SSS-1984
Joined Sep 2023
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SSS-1984's rating
Released in 1985, "The Midnight Hour" may have been a television movie made for ABC it's still charming, fun & frankly crazy enough to entertain audiences of all ages. For an 80's "High School Horror" this is far too tame to really compete with it's more comparable contemporaries. But since it was made for television it's easier to overlook that, sit back & just settle with what the film has to offer. And what it has to offer is more than you'd expect from the average television movie!
"The Midnight Hour" would make a terrific double bill with another "family friendly" 80's Horror film, "The Monster Squad" (1988). Both films feature a close knit circle of youths battling creatures of the night & both work as much as homage to Horror cinema of old as they do "totally 80's" fright flicks!
Where they really differ in terms of content is in the types of "creatures" our young protagonists encounter. "The Monster Squad" took a more post-modernist approach & paid tribute to the movie monsters of vintage Universal Horror (such as Count Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, The Wolfman & The Mummy).
"The Midnight Hour" on the other hand has is filmed in the spirit of 50's & 60's drive-in theatre (though still wrapped in "totally 80's" trimmings), while the monsters themselves are drawn as much from mythology as they are the movies themselves. We get witches, werewolves, vampires, zombies & even demonic dwarves. And whereas "The Monster Squad" was very much a straightforward "kids vs monsters" spin on "The Goonies" (1985), "The Midnight Hour" has more in common with "Return Of The Living Dead" (1985) in that any number of characters can be "turned" into whatever creature they come into fatal contact with.
The film is filled with references to the Horror films which preceded it (particularly those of the early 80's). These include "The Evil Dead" (1981) & "A Nightmare On Elm St" (1984), but the most noteworthy aspect of the entire production is arguably the appearence of, well, "the grave dancers" from John Landis' 1982 music video for Michael Jackson's "Thriller". The makeup work for the various zombies & ghouls is clearly influenced by Rick Baker's incredible work on those from said music video. And if "The Midnight Hour" deserves an award for anything it's absolutely for those truly awesome makeup jobs! Even for a television movie the makeup could match a decent budget studio production from the period. And the same could be said of the surprisingly diverse soundtrack. Radio hits of the 50's & 60's somehow sit beside more contemporary 80's New Wave selections. But the most surprising song inclusion of all is undoubtably The Smiths' 1985 classic, "How Soon Is Now" (which plays over what is arguably the standout scene of the entire film).
"The Midnight Hour's" young cast is mostly comprised of future television stars. Levar Burton ("Star Trek:The Next Generation") & Peter Deluise ("21 Jump Street") are the two most will notice, though there is also an early appearence from Michelle Phieffer's sister, Dedee (one year before 1986's "Vamp"), as well as a small scene stealing role for Kurtwood Smith as a cop (two years before he's portray one of cinema's most memorable criminals in 1987's "Robocop").
The cast all work well together even if much of their material they're working with could be considered cliched & their characters stereotypical. It's a testement to the game cast & the talent behind the camera that "The Midnight Hour" rises above what is admitedly a very average screenplay.
Brad Fiedel's score (his first since 1984's "The Terminator") is well-suited to the tone of the film, while the obligatory '80's dance sequence" is as wonderfully awful as the song which plays over it ("Get Dead" by actress/singer Shari-Lynn Belafonte). The humour does work, but there isn't a joke here you'd not have heard before. This doesn't make the film any less fun however! It's no classic by any means, but for a 1985 "Halloween special" from ABC? It's better than it should be!
S. S. S.
"The Midnight Hour" would make a terrific double bill with another "family friendly" 80's Horror film, "The Monster Squad" (1988). Both films feature a close knit circle of youths battling creatures of the night & both work as much as homage to Horror cinema of old as they do "totally 80's" fright flicks!
Where they really differ in terms of content is in the types of "creatures" our young protagonists encounter. "The Monster Squad" took a more post-modernist approach & paid tribute to the movie monsters of vintage Universal Horror (such as Count Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, The Wolfman & The Mummy).
"The Midnight Hour" on the other hand has is filmed in the spirit of 50's & 60's drive-in theatre (though still wrapped in "totally 80's" trimmings), while the monsters themselves are drawn as much from mythology as they are the movies themselves. We get witches, werewolves, vampires, zombies & even demonic dwarves. And whereas "The Monster Squad" was very much a straightforward "kids vs monsters" spin on "The Goonies" (1985), "The Midnight Hour" has more in common with "Return Of The Living Dead" (1985) in that any number of characters can be "turned" into whatever creature they come into fatal contact with.
The film is filled with references to the Horror films which preceded it (particularly those of the early 80's). These include "The Evil Dead" (1981) & "A Nightmare On Elm St" (1984), but the most noteworthy aspect of the entire production is arguably the appearence of, well, "the grave dancers" from John Landis' 1982 music video for Michael Jackson's "Thriller". The makeup work for the various zombies & ghouls is clearly influenced by Rick Baker's incredible work on those from said music video. And if "The Midnight Hour" deserves an award for anything it's absolutely for those truly awesome makeup jobs! Even for a television movie the makeup could match a decent budget studio production from the period. And the same could be said of the surprisingly diverse soundtrack. Radio hits of the 50's & 60's somehow sit beside more contemporary 80's New Wave selections. But the most surprising song inclusion of all is undoubtably The Smiths' 1985 classic, "How Soon Is Now" (which plays over what is arguably the standout scene of the entire film).
"The Midnight Hour's" young cast is mostly comprised of future television stars. Levar Burton ("Star Trek:The Next Generation") & Peter Deluise ("21 Jump Street") are the two most will notice, though there is also an early appearence from Michelle Phieffer's sister, Dedee (one year before 1986's "Vamp"), as well as a small scene stealing role for Kurtwood Smith as a cop (two years before he's portray one of cinema's most memorable criminals in 1987's "Robocop").
The cast all work well together even if much of their material they're working with could be considered cliched & their characters stereotypical. It's a testement to the game cast & the talent behind the camera that "The Midnight Hour" rises above what is admitedly a very average screenplay.
Brad Fiedel's score (his first since 1984's "The Terminator") is well-suited to the tone of the film, while the obligatory '80's dance sequence" is as wonderfully awful as the song which plays over it ("Get Dead" by actress/singer Shari-Lynn Belafonte). The humour does work, but there isn't a joke here you'd not have heard before. This doesn't make the film any less fun however! It's no classic by any means, but for a 1985 "Halloween special" from ABC? It's better than it should be!
S. S. S.
Now make no mistake, "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" with it's tongue in cheek subtitle, totally 90's styling & quirky characterisations is not in any way going to match the earlier films of it's franchise. But as sixth instalments of franchises go this is still far better than anyone could have ever expected! Especially given it's direct to video status as well as the fact that there hadn't been a legitimately good sequel since the second film a full decade earlier. The third film was a severely toned down affair which tried to disguise it's tame script behind an abundance of 3D effects. The fourth film saw the franchise move from theatre screens to television sets with another somewhat tame sequel, but at least it was more fun than the previous film. The fifth film however made even the third one seem decent by comparison. A terminally dull direct to video debut for the franchise so you'd be forgiven for approaching this sixth film with more than a little apprehension...
...But as stated above, "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" will exceed any low expectations you may have after a string a forgettable films. And what's better is that "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" feels like it's own unique film while also paying home to the two films which kicked off the franchise. Families & the destruction of their infastructure have long been a running theme throughout the series. Past sequels like "Amityville IV:The Evil Escapes" had at least attempted to keep this theme at the heart of the story even if the end result failed to be interesting enough for the viewer to remember. "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" may not be particularly deep, but it does at least feature a family we can actually warm to even if they're not exactly a wholesome bunch. The cast click superbly with one another & succeed in bringing to life a family we can believe in even if there isn't a whole lot on the page for them to do other than what we'd expect from a family in this scenario.
"Amityville 1992:It's About Time" knowingly winks at the first two films without feeling parodious. When the possessions begin (and they begin early on) the film gets deadly serious with some really cool timeshifting sequences in addition to the more expected tropes of the possession subgenre such as the main protagonist suddenly transforming into the main antagonist against their own family under the manipulation of the evil around them. There are subtle nods to the divisive incest element from the second film only this time around roles are reversed between the siblings involved & unlike the earler film this one doesn't go all the way with it. Why? Because it doesn't need to! The playful attempts at such are enough to get underneath the viewer's skin & the fact that it's unfulfilled here is important to conveying the strength of the character this sibling seduction is attempted upon...
...Elsewhere in the film, we have some of the coolest effects work the franchise has ever seen & for a direct to video feature it's all the more impressive! The effects are genuinely icky in places & again not since the second film has this series really succeeded in making it's audience wince. And even with all these gruesome images, "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" still manages to wear it's sense of humour on it's sleeve. Some will bemoan this as being too light compared to the early films, but my response to that is that while it is funny at least it's not at the cost of it's frights or indeed it's on-screen carnage! This may be a film about a family, but it's NOT a family friendly one like the best forgotten third film!
With a well written script, excellent practical effects & solid cast headed up by regular Horror movie star Stephen Macht ("Nightwing", "The Monster Squad", "Graveyard Shift") with a double dose of eye candy in Megan Ward & Shawn Weatherly and even a cameo from the late great character actor, Dick Miller, "Amityville:It's About Time" is a damn good time for any Horror fan! But while this film restored some credibility to the "Amityville" series, but sadly this was shortlived as the film was followed by two DIRE direct to video sequels in the form of "Amityville:A New Generation" (1994) & "Amityville:Dollhouse" (1997). The former wasted a talented cast on a terrible script while the latter wasted a interesting concept on an inept cast! After those came the fair, but ultimately forgettable 2005 remake. And from that point onward we've had dozens of outrageously bad "unofficial sequels". If you must watch any "Amityville" film after the first two? Make sure that "It's About Time" is the only one you actually pay for! 😎
S. S. S.
...But as stated above, "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" will exceed any low expectations you may have after a string a forgettable films. And what's better is that "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" feels like it's own unique film while also paying home to the two films which kicked off the franchise. Families & the destruction of their infastructure have long been a running theme throughout the series. Past sequels like "Amityville IV:The Evil Escapes" had at least attempted to keep this theme at the heart of the story even if the end result failed to be interesting enough for the viewer to remember. "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" may not be particularly deep, but it does at least feature a family we can actually warm to even if they're not exactly a wholesome bunch. The cast click superbly with one another & succeed in bringing to life a family we can believe in even if there isn't a whole lot on the page for them to do other than what we'd expect from a family in this scenario.
"Amityville 1992:It's About Time" knowingly winks at the first two films without feeling parodious. When the possessions begin (and they begin early on) the film gets deadly serious with some really cool timeshifting sequences in addition to the more expected tropes of the possession subgenre such as the main protagonist suddenly transforming into the main antagonist against their own family under the manipulation of the evil around them. There are subtle nods to the divisive incest element from the second film only this time around roles are reversed between the siblings involved & unlike the earler film this one doesn't go all the way with it. Why? Because it doesn't need to! The playful attempts at such are enough to get underneath the viewer's skin & the fact that it's unfulfilled here is important to conveying the strength of the character this sibling seduction is attempted upon...
...Elsewhere in the film, we have some of the coolest effects work the franchise has ever seen & for a direct to video feature it's all the more impressive! The effects are genuinely icky in places & again not since the second film has this series really succeeded in making it's audience wince. And even with all these gruesome images, "Amityville 1992:It's About Time" still manages to wear it's sense of humour on it's sleeve. Some will bemoan this as being too light compared to the early films, but my response to that is that while it is funny at least it's not at the cost of it's frights or indeed it's on-screen carnage! This may be a film about a family, but it's NOT a family friendly one like the best forgotten third film!
With a well written script, excellent practical effects & solid cast headed up by regular Horror movie star Stephen Macht ("Nightwing", "The Monster Squad", "Graveyard Shift") with a double dose of eye candy in Megan Ward & Shawn Weatherly and even a cameo from the late great character actor, Dick Miller, "Amityville:It's About Time" is a damn good time for any Horror fan! But while this film restored some credibility to the "Amityville" series, but sadly this was shortlived as the film was followed by two DIRE direct to video sequels in the form of "Amityville:A New Generation" (1994) & "Amityville:Dollhouse" (1997). The former wasted a talented cast on a terrible script while the latter wasted a interesting concept on an inept cast! After those came the fair, but ultimately forgettable 2005 remake. And from that point onward we've had dozens of outrageously bad "unofficial sequels". If you must watch any "Amityville" film after the first two? Make sure that "It's About Time" is the only one you actually pay for! 😎
S. S. S.