‘The dream you can’t escape alive!’
Nightmare is a 1981 American slasher horror film written and directed by Italian filmmaker Romano Scavolini (Spirits of Death). It has also been released as Nightmare in a Damaged Brain; Nightmares in a Damaged Brain and Blood Splash.
The film gained instant notoriety among horror fans when it was banned in the UK as a ‘video nasty‘ and its distributor David Hamilton Grant was sentenced to six months in prison for refusing to edit violent footage from his World of Video 2000 VHS release.
Nightmare also garnered controversy for claiming in its press material that Tom Savini (Dawn of the Dead; Friday the 13th; The Prowler) had provided the film’s special effects, which he vehemently denied.
In fact, as the above production image shows, it seems he supervised the work of Ed French (Necropolis; Breeders; Blood Rage) during the infamous beheading scene.
The production supervisor was Simon Nuchtern, who filmed the fake murder footage at the climax of Snuff and director of Silent Madness (1983).
On 23rd November 2015, 88 Films are releasing the film uncut on Blu-ray with the following confirmed extras:
- Terror in Times Square – A Guide to Nightmare’s Grindhouse Kingdom
- Audio Commentary with The Hysteria Continues
- Audio Commentary by Bill Paul
- Interview with Tom Ward, CEO of 21st Century Films
- Trailer
- TV Spots
Buy: Amazon.co.uk
Cast:
Baird Stafford, Sharon Smith, C.J. Cooke, Mik Cribben (Beware: Children at Play)
Plot:
Having escaped from a mental institution, George Tatum (Baird Stafford) journeys back down to his home in Florida. Along the way, he has recurring nightmares of a violent incident from his childhood, which forces him to kill again. George’s frustration amidst the sleazy streets of New York are also shown to be a cause of his mental state.
George’s ex-wife, Susan Temper (Sharon Smith), young son C.J. (C.J. Cooke), and the family babysitter begin to receive “hang-up” calls, which none of them realize is George making sure his family is home.
The closer George gets to his destination, the more gruesome his murders become and the memories of his first childhood-murder intensify…
Reviews:
“Nightmare is a schizophrenic puzzle of a movie. It’s director, Scavolini, shows he is able to use editing to heighten the sense of tension and horror one minute. The next, it seems he was wearing a blindfold whilst he was snipping away! He also lifts many elements from Halloween … But, like Ulli Lommel’s Bogeyman (1980), Scavolini fashions something different.” Hysteria Lives!
“Instead of emphasizing pretty teenagers and slick production numbers, Scavolini instead emphasized the sordid “reality” of the film’s rather trashy cast of characters. There’s not a likable character to be found anywhere within this film nor is there a single scene that doesn’t feel as if it’s been drenched in sleaze. An ominous atmosphere of impending, relentless doom hangs over every second of the film.” Lisa Marie Bowman, HorrorCritic.com
“The movie does require repeated viewings to actually understand what is going on, as it’s a bit incoherent on the screen. However, it is very compelling, with some nudity (including a lady using a sex toy while on the phone), lots of gore (including the infamous beheading) and a twist ending of sorts.” David Steigman, DVD Drive-In
“God, this movie is so, so filthy. The gore scenes are mostly unconvincing and the sex couldn’t be more unsavory (including a pivotal kinky flashback no viewer has ever forgotten), but that hardly matters when the end product still feels so grimy and unhealthy from the opening frames … but at least there’s a hefty vein of unintentional comedy running through it as well thanks to Italian-born director Romano Scavolini’s odd view of American culture.” Nathaniel Thompson, Mondo Digital
Choice dialogue:
“Sorry!? You lose a dangerous psychotic patient from a secret experimental drug programme and all you can say is sorry!?”
Trailer:
