ALONE
IN THE DARK (1982)
Directed by Jack Sholder
RCA/Columbia VHS
Reviewed 07.15.04
Review by Joseph A. Ziemba
THE FILM
Martin Laundau as a giggling, bible-quoting
knife slasher. Jack Palance as a
crazy, jaw-gnawing vet. Donald Pleasance
as a reefed-up, moronic psychiatrist.
Mix ‘em all up and throw in
a little tip o’ the hat to
J. Vorhees, complete with bloody
hockey mask. How could you not watch
this one?
As splatter films go, Alone
In The Dark has the distinction
of being unconventional in some
respects. Surprisingly, it’s
saturated with decent acting, an
even pace, and some very juicy characters
(make way for “The Bleeder!”).
The usual muck that comes to mind
when somebody whispers the word
“slasher” (stalk-teenage
sex-bloody death), while somewhat
present, is placed in a far classier
context. And whoa! It’s even
a little scary at times. But alas,
it can’t all be a parade.
Unfortunately, despite all of these
positives, the film seems to be
missing a certain something...that
slight edge that can propel a slasher
into stratospheric legend ala Black
Christmas or Halloween.
Listen up: After a creepy dream
sequence, we find out that psychologist
Dan Potter (yeah, it’s “Murdoch”
from The A-Team!) has taken
up a new job at an unorthodox mental
hospital. Actually a huge mansion,
the claustrophobic place is overlooked
by Dr. Leo Bain (Donald Pleasance),
a pot-smoking nutjob that appears
to be just as odd as his patients.
Potter has moved his family to town
and his neurotic sister drops by
for a visit. In a definite high
point, Dan’s sister takes
the fam to a novelty punk club to
see “The Sick Fucks”
perform. Amazing. Soon enough, a
city-wide blackout occurs, knocking
out the juice in the hospital/mansion,
which frees the four psychopaths
imprisoned on the third floor. Headed
by ham-king Jack Palance and Martin
Landau, and with a 400 pound child
molester in tow, the four deviant
killers make their way to Dan’s
house for a bloody game of peek-a-boo.
Why? You’ll have to watch
and find out.
The key lacking element here is
abnormality. While the successful
elements of the film are definitely
in place, the plot just drags along
and doesn’t offer up anything
out of the ordinary. I mean, yes,
there’s a decent twist involving
“The Bleeder” (I mention
him again to peak your interest),
but overall, there’s no unique
sting; no jaw-dropping moment of
fright or weirdness...
Bottom line: Alone In The Dark
is good and you should see it. Just
don’t get your hopes up too
high.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
Pretty goldarn nice for an eighteen
year old ex-rental. The picture
was fairly crisp and the mono sound
was surprisingly blaring. BUT WHAT
THE HECK?! The top of the box is
ripped off. I want my three bucks
back.
EXTRAS
Hrrumph.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Rising above the slasher norm, but
not quite a blue-ribbon, you wouldn’t
be wasting your time while tracking
down Alone In The Dark.
It’s probably pretty easy
to find as a rental. Given the huge
amount of genre releases experiencing
digital rebirth, I’d figure
that this one is ripe for the DVD
pickens.
Update: Alone In The Dark
was released as an extras-packed
DVD by Image Entertainment in October,
2005. |
Bela?
The Sick F's
Bed issues
Bloody licks
|
