, and he was having no issue getting decent roles in other big budget films in the mid-80s, like Red Sonja (1985) and Sky Bandits (1986). Perhaps the filmmakers blew their budget load early on securing a couple of name stars and travel arrangements and were then forced to shoot on video? I'm not so sure but it's fun to hypothesize about.

In Malta, a young boy sees his parents arguing, decides to stalk the mother ("special guest" Karmen Azzopardi) around town and then catches her walking off with an older man. Once the boy finally tracks mum down, she informs him, "I'm a tart! A prostitute! Me, your loving mother, the whore!" and then stomps on a music box with her heel. "Some years later" in London, the now-grown kid goes home with a bleach blonde hooker and stabs her to death after she takes off her top. (Interesting bit of trivia here: Despite having just two titles on her IMDb filmography, Azzopardi was considered the top actress in Malta at the time, which makes it all the more unfortunate this is the best film offer she was getting in her homeland.)

We then meet a rather unsavory group of people working the London talent, acting and modeling circuit. Jeff Conti (John Saint Ryan) was once a popular and in-demand actor but is now having a hard time finding work due to being involved in a tragic incident that cost a woman her life. Though Jeff has always maintained it was an accident, and he's already been acquitted of any wrongdoing in court, not everyone is convinced of his innocence. As a result of that bad publicity, no one's wanting to touch him with a ten foot pole and he's not been able to secure so much as an audition for 9 months. Seeing how he's now desperate, strapped for cash and owes his agent, Andrew Sinclair (Lacey), a hefty commission, Jeff agrees to take on a male modeling assignment for a company called Aurora Swimwear, even though he feels it is beneath his talents.

Also going along on the shoot are arrogant photographer Steve Sutton (Brett Paul), who's majorly in debt to creditors and starting to feel the wrath of nasty modeling agency rep Jenny (Polly Jo), Steve's perverted assistant Jim (Paul Flanagan), make-up artist Liam (Paul Elsam) and a quartet of female models; Suzie (Heather Alexander), Angie (Julie Dennis), Rosie (Sara Hollamby) and the nubile and inexperienced Debbie ("Jadie Rivas" / Jeanette Driver). Not going along is buxom blonde Diana (Fiona Sloman). Despite sleeping with seemingly every man in a position of power who's involved with this upcoming shoot (she's also carrying on an affair with the married Andrew), Diana loses out on this particular booking. Even worse for her, she's strangled to death in the parking garage the night before everyone else flies out.

Feeling like fish out of water, Jeff and Debbie find themselves drawn to one another, which leads to a long tour of the country and some of what it has to offer, including endless picturesque scenery and ancient ruins, fancy hotels, luxurious swimming pools, rocky cliffs, romantic beach sunsets, fireworks shows, wild nightlife and parades including Roman gladiators, marching bands and guys dressed in what look like KKK hoods (?!) This even makes sure to crop shots to specifically to plug various tourist destinations, like St. Paul's Catacombs, the (still open) Jerma Palace Hotel and the (now defunct) Styx II Discotheque.

All of that enticing travelogue footage makes one suspect that the Maltese government may have chipped in some money and / or resources to help the filmmakers in order to boost tourism. The fatal mistake was shooting this on video. Had this been shot in a proper widescreen aspect ratio, the scenery would have looked a hell of a lot better than the murky full-screen video presentation. Also, shooting this on film would have been a better long-term investment as it could now be remastered, put on Blu-ray and continue to draw attention to the island instead of being a long-ago-forgotten 80s shelf filler that now never stands a chance of looking all that good.

In addition to that, there appears to have been some kind of agreement with Magnet Records to help promote the career of singer Chris Rea. There's a good fifteen minute block in here where we get to hear not one, not two, not three, but four Rea songs almost in their entirety. These aren't original songs made for the movie but instead are mostly taken from his 1983 album Water Sign. Even though some of the lyrics are a bit hokey, Rea has a great, gritty, bluesy voice so the music is at least pleasant to listen to throughout.

While on location, Rosie goes off sightseeing and gets her throat cut by an unseen assailant, who then hides her body under some rocks. Driving around in a Rolls Royce and usually wearing sunglasses, Pleasence plays a mysterious man named David Beckett, who's been stalking the group around the island since they first arrived and introduces himself to the guys by saying "I am your nemesis!" He talks about ghosts, virgin sacrifices, Christian persecution and other such nonsense to muddy up the plot, cracks a gay joke and finally claims to be there as a representative of the swimwear company who has flown in to make sure they don't screw things up. There's also a second mystery man wearing a suit and sunglasses lurking around.

During all of the horror and action-oriented scenes, the director has a tendency to use and abuse slow motion, out of focus shots and freeze frames; all techniques utilized to try to camouflage how bad these scenes would have looked otherwise. Someone is smothered to death with a pillow, there's a throat slashing and even a shower slice-up, but you don't really ever get to see much of any of it because of all the video distortion. That makes the box claim this was shot "In Blood-Curdling Color" quite funny when it has zero gore and almost no blood! The fact it centers around models, has no nudity and very conservative-looking swimsuits means this isn't going to sit too well with the exploitation crowd either.

Of course, a film doesn't need R-rated levels of sex and violence to be good, but it certainly wouldn't have hurt THIS particular film any. All we're left with is a middling mystery (though the killer reveal did take me a bit by surprise) and all of the travelogue footage, which is admittedly enjoyable though not really the reason most people are going to be seeking this out. It was co-scripted by the director and male stars Saint Ryan and Paul; all using pseudonyms. The three would team up for numerous other DTV efforts, including The Eye of Satan, which was filmed in 1988 but not released to home video (limited to the UK and a few other European countries) until 1992.

The U.S. distributor was World Video Pictures (a division of Western World Video), who are best known for being the only ones brave enough to release Ted V. Mikels and Nick Millard movies. They did occasionally put out some interesting stuff, like the acclaimed anti-nuke film Threads (1984), the rare R-rated cut of the porno Champagne for Breakfast (1982) and several early Rutger Hauer movies.

★★

Halloween (1978)

... aka: Alla helgons blodiga natt (All Saints' Bloody Night)

... aka: Halloween: Die Nacht des Grauens (Halloween: The Night of Horrors)

... aka: John Carpenter's Halloween

... aka: La noche de Halloween (Halloween Night)

... aka: Maskernes nat (Night of the Masks)

Directed by:

John Carpenter

I frequently get emails playfully chastising me for slacking in my coverage of some of the most famous genre films of all time here. How in the hell can you not have a review for Jaws up? Why haven't you done a real review for Invasion of the Body Snatchers or An American Werewolf in London or The Evil Dead or Psycho yet? And while I agree with everyone who's ever called me out on this, I do have an explanation: I've never been in a big hurry to cover famous genre films from this time period simply because they've been so well-covered everywhere else. I instead opted to concentrate mostly on obscure movies; namely those with little (sometime no) online representation. Now that doesn't mean there will never be reviews for the classics and better-known films here. My plans were always to occasionally fall back and cover them, just not make that the primary focus. After all, there's no dearth of literature out there on, say, Hitchcock's The Birds. There's also no shortage of write-ups and reviews for Halloween; one of the most famous, most discussed, most analyzed and most beloved genre movies of all time. I just didn't want to let another All Hallow's Eve pass by without giving this one its due, especially since it's probably one of the five most cross-referenced films around here. I suppose there's no better place to start than with the basics...

Halloween is entirely deserving of its place as an iconic film and pop culture phenomenon, as well as its place in history as one of the great classic horror movies. It's that rare, modestly-budgeted film that gets to share a table with the original NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974); films that are so effective and well-crafted, and proved to be so influential over the years, that they managed to reshape and redefine the entire genre for years to come. Fans have never allowed Halloween to simply fade away and its popularity has endured throughout the decades. It was a huge theatrical hit upon release with its domestic gross of 47 million on a 300,000 budget, making it one of the most profitable independent productions of all time. It then became a top-selling VHS release, video rental favorite and seasonal TV staple in the 80s and 90s. And it now is one of the top streamed genre films, especially at this time of year. As of this writing, it's currently one of the Top 5 most searched horror films on IMDb... out of nearly 170,000 titles. Not bad for a movie that's now over 40 years old!

Just what is the key to the film's success and longevity, and its timelessness that seems to know no generational bounds? Well, that's impossible to really pin down to just one thing. The plot (escaped lunatic who murdered his sister as a child returns to his hometown fifteen years later, gets a mask and begins a new killing spree) barely even merits mention, but a film that's executed as well as this one doesn't need an intricate plot. In fact, that would have merely gotten in the way, as we'd see later with a spate of far-less-successful sequels attempting to expound upon the Michael Myers character.

The first plaudit surely needs to go to Carpenter's brilliantly simple piano / synth score, which was composed in just three days with assist from Dan Wyman and has become one of the film's most notable attributes. I was just at a horror-themed night at an amusement park last weekend and heard Carpenter's music countless times while I was there. Just like with the Jaws theme, everyone - regardless of age - knows this score. Just as you can't go to the beach or hop in the ocean without someone jokingly humming the Jaws theme, you won't attend many Halloween functions where the Halloween theme isn't played. Just as notable here is the smooth, gliding Steadicam work from Dean Cundey, eerily prowling around suburbia as the killer stalks his next victim, which is just as crucial to establishing the mood.

Another aspect that helps this withstand the weathering of time is its downright perfect evocation of the Autumnal / Halloween season. Despite being a suspenseful, scary film, there's still a pleasing, nostalgic feel to the whole thing... Cold wind blowing the leaves down vacant streets, laughing trick-or-treaters shuffling from door to door, Jack-O-Lanterns lining porches, THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD playing on TV... It not only brings to mind everything that's great about this time or year, but also everything that's great about horror film atmosphere when it's done correctly.

Really excellent use is made of widescreen Panavision, especially the foreground and background in the shot compositions. Some of the spookiest images here are the quietest ones, with the blank-faced killer standing solemnly and silently off in the distance watching. And waiting. We never know what makes him tick or even what drives him to kill. Keeping the character's psychology and history shrouded in mystery turns out to be another big plus, as is the decision to keep the potential supernatural elements surrounding the killer muted. Carpenter and his co-writer Debra Hill (also a producer) wisely opted to present Myers as an abstract, enigmatic boogeyman; a pure distillation of evil.

We also have a star making turn for 19-year-old Jamie Lee Curtis in her film debut as heroine Laurie Strode. What struck me as interesting in this re-watch is that Laurie isn't exactly the impossibly chaste final girl trope she's often made out to be. While she is more studious, mature and responsible than her peers (and likely still a virgin), she also smokes weed and shows an interest in boys and sex. Her comparably virtuous nature isn't by choice, but due to the fact she's awkward, shy and, as she puts it, "too smart." There's a nice little hidden gem moment tucked away in here where Laurie and her more outgoing and brash friend Annie (Nancy Loomis) are cruising around town headed toward their babysitting jobs right as the sun is setting that gives us a little insight into Laurie's lack of self-esteem and vulnerability which instantly gets us in her corner for the remainder of the film.

Curtis would, of course, use this film as a springboard to launch a successful career. After this, the 1981 sequel and four other genre films in rapid succession, she grew tired of the typecasting and mostly sought out projects in other genres for the remainder of the decade and throughout most of the 90s. However, she has wisely kept Halloween in her back pocket and continued to use her association with this series to sustain any career lulls she's come across. In the late 90s, after the success of Scream, she returned for Halloween H20 (1998), which was also a big box office hit. Twenty years later, she was back again for Halloween (2018), a direct follow-up to the original which was also a huge money-maker and broke a number of box office records, including having the highest opening weekend for a film with a female lead over 55. The latest franchise installment, Halloween Kills, which is in theaters as we speak and seems headed to a 100 million domestic gross. Just like the boogeyman, this is a property that simply refuses to die. Unfortunately, none of the sequels, nor the endless imitators that followed, were quite able to recapture the deceptively simple magic found here.

Donald Pleasence also memorably contributes as intense psychiatrist Dr. Sam Loomis, who has "spent eight years trying to reach him, and then another seven trying to keep him locked up." The film became an unlikely signature role for the veteran British character actor... and a role he almost didn't even get as both Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee previously passed on it. The cast also includes Charles Cyphers as the Sheriff Leigh Brackett, P. J. Soles as vapid ("Totally!") cheerleader friend Lynda, future Real Housewives reality TV star Kyle Richards as babysitting charge Lindsay, Nancy Stephens as a nurse and Playboy Playmate Sandy Johnson as Michael's sister in the memorable opening scene. Most of these actors would subsequently appear in later Halloween films.

Myers is played by a number of different actors, though predominately by future director Nick Castle. In his unmasked form, he's briefly played by Tony Moran, brother of Happy Days star Erin. Another notable future director, Tommy Lee Wallace (who went on to make the unrelated third Halloween film), served as an editor and production designer. In 2018, Robert Englund revealed that he also spent a single day on the set helping to make Southern California in the Spring look like the fictional Midwestern town of Haddonfield, Illinois in the Fall by helping to throw dead leaves around!

In 1981, Carpenter returned to direct brand new scenes for a TV-friendly version. This footage, roughly 11 minutes worth of dialogue, was used to replace some of the more violent content in the original. Pleasence, Curtis, Loomis and Soles all returned to reprise their roles and a few new actors (including Jennifer Rhodes) were brought in for smaller parts. In addition to spawning a ton of sequels, a remake, a sequel to the remake and a whole slew of unofficial fan films, there was a novelization, a comic book adaptation, a 1983 Atari video game and seemingly endless documentaries dedicated either solely to this original film or the entire series. Halloween has received many accolades over the years, culminating with it being inducted into the National Film Registry in 2006.

★★★★