O Pesadelo

We don't look for great scripts or direction with a slasher movie, but this movie's screenplay and direction are SO BAD, it's enough to change your opinion and make you seek out an art movie instead. Sure, there's a big body count, but the killings for the most part are either not explicit, or too dark to see. In fact, almost all of the non-slasher scenes are equally as dark! There are also some really big holes in the script that will even have the most forgiving fan of slashers groaning in disbelief. It's no wonder this movie was shelved for five years, then dumped quietly on video.

My review was written in September 1988 after a screening at Liberty theater on Manhattan's 42nd Street.

"Twisted Nightmare" is a perfunctory horror film bringing back to null effect rather corny genre themes. Ongoing theatrical release is unwarranted compared to many direct-to-video titles, though pic has a catchy moniker.

Main mystery stems from pic's origins: print caught had a 1982 copyright (in Roman numerals) on-screen, het ad materials and date of MPAA rating imply the film actually was made in 1987. Pic probably is fresh, but plays like the look-alike films made at the beginning of the decade when horror boomed.

A group of young people are summoned to Camp Paradise, where they camped regularly until two years ago when Mathew, the brother of pretty brunette Laura (Rhonda Gray), died mysteriously in flames. Confused storyline blames the subsequent one-by-one murdes of the cast members on those old standbys: (1) ancient revenge against the white man (plus a black couple for good measure) for desecrating Indian burial ground, the site of the camp, and for massacring local Indians (only survivor was a medicine man, whose grandson is tghe sinsiter farmhand-type resident of the camp), and (2) unbalanced Laura's obviously telegraphed need to avenge her bro's death.

Gory killings are standard for horror flicks, while Paul Hunt's execution of a "Friday the 13th" or "The Outing" type screenplay is relentlessly dull. Cast is attractive but the acting is flat. Big, hairy monster (mainly shown in silhouette) is disappointing.

Following the trend of slashers set in camps from the 80s, "Twisted Nightmare" (1987) brings with it all the clichés and predictability that the subgenre can offer, while at the same time entertaining the viewer.

As expected from a low-budget eighties slasher, the film features comical performances with absurd and meaningless reactions, the antagonist's desire for revenge and appealing scenes of sex and nudity. During the progression of the film, there are several moments in which the editing sounds confusing and poorly edited, with poorly executed slow motion effects and dislocated scene transitions. Despite these flaws, the film stands out relatively in terms of the soundtrack and the aesthetic sense of certain moments, focusing on a visual identity with the color blue recurring in the sets, ambiance and costumes. The "trash" moments entertain audiences who are not expecting a pretentious work, making the experience stimulating.

With clear inspirations in "Friday the 13th" (1980) and "The Burning" (1981), "Twisted Nightmare" fell into ostracism and did not please the majority, although it works as a slasher for a late afternoon.

Dumb, moronic film was shelved for 5 years (completed in '82, released in '87), because of poor pacing, editing, and horrible death scenes. What little plot there is, is about teenagers winning a vaction to a camp they once attended when they were younger. However once they get there and people start turning up missing they start to believe that the disapperances have something to do with the accidental death of a friend at the camp years earlier. Sound familiar??

Rated R; Graphic Violence, Sexual Situations, Profanity, and Graphic Nudity.

Twisted Nightmare (1987)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A group of adults win a weekend pass to the summer camp that they once attended when they were younger. Once there the party starts but before long a death from their past will come back to kill them one by one.

TWISTED NIGHTMARE is a slasher film that got a limited theatrically release before hitting VHS where it became a minor cult favorite. The film pretty much went away for a while but it has slowly picked up another cult following thanks to it simply being a slasher as well as it being shot at the same place that Friday THE 13TH PART III was. The barn and house from that Jason movie is used here so it is pretty cool getting to see the same location used.

As far as the actual film goes, look, you're dealing with a low-budget horror movie that was made by people just trying to make some money. The Slasher 101 Handbook is pretty much followed throughout as we get the backstory, we get the camp setting, the partying, the nudity and of course a mysterious old man and several bloody deaths. There's obviously nothing new or original here but for the most part it kept me entertained. If anything director Paul Hunt at least got some atmosphere out of the material, which is a plus.

The death scenes are decent for what they are as there is at least some blood being thrown around. If nudity is your thing then you'll be happy to know that several of the young ladies here get totally naked. The one major problem with the film is the cinematography. The film's lighting was so poor that often times the scenes are beyond dark. I'm sure this issue was even worse for those watching this on a bootleg or VHS. The Blu-ray has at least been cleaned up but it's still quite dark due to the way the film was shot.