Rêves sanglants

THE SENDER is about a man with the ability to induce nightmarish hallucinations in the minds of others. He's committed to a state mental hospital after attempting suicide. Known only as John Doe 83 (Zeljko Ivanek), all attempts to uncover his true identity are futile.

As John Doe 83 is put under increasing stress, his powers seem to affect everyone who comes into contact with him. Soon, both patients and staff alike are caught up in a series of terrifying illusions.

The climax comes when he's subjected to shock treatments. The slow-motion chaos that results from it is classic stuff indeed!

Also, watch for JD83's mother, who just might be a ghost!

Highly recommended for every paranormal-horror maniac...

A doctor (Kathryn Harroler) tries to find out why a telepathic young man (Zelijko Ivank) is unleashing his nightmares and visions into the minds of the staff and patients and causing them injury. She thinks his weird mother (Shirley Knight) my be part of the cause. Crisp, suspenseful thriller with a solid premise and good production values & performances. One of the best horror films from the 1980's.

Rated R; Violence.

This film was released with a glut of really bad horror films in the early '80s and got lost in the shuffle. That's a shame--it's one of the best of its type. There's no masked killer chasing down brain dead teens. It's about a young man (Zeljko Ivanek) committed to an institution because he tried to commit suicide. He believes his dreams can kill. A kind psychiatrist (Kathryn Harrold) tries to help him. Then his creepy mother (Shirley Knight) shows up insisting he be put in her care--but she keeps disappearing.

There's very little violence or blood and guts but it's very scary and suspenseful. The ending is (now) old hat but was pretty original when this film was released. Any movie that can scare you silly with a shot of a middle-aged mother walking to her son (see the movie to find out why it's scary) is one hell of a horror movie in my book! Add to that a beautiful music score and excellent performances by Knight and Ivanek (who has gone on to be a top character actor). The only debit is Harrold who's pretty terrible. Still it's well worth seeing.

More people should really seek out and watch THE SENDER. And the less you know about this film before going into it, the better. All you need to know about the plot, is the set-up. The film begins with a skillfully crafted, ominous scene in which a man (John Doe #83/The Sender) tries to commit suicide (how, you just have to see!). He doesn't succeed, and gets submitted to a mental hospital. From there on, the doctors have to find out who he is, and what his problems are. And rest assured, the more they discover, the creepier things get. This is a rather unique film, worthy of a bit more recognition. A bit slow in pace to some, perhaps, but for me the pace and rising tension were perfect. If any of you enjoyed films like Richard Franklin's PATRICK (1978) or Douglas Trumbull's BRAINSTORM (1983) - this one's maybe a bit of a stretch, as it's more sci-fi/thriller/drama orientated - then THE SENDER comes highly recommended.

Aside from the steady pace of lingering creepiness & mystery, I found that there were at least two real "WTF?" moments in this film. Two scenes that took me by surprise in a way I didn't know whether to cheer or be terrified. A very good (psychologically tinted) horror film, indeed! Yes, I'm rating it highly, but compared to some of the trash I watch on a regular basis, this film deserves some extra praises. And Paramount should really make an effort to release a worthy DVD edition of this film, adding a commentary track by director Roger Christian and maybe some other fine special features. Their 2008 release features only the film and nothing more.

The Sender has some interesting concepts of the supernatural being housed in science and psychology. The picture unfortunately suffers from the rigors of making monsters out of science and doctors as they ignore and disbelieve the supernatural. The depiction of mental illness is poorly conveyed, but for a film made in 1982, this could have been progressive at the time. The film lacks the larger structure and bite that the Dead Zone was able to capture but a year later. (And no doubt due largely to Stephen King's superb story and Cronenberg's talent to maintain the story but transform it into film.) Acting is generally decent and rises to the occasion. This, and the unsuspected reveal at the start of the 3rd act brings this film to a 6 given the "movie of the week" nature of the story and plotting, as well as the lackluster ongoing tension that wasbnot sustained in this film. Tired of watching the Dead Zone? This one is worth a watch, but don't expect too much from it.