Link, der Butler

I was about 8-9 years old in the late 80s and I remember having a huge crush on Elisabeth Shue… She starred in one of my favorite childhood movies called "Adventures in Babysitting" (a.k.a. "A Night on the Town") and I remember being crazy in love and simultaneously jealous because the babysitters that I had those days nearly weren't as cool as she was. Anyways, back then I didn't know that Miss Shue previously already starred in a horror movie that I wasn't allowed to watch yet. With a bit of crazy imagination, "Adventures in Babysitting" is actually similar to "Link", since in both movies Elisabeth Sue gets into serious trouble whilst babysitting, only in "Link" she's babysitting a rather different type of animal species.

"Link" is an entertaining and unpretentious '80s horror creature-feature, well-written by the Aussie genre veteran Everett De Roche ("Long Weekend", "Razorback") and well-directed by the Aussie genre director Richard Franklin ("Patrick", "Psycho II"). After attending just one lecture, the ambitious American zoology student Jane Chase eagerly accepts the rather eccentric Professor Steven Philip's proposal to come and work for him in his spooky old mansion somewhere high up on the cliffs in the middle of Scottish nowhere. Jane gets welcomed by Link, a clever orangutan in a butler's outfit, and Prof. Philip also has two other apes running around: the chimpanzees Imp and Voodoo. Both Link and Voodoo are getting a bit too old and difficult to work with, so Dr. Philip arranges for a sleazy animal trader to come take them away. Soon after he mysteriously vanishes and Jane remains trapped at the estate with the apes. She discovers that Link knew what fate Philip had in store for him and suddenly it's no more Mr. Nice Orangutan… Richard Franklin built his entire career around the fact that he's a massive Alfred Hitchcock fanatic and he once again demonstrates it in this movie as well. Apart from a couple of 'Hitchcockian' plot aspects, Franklin also copies a lot of stylistic and visual trademarks of The Master of Suspense. Jerry Goldsmith's catchy score also reminded me quite a bit to the legendary music used in "Psycho". All the action and suspense takes place during the last half hour, or even less, but Franklin cannot be rushed and patiently takes his time to build up towards a dazzling climax. Of course, the crew member who deserves the most praise remains Ray Berwick, as he was the animal trainer and thus responsible for the impressive stunts that Imp and Link perform.

A young Elizabeth Shue plays Jane Chase,an American student studying at the London Institute of Sciences,who accepts a holiday job as housekeeper for anthropology professor Steven Philip at his house on the remote Cornish coast.Steven has three trained chimpanzees named Link,Voodoo and Imp.When professor mysteriously vanishes Jane is left alone in the house with Link whose behaviour has become increasingly more menacing."Link" is a surprisingly effective killer ape flick.It offers some great shocks and the monkey Link looks very sinister.The score by Jerry Goldsmith is splendid.Unfortunately the explanation of Link's murderous behaviour is not particularly clear.Director Richard Franklin has also made "Patrick","Road Games" and "Psycho II".8 out of 10.

A zoology student (Elisabeth Shue) must try to out smart a murderous and super-intelligent orangutan.

The 1980s were a strong decade for monkey-themed horror. Not only did we get Argento's "Phenomena", but one of George Romero's better films, "Monkeyshines". This one has probably fallen through the cracks, despite coming from director Richard Franklin ("Psycho II") and starring a pre-babysitting Shue and the wonderful Terence Stamp.

The film also raises some great ethical and philosophical questions about how primates should be treated. Are murderous monkeys responsible for their behavior? And is the professor in this film a hero of science or a villain who mistreats his experiments?

Richard Franklin is a self-proclaimed Hitchcock fan (he made "Psycho II", after all), and you've got to hand it to him, "Link" is more artfully directed than the average mid-80s horror film, with some nice camera movements and some even nicer transition shots. It moves slowly, though, and some characters seem to be introduced only to pump up the body count. Elizabeth Shue, in only her second role, is admirable in the way she holds her own against the naturally scene-stealing chimpanzees. (**1/2)

I think this was a break-through movie for Elizabeth Shue. It was the first time I heard of her as an actress. I think I saw the movie back in 1988, but it made quite an impact on my young impressionable mind. After watching the movie, I had a real fascination with primate intelligence. The psycho-sexual interaction between Shue and the monkeys stayed in mind all this time. In particular, I remember quite vividly the bathroom scene. It was strange from me to see that back then. And, everytime I see anyone take a bath or shower with a pet in the bathroom on a movie or commercial, I think of that scene.