Reviews

After sitting through almost everything produced in the 70's -- and far too much that came after -- two scenes from this film are unforgettable:

Joy Bang being slowly surrounded, then attacked by patient, bloodthirsty ghouls. Original, comic, theatrical, unnerving. An entire series of 80's horror -- Bava's "Demons", was inspired by this single scene.

Anitra Ford following a stranger in the wee hours of Point Dune's eerily quiet streets into a Ralph's supermarket only to find a cadre of well-dressed carnivores busily tearing into packaged red meat. But then, of course, fresh is so much better. This is, unequivocally, one of the most effective horror scenes ever. Artfully filmed, atmospheric, extremely creepy. Phillan Bishop's score is a minimalist's gem.

Unfortunately, it's clear this scene as it appears in all known releases is bowlderized, as evidenced by jump cuts appearing after the zombies start to tear open lovely Anitra's insides. As George Romero knows too well, the MPAA does not allow more than a few frames of disembowelment to achieve an R rating, and that's all we get here. Perhaps no great loss, that.

**WARNING: SPOILER**

I knew everything that was going to happen in this movie. You will, too. But you've never seen a movie that tries harder to throw you off the scent.

Patrick Stewart lives alone in a big house filled with security devices and weapons. He is afraid to go out, even to see his psychiatrist. He tells his family that all this is necessary to protect him, as he used to work for the "DIA" and because of that, there are those who want him dead. Is he telling the truth, or is he just an eccentric old man who's paranoid? A look at the jacket for the VHS tape tells all: it's all true. How do we know? Because this is an action movie, marketed to people who like Seagal and Schwarzenegger. If he were just an old guy losing his mind, there's no movie.

Same goes for Kimberly Williams' character. No matter how sweet she is, she has to be the assassin. Why? Because for the mystery to be interesting, the assassin has to be a central character. And for most of the movie, there are only two: Kimberly Williams and Patrick Stewart.

So we know what's going to happen, and by whom. The question is, when will it happen? Well here the movie gives it the old college try, bombarding us with an endless series of McGuffins like you've never seen. And with each one, we sit, like a Los Angeles resident waking to a trembling house, wondering if this is it: The Big One. I won't spoil it (like I haven't done enough of that already), but the last McGuffin is the best.

Along the way, Patrick Stewart gets to deliver some real gems ("No, HERE'S the deal: I'll go get the mail, you go F*** yourself.") And it's fun to watch Kimberly slowly infiltrate his life and his trust (to no avail).