Twisted Nightmare

My review was written in September 1988 after a screening at Liberty theater on Manhattan's 42nd Street.

"Twisted Nightmare" is a perfunctory horror film bringing back to null effect rather corny genre themes. Ongoing theatrical release is unwarranted compared to many direct-to-video titles, though pic has a catchy moniker.

Main mystery stems from pic's origins: print caught had a 1982 copyright (in Roman numerals) on-screen, het ad materials and date of MPAA rating imply the film actually was made in 1987. Pic probably is fresh, but plays like the look-alike films made at the beginning of the decade when horror boomed.

A group of young people are summoned to Camp Paradise, where they camped regularly until two years ago when Mathew, the brother of pretty brunette Laura (Rhonda Gray), died mysteriously in flames. Confused storyline blames the subsequent one-by-one murdes of the cast members on those old standbys: (1) ancient revenge against the white man (plus a black couple for good measure) for desecrating Indian burial ground, the site of the camp, and for massacring local Indians (only survivor was a medicine man, whose grandson is tghe sinsiter farmhand-type resident of the camp), and (2) unbalanced Laura's obviously telegraphed need to avenge her bro's death.

Gory killings are standard for horror flicks, while Paul Hunt's execution of a "Friday the 13th" or "The Outing" type screenplay is relentlessly dull. Cast is attractive but the acting is flat. Big, hairy monster (mainly shown in silhouette) is disappointing.

We don't look for great scripts or direction with a slasher movie, but this movie's screenplay and direction are SO BAD, it's enough to change your opinion and make you seek out an art movie instead. Sure, there's a big body count, but the killings for the most part are either not explicit, or too dark to see. In fact, almost all of the non-slasher scenes are equally as dark! There are also some really big holes in the script that will even have the most forgiving fan of slashers groaning in disbelief. It's no wonder this movie was shelved for five years, then dumped quietly on video.

Following the trend of slashers set in camps from the 80s, "Twisted Nightmare" (1987) brings with it all the clichés and predictability that the subgenre can offer, while at the same time entertaining the viewer.

As expected from a low-budget eighties slasher, the film features comical performances with absurd and meaningless reactions, the antagonist's desire for revenge and appealing scenes of sex and nudity. During the progression of the film, there are several moments in which the editing sounds confusing and poorly edited, with poorly executed slow motion effects and dislocated scene transitions. Despite these flaws, the film stands out relatively in terms of the soundtrack and the aesthetic sense of certain moments, focusing on a visual identity with the color blue recurring in the sets, ambiance and costumes. The "trash" moments entertain audiences who are not expecting a pretentious work, making the experience stimulating.

With clear inspirations in "Friday the 13th" (1980) and "The Burning" (1981), "Twisted Nightmare" fell into ostracism and did not please the majority, although it works as a slasher for a late afternoon.

Paul Hunt's "Twisted Nightmare" was actually made in 1982 and in the same setting of "Friday the 13th Part III".The film was withheld until 1987.It's easy to see why.A group of teenagers go to a lakeside camp named Camp Paradise built on an ancient Indian burial ground.Two years ago mildly retarded and virginal Matthew was burned alive in the barn.His charred body was never found.Two years later the teens are invited back to camp where demonic killer starts slaughtering them."Twisted Nightmare" rips off "Friday the 13th","The Ghost Dance" and "The Burning" and offers plenty of clichés.There is nudity galore and the bodycount is quite high,but all sixteen killings are shown mostly off-screen.The acting is pretty amateurish too.6 out of 10.Now let's go and explore the barn.

I found this movie way back on a shelf in my closet. I had to blow the dust off the video box to read the title. With our curiosity aroused my wife and I sat down to watch it. When it was finished she made me promise to clean out the closet more often!

Among the slasher sub-genre this is a forgotten film; and perhaps we'd all be better off if it stayed that way. It is certainly disjointed enough to seem like a dream and there are plot points which we think will be important but which are forgotten immediately after they are introduced. The film begins with an American Indian Medicine Man being burned at the stake by Cavalry troops for allegedly practising black magic. He vows to return from the dead for revenge. Flash forward 200 years (give or take a decade) to some college pals returning to a campsite where they spent a summer holiday a few years before.

Now here is where the plot gets going. The retarded brother of one of the kids was burned to death in an accident, after which the group all went their separate ways; apparently through a collective feeling of guilt. Hardly has night fallen before someone starts getting rid of the visitors one by one in increasingly gory ways. Is it a resurrected Indian spirit? Has the burned boy come back from the dead? Does the dead boy's sister know more than she is saying about what is happening? Will you hit the fast forward button on the remote? Only the answer to the last question is obvious!

The plot is so full of holes even the minimal gore cannot save the plot. In fact the few bloody moments are photographed so dark you can barely see what is happening. The "tearing an arm out by the roots" scene was done much better, and clearer, in the equally obscure Bigfoot movie NIGHT OF THE DEMON.

This one is for lovers of obscure movies only . . . and even they will come away from it scratching their heads in disbelief.