Angustia en el Hospital Central

A feminist angers a woman hating crew member on a TV talk show which triggers him to break into her house, attack her, and leave her for dead. She's transported to a local hospital, the creep gets wind of her recovery, and sets out to put an end to her once and for all. Lee Grant is the lead of the film, but doesn't get much to do for a majority of the film since she's either sedated, going in, or coming out of surgery, so most of the heavy lifting goes to Linda Purl as Grant's kind single mom nurse and Michael Ironside who has never been scarier as Grant's stalker/would be killer.

Some of the psychobabble about why Ironside is the way he is doesn't really work and feels a little cliched and the pacing of the film ebbs and flows with a lot of time given to a meaningless subplot between Grant and William Shatner. When the suspense and scares come, they deliver and the finale is very tense and satisfying.

"Visiting Hours" did respectable business at the box office when it first came out, though it was torn apart by critics. To some degree, I do understand why those critics didn't like the movie at the time. For starters, at 105 minutes in length, the movie is far too long and padded out. Many people watching it today will be squirming in their seats from impatience rather than from terror. At the same time, there are a few head-scratching moments that suggest some explanatory footage was removed during the editing stage, like how Ironside's character gets uniforms and other material to disguise himself when going to the hospital. Slasher fans may be disappointed by the lack of gore and blood. In fact, the movie might be rated PG-13 instead of R by today's standards. And William Shatner's character is hammy and doesn't seem to serve much purpose.

But there are some things in the movie that give it merit. For starters, the movie looks very good, much more slick and expensive than most other slashers of this period. Director Jean Claude Lord also does add some atmosphere and some creepy composed shots here and there. The best thing about the movie, however, is Michael Ironside as the killer. He manages to be both extremely creepy and believable. It's no surprise that he went on to become a fairly well-known star after his great performance here.

To sum up, "Visiting Hours" is flawed and no classic, but as an example of the slasher film genre, it's definitely above average, and a must watch if you are a fan of this genre.

There's nothing spectacular about this Canadian-made slasher flick, but it still provides a few jolts, a bit of the creeps and a few unintentional laughs. Grant plays a strong-willed TV host who's crusading for the rights of a woman accused of murdering her husband (following years of abuse from him.) Unfortunately, this ticks off loose cannon Ironside and he decides to shut Grant up...permanently. His first try doesn't quite do the trick, so he has to infiltrate her hospital to finish her off, hence the title. Purl plays a Florence Nightingale in waiting who's devotion to Grant makes her another target of Ironside. Shatner has a thankless role as Grant's producer/lover. Grant turns in her usual committed, thought-out performance, but it's for naught in a routine thriller like this. Ironside is convincingly slimy and treacherous. His almost wordless performance is effectively creepy. Purl is likable and solid in an impossibly idealized role (the lady works overtime at the hospital and volunteers at the free clinic while trying to raise two kids all with a smile on her face!) Shatner fans will be pleased to see him looking rather handsome and tan, but he doesn't get to do very much. The film has a very unsettling tone throughout, aided by an eerie score and claustrophobic settings. It also features many cliches of the genre (absence of logic in the characters, unrealistically deserted settings, sluts being punished for their sexuality, etc...) Still, it's creative enough and occasionally unpredictable enough to hold interest. Some of the acting in minor roles (notably the nurses) is weak, but Zann does a pretty decent job as a slutty date of Ironside's and the leads hold the film together (as much as they can with the somewhat contrived script.) Grant's conviction to her role and Ironside's steely determination go a long way to saving the movie.

This is yet another slasher that despite the negative reviews from rotten tomatoes more than doubled it's money at the box office. The story was good. the acting was decent. The kills were good and the killer was OK. Just another fun popcorn movie for a one time watch was good enough for me.

Visiting Hours is the film I saw, more than once in movie theater. Having opportunity to get it on DVD I didn't know what to expect. Very few films from my childhood "at the movies" stood the test of time, but the ones that made an impact then, are forever implanted in my film taste. Same thing happened with this film. It is untypical - typical horror film, that looks like traditional 80's slashers but different in all the key points. I never looked at any of Michael Ironside's roles without seeing the deranged psychopath he portrayed in this one.

It's qualities for me, are shortcomings for the majority of horror picture fans. It doesn't have new body spraying buckets of blood every two and a half seconds. It doesn't have freaks with masks and buzzin' chain saws, severed heads and body parts flying around. It has a story of deeply disturbed character, and his rampage through the world around him that he hates deeply and profoundly. Not just the women. He hates them all, and with passion. It has character actors, not bunch of nobodies that are only there to supply bodies for the count. They are not in their best dramatic roles, and the movie could have been better, but it's not half bad either, and it surely doesn't deserve such low rating.

This movie has something in it that's still there all these years. It aged well and you can't say that for many of them. It's different in it's usualness and that is the catch. Look for it, even if you don't like horrors. It won't give you nightmares, it will make an impression.