Night Slaves

So this one middle class businessman seeming type named Clay Howard wants to drop out of the rat race, and after a little celebration, Splat! Ka-pow!, near fatal car crash. He winds up with a metal plate in his head and his wife and he go on a bit of a recuperation vacation. Stopping in a small town, they stay a couple of nights, enjoy pleasant rural company and good food at the local diner, purchase a lovely Art Deco lamp for a song at a local antiques store, then head on their way having experienced a delightful rest in rural Americana. Actually, there's weird sh!t going on. Sorry to disappoint fans of films about cookery and antiquing, this probably isn't for you. Though thinking about it, like cookery and antiquing it does offer some interest and mild thrills, so maybe it is a good recommendation. But yeah, weird sh!t is going on. I have to give Night Slaves some credit, it goes for some thing different to the many devil cult/political conspiracy/murder set up explanations so popular at the time, though not entirely original it does make a nice change. Also interestingly, the mystery of what's going on plays out with intrigue rather than menace, an enticing but inconsequential puzzle that largely avoids the standard escalating paranoid tension. It's a film favouring reason and acceptance, an approach that raises some moral problems that are never resolved but does give it a nicely unconventional yet very much of its time vibe. On the other hand the general lack of tension means that the film is far more likely to bore people, and the actors have to work harder. Happily the cast do well in selling events, James Franciscus may not bring much depth to Clay but his matinée good looks and easy charm make him a pleasant protagonist, and he is neatly balanced out by Lee Grant as his fretful and nervous wife, cagily watching a situation play out that she never even intended getting into in the first place. The two have good chemistry and an effective charge to their more dramatic moments, and the rest of the cast support them well, most notably Leslie Nielsen as the local Sheriff, a sturdy and realistic type who wants no trouble, just to get to the bottom of things, as well as oddball character acting legend Andrew Prine as a local weirdo who ends up playing a bigger role than expected and the lovely Tisha Sterling as a mysterious girl who may hold the key to proceedings. So the cast and the general interest of the film hold it together for a pretty solid 70 minutes or so, but it isn't the most memorable, thought provoking or exciting of films. Probably only recommended to science fiction and made for television buffs, and not at all bad as such, just a little above average.

Although I only saw the film once and quite a while ago I remember it to be an entertaining film that had a very interesting premise.

From what I remember of it, I thought that it showed some interesting possibilities in the story line. That a marooned alien spacecraft would use local talent, so to speak, to effect repairs was to me a novel idea. And to have the locals be unaware of their being used was even better.

It put me in mind of "Strange Invaders" which as I recall had a similar idea but the people in that one I think were replaced by aliens who assumed their identities. I like this idea much more as the visitors seemed to be trying to have as little impact as possible on the hometown folks and it fell more in line with the non-interference provisions upheld throughout the Star Trek series and movies.

I would like to see it again, though not bad enough to buy it anytime soon.

Clay and Marjorie Howard (James Franciscus and Lee Grant) stop in a small town to stay at a hotel. When night falls, Clay observes the townsfolk, as well as Marjorie, acting very oddly. The next day, he believes he just had a bad dream. However, he soon discovers that something is really going on, but it defies imagination.

NIGHT SLAVES is a made-for-TV sci-fi movie with a nice mystery to solve. It's sort of an updated version of IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, with Franciscus in the sleuthing everyman role. There's a conspiratorial atmosphere up until the truth is revealed.

A mostly forgotten film that deserves to be re-discovered...

James Franciscus (Clay) gets a metal plate in his head after a car crash and takes a road trip vacation with his wife Lee Grant (Marjorie). They come across a sleepy town – literally. There are strange night-time goings-on that Franciscus observes and everyone seems to be affected except him. The whole town seems to go off somewhere every night and it is unstoppable. He tries. At the same time, a mystery woman Tisha Sterling (Nailil/Annie) appears to him and they fall in love. Who is she and can their love transcend whatever is going on?

This is an enjoyable short film that zips along and has you questioning what will happen. You may well guess various elements of the story but it doesn't matter as it is an interesting story and everyone ends up with who they should. Leslie Nielsen also stars as the Sheriff of the town. Somehow, it stays with you after it has finished.

I recently purchased this movie NIGHT SLAVES, but I received a copy, so my guess is that this was never released on video, which is a shame, because it is a fun film. Now, I didn't think the film was great, but it was entertaining and short. I could see some stupid producer making a boring mini-series out of this story, but luckily this film is short and never loses your attention. The plot is not perfect, and the acting is subtle. I would only recommend watching this movie if you are bored and want some entertainment, not if you're looking for a great movie to watch with some great actors and a "sounds-interesting" plot.

SUMMARY: Clay Howard (Jim Franciscus) is in a horrible car crash, which kills another couple involved. Clay is put in the hospital, while his wife Marjorie (Lee Grant) and friend Matt (Scott Marlowe) plan to leave him and become lovers. A metal plate is inserted into Clay's head, he leaves the hospital and takes a road trip with his wife. They stop in a small town for the rest of one day and evening. That night Clay wakes up from his slumber to discover the entire town loading into one truck and vacating the town, his wife included. He meets Naillil/Annie (Tisha Sterling) who tells him she's to make sure he doesn't escape. The next morning Clay wakes up to find his wife in bed, sleeping and everything back to normal. Was it a dream, or is he really going crazy? Clay decides to stay in town a few more days and figure out what really is going on.

This is a great made for TV film. I suggest you check it out if the chance arises. The setting is creepy in the old town. The ending is no big surprise. A recommendation for this film would definitely be: THE STEPFORD WIVES. ** 1/2 STARS and 7/10.