A quartet of murderous psychopaths break out of a mental hospital during a power blackout and lay siege to their doctor's house.
Acting
Landau's bible-thumping menace vs. Pleasence's fey chaos—chewing scenery for sport
Direction
Sholder's debut squeezes genuine tension from threadbare premise
Practical Effects
Pre-CGI meat cleaver mayhem hits different
Director
Jack Sholder
Jack Palance
Frank Hawkes
Donald Pleasence
Leo Bain
Martin Landau
Byron "Preacher" Sutcliff
Dwight Schultz
Dan Potter
Erland van Lidth
Ronald "Fatty" Elster
Deborah Hedwall
Nell Potter
Phillip Clark
Tom Smith / Skaggs
Brent Jennings
Ray Curtis
Carol Levy
Bunky
Keith Reddin
Billy
Annie Korzen
Marissa Hall
Lin Shaye
Receptionist at Haven
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
New Line Cinema's first theatrical release; they later made Nightmare on Elm Street. This is their scrappy prototype.
The 'punk' villains represent Reagan-era anxieties about urban decay and institutional collapse—Bain's touchy-feely therapy reads as liberal failure narrative.
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Reactions from the web
Good old fashioned 80's horror. Keep them coming. I'll keep building my library.
@johnmarshall2439 99
Dr. Loomis: You don't know what death is
@canselway3755 10
I remember watching this when it was released on video. Great fun, and any chance to watch Jack Palance at his most menacing is so worth it!!!
@stanleyban 24
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