Dead On

You may be able to help, stick around to the end of this review!

Almost twenty years ago I saw this film on latenight TV in Australia.. I was smoking a lot of pot.. What I remember is endless sex scenes, that went on forever.. It was a surreal softcore film noir thriller..

So I decide to track down the film and purchase an "unrated" American VHS release.. Only problem is, it feels cut to shreds.. Was this "unrated" version censored compared to the Australian network TV version?

Well my questions MAY be soon answered.. Iv ordered a Dutch VHS version... Surely a European version should be the least censored... My understanding is that they basically live nude in Holland.. But maybe they just used the same version?

And by the way, Im not getting this uncut version because Im some kind of perv.. It was a cool late night flick with a nice DTV thriller aesthetic.. If I wanted titillation, there's plenty of that available online for free.. But I just want to see the full version again and confirm if I indeed there is an uncut version or was I just stoned and imagining what the film was as I drifted in and out of consciousness?

So if anyone can shed some light on this, if there are different cuts etc, please write a short review here and I will read it.

***SPOILERS*** Stylish yet very overdone movie about two people meeting by chance, or was it, in a bar and finding out that they'ed like to have their spouses killed.

Obvious remake of the 1951 Alfred Hitchock classic "Strangers on a Train" in fact it's mentioned by one of the persons Erin Davenport, Shari Shattuck,who came up with the very unoriginal plan. Erin wants to have her brutal and abusive husband Dexter, David Ackroyd,murdered by her new found lover Ted Beaumont, Matt McCoy, an airline pilot. Ted also wan't to have his boss and pain in the neck wife Marla, Tracy Scoggins,put out of his and her life as well.

Erin wan't Ted to do in Dexter and in return she'll murder Marla with the police not being able to connect each other, Erin & Ted, to the murders like in the film "Strangers on a Train"! As if the police and nobody else didn't see the movie and doesn't know that such a murder plan is possible.

There's far more to the movie "Dead On" but thats saved for the last ten minutes or so of the film. It makes the movie even more ridicules then it already was up to then. The master plan seems to go on schedule as Marla disappears and there's drops of her blood found in her suite of apartments. The police suspect Ted as the killer but he has an air-tight alibi for where he was when Marla disappeared but Erin's husband is still alive and kicking. Ted who was against this whole plan now feels trapped by having gone along with his wife, Marla, being killed by Erin but is up in the air about killing Erin's husband Dexter.

Ted sets up his elaborate plan to murder Dexter and make his getaway to perfection. What Ted doesn't realize is that Erin has made a major plot change in her "Strangers on a Train" murder scenario and in it's not only her husband Dexter but her lover Ted that will end up being the odd men out, both dead and alive.

The ending wasn't that much of a surprise since it was easy to see it coming if you realized who was really behind this convoluted and contrived murder plot. When it surfaced it only proved that in the movies everything can happen even the totally unbelievable.

The film "Dead On" has an epilogue as if it were a true story with the audience being told what happened to those who were involved and arrested in the movies outlandish crime, in reality the film was total fiction.

This was a pretty lousy excuse for an "erotic thriller". It wasn't erotic, or very thrilling, or very exciting. The flashy camerawork doesn't add to the story, just covers up the weak plot. The greasy lawyer reminded me of Stuart Pankin, who's selling orthopedic foot supports on late night tv now. How about this cast? Probably not doing much better. Avoid at all costs.

The best thing about this movie is the two nude scenes... Matt McCoy leans back in ecstasy as he climaxes with Shari Shattuck in the second one done almost entirely in silhouette; the first is a bit more wild due mostly to Shattuck's insatiable appetite. The rest of the film has terrible acting, a very weak script with very little to hold the viewer's attention and some tasteless costumes on Shattuck. If you feel like seeing this film, I suppose its worth a look but only one at that. It has a very little following to be sure which probably explains it not being available on DVD as yet. Please bear in mind that this film has nothing to recommend.

Dead ON is an erotic thriller, apparently. Its not really a thriller in the sense of the word, but it is quiet a decent movie. Matt McCoy plays hsi character very well and the acting is of a high standard despite the limited script they have been "blessed" with. It has a good plot and some really sleazy sex scenes, just what we are all looking for in a movie really. all up 6/10, worth a look if you like Matt McCoy, worth a look if you like soft core porno.