Shadows Run Black

My review was written in July 1986 after watching the film on Lightning video cassette.

Though bearing a 1984 copyright, "Shadows Run Black" is a very ordinary slasher film shot in spring 1981, heyday of the unlamented genre. Announced as a 1983 release by CineWorld, pic went directly to video cassette.

Episodic presentation (with little continuity evident) has a serial killer, dubbed "The Black Angel" by the press, offing pretty young coeds. Cop on the case, Sgt. Rydell King (William J. Kulzer), is coming off a leave of absence that followed the unsolved kidnapping of his daughter (hint, hint).

Prime suspect is Jimmy Scott (Kevin Costner, uncredited), who knew the girls . However, after Scott is arrested the murders continue. Dumb ending is telegraphed in the second reel.

Apart from an early role by star-of-the-future Costner (whose character is omitted from the otherwise complet end credits), "Shadows" is notable only for its unusually capacious amount of full nudity featuring well-built young women, an obvious draw in the cassette market. Tech credits are weak and acting, apart from Costner, only semi-pro. Derek Stratten was listed as director when film was in production while one "Howard Heard" is credited on screen.

Many of the filmmakers and cast members reunited last year to make "Georgia County Lockup", a women's prison film notable for casting wrestling/roller derby star Dee Booher (a/k/a Queen Kong).

STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs

A serial killer by the name of The Black Angel is on the loose in a college campus,slaying girls or boys without discrimination.College party animal Jimmy Scott (Kevin Costner) falls under the heavy eye of Detective King (William J Kulzer) a short-fused,foul-mouthed detective driven by his own personal needs to track down the killer on account of his own daughter's savage killer not being found years before.But when Judy (Elizabeth Trosper) one of the sexiest girls on the campus starts getting heavy breathing phone calls,it looks like she may become the next target if King can't find the killer in time.

Kevin Costner makes an early film appearance as the prime suspect (long before the days of Dawson's Creek this was obviously one of those pioneer movies that cast actors about ten years too old to be playing college students in their roles.)He gives a terrible performance like everyone else,but then he was probably having his daydreams of staring in epic tales of epic frontiers and district attorneys who root out presidential assassins,unlike the other stars who just faded into oblivion after this film was made (there seem to be a few who think Costner should have done the same,but,there you go...) The film was made in 1986,but looks more like it was made in 1976.The dodgy lighting and wooden sets are here in all their glory,obviously a very low-budget effort all round.Yep,this is definitely another one of those 'before-they-were-famous' efforts that linger at the back of the CVs of stars like Costner like flies on sh*t.*

Do not expect anything spectacular when you rent this movie. A killer starts killing teenage girls and boys which will eventually lead up to the killing of one girl in particular. Their are some interesting murder scenes but the movie is very slow and drags on and on and on. There is the classic who done it, with the blame being but on every one except the real killer. In the end the killer is predictable from the characters actions earlier in the movie and the final chase scene is pretty dull compared to others. Like I've said in my many other reviews watch it only if you're in the mood for some cheesy 80's slasher films.

While I can't argue with any of the negative reviews of the film it is nonetheless an interesting period piece and deserves some consideration for the upfront use (perhaps abuse is a better term?) of interracial and lesbian relationships to advance the otherwise weak and formulaic slasher plot.

And yes the viewer might be forgiven for thinking the film was made only as an excuse to show nubile nudes to adolescent males. Is that really such a bad thing?

Anyone at all interested in period slasher films should see this once... in this case once is enough. While not memorable you nonetheless won't forget it.

Did I mention M. Kostner's "let's put on a play in the barn!" acting skills on display?

That alone is worth the price of admission especially as the film is available online for free.

One of the very worst slasher films ever made; a ski-masked killer is doing away with vacuous coeds for a reason that never really becomes clear. Not even a spark of originality and EVERY girl who dies struts around naked despite the obvious presence of the maniac in the house / woods / room.

The only notable thing is a marginal appearance by Kevin Costner as a boyfriend who everyone thinks is the killer (but probably isn't if you've seen a few of these). Suspiciously, his name is elided completely from the film itself, and the way the end credits roll has to be seen to be believed. Awful.