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Alone in the Dark [1982] (REGION 1)


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Disappointing Slasher
Review date: 2008-08-09 Rating: 4 out of 10

Great idea-a mental asylum holding it's most dangerous inmates behind an electric security system-and then one night-POWERCUT!-Great cast-Jack Palance, Martin Landau, Donald Pleasence- Expected a lot from this movie & was really disappointed after watching it-I love horror movies but this was really nothing special despite other reviews.

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Reviews


really entertaining slasher movie !
Review date: 2007-11-25 Rating: 10 out of 10

not to be confused with "alone in the dark " christian slater film,this
movie from the banned video nasty vaults of the 80s is full of thrills &
scares ! during a powercut 3 psychopath inmates escape from a local asylum.
they believe that the new therapist at the asylum killed the previous and
set out during darkness to kill him & his family.i was knocked out by
martin landau ( space 1999,ed wood)s performance as a psychotic arsonist
preacher & jack palance in his usual twisted nutcase roles,also donald(halloween) pleasance as a therapist mirroring his dr loomis role ! dwight
shultz (from a-team) plays a bespectacled therapist ,but his daughter lyla
steals the show ,whilst everyone else goes ape she just looks ,"like what the hells going on ?" she also wears round spectacles and looks like a mini-dad ! lots of full on gore,action & laughs ,its great, plenty of extras on the disc. a forgotten 80s classic !

A PRETTY DECENT SLASHER ENTRY
Review date: 2007-10-25 Rating: 8 out of 10

Working at an insane asylum, Dr. Leo Bain, (Donald Pleasance) becomes concerned that the extra-security patients, Frank Hawkes, (Jack Palance) and Byron Sutcliff, (Martin Landau) will be set free due to their increasingly psychotic behavior. Even taking on Dr. Dan Potter, (Dwight Schultz) as an extra hand isn't enough, and he still has a hard time keeping them under control. When a massive blackout occurs, they escape into the city and blend in with the crowds looting and rioting. When they turn towards killing others in the neighborhood, they become more desperate to get free from being wrongly imprisoned. Attempting to track them down, they realize what they're after and try to stop them before they can carry it out.

The Good News: This was actually a rather entertaining slasher. One of the best aspects is it's intelligence and original story. The fact that the convicts get out isn't anything new, but rather is one takes on two different routes than most would expect. Not only do the convicts escape early on rather than stalking the residents inside with the fear of them getting out, but also this one spends the majority of time stalking an individual family instead of going to a specific location and offing an assembled mass there. The fact that their out and about is a lot scarier than what would've been done the other way around. The looting scenes aren't that bad either and have a nice little kick to the film's pacing and excitement factors. What really sells the movie, though, are the continuous high-quality suspense scenes. The bedroom sequence is an absolute standout, as this features enough good moments to become quite entertaining and effective. This is an iconic moment that serves the film well. Other suspense scenes do just as well, including a march on a trapped victim and an assault on a house from unseen sources in nearby woods. Even some of the kills are pretty good, based on the respectable body count. There's a back-breaker that shatters a victim's back, having an already-stuck knife dug in deeper when hit with a baseball bat, using garden shears to rip a throat out, being run over by a truck and being impaled in the chest with a large arrow from a crossbow, among others. There here are the film's good points.

The Bad News: There wasn't all that much really wrong with this one. A pretty big one is that the film has a long set-up to get to the good points. There's way too much time to get to the blackout to make this one get exciting. That sets about the main thrust of the film and puts it into motion, and that there's a really long time to get there is a little off. Another small flaw is the ending. This comes across as slightly confusing and a little out-of-place in the film, especially as it seemed to head for one conclusion and comes out with one that doesn't connect at all. These here are the film's main problems.

The Final Verdict: With a lot of good slasher moves and a few really small ones, this is an above-average if not spectacular slasher. Really recommended for fans of the genre or the particular time periods' entries, while not a whole lot wouldn't enjoy this one.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Erland van Lidth
Martin Landau
Jack Palance
Dwight Schultz
Donald Pleasence

Creators:
Jack Palance (Primary Contributor)
Donald Pleasence (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Rank Video
Manufacturer: Rank Video
EAN: 0014381131628
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Colour, Dolby, Full Screen, PAL,
Release date: 2005-09-13
Universal product code (UPC): 014381131628
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Region code: 1
Running time: 90 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1982-11-12
Language: English (Original Language)

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