Prom Night (DVD)

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I first watched Prom Night many years ago when I was a teenager and I remember it as quite a scary horror movie of it's time. Maybe because it was one of the first horror films I had actually watched that made me remember it so well. Well I just recently picked Prom Night up quite cheaply on DVD and thought I would add it to my collection as it is a good film and one that I had enjoyed. My friends and I all talked about this film at School ...
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'''Well''' Prom Night was made in 1980 and stars Leslie Nielsen and Jamie Lee Curtis one of my favourite actresses from this era. The Movie is also directed by Paul Lynch. It was filmed in London Ontario Canada and was re-made last year in 2008. The Movie lasts for around an hour and a half and cost around $1,600000 to make, so was quite low budget really. Prom Night won a few awards shortly after it's release, from Best Achievement in ... more

Prom Night The Original 1980:

I first watched Prom Night many years ago when I was a teenager and I remember it as quite a scary horror movie of it's time. Maybe because it was one of the first horror films I had actually watched that made me remember it so well. Well I just recently picked Prom Night up quite cheaply on DVD and thought I would add it to my collection as it is a good film and one that I had enjoyed. My friends and I all talked about this film at School also I remember because of it's good and very original storyline (at that time) and because we all watched it under age really.

Well Prom Night was made in 1980 and stars Leslie Nielsen and Jamie Lee Curtis one of my favourite actresses from this era. The Movie is also directed by Paul Lynch. It was filmed in London Ontario Canada and was re-made last year in 2008. The Movie lasts for around an hour and a half and cost around $1,600000 to make, so was quite low budget really. Prom Night won a few awards shortly after it's release, from Best Achievement in Film Editing and Best Performance from a Foreign Actress by Jamie Lee Curtis also.

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I have to admit that back in the 1980's this was actually a great film and quite a popular one also. Watching it many years later when it was transferred from video to DVD though, I would have to say that it is just your pretty average slasher movie that had it's idea stolen from better horror films at that time, although many modern day films have recaptured a similar storyline to it also. It is still a good film to watch really and to me this original is far better than the recent remake of it also and is certainly worth watching.

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Well Prom Night is not just a Horror story in my opinion, but it is also a Mystery, a Thriller and a who done it suspense film all rolled into one. It starts off in a creepy enough manner, mostly involving young people and when a game of hide and go seek goes horribly wrong for them all and someone dies, they swear to keep it to themselves. Years later though someone decides to get their revenge. The gradual build-up of the Prom Night film is good though. Vengeance never rests in peace.

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The Cast:

• Mr. Hammond . . . . Leslie Nielsen.
• Mrs. Hammond . . . . Antoinette Bower.
• Kim . . . . Jamie Lee Curtis.
• Nick . . . . Casey Stevens.
• Wendy . . . . Eddie Benton.
• Alex . . . . Michael Tough.
• Sykes . . . . Robert Silverman.
• Vicki . . . . Pita Oliver.
• Lou . . . . David Mucci.
• Drew . . . . Jeff Wincott.
• Kelly . . . . Marybeth Rubins.

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Plot of the Movie Prom Night:

Prom Night starts of in 1974 and it opens up by showing a group of children who are around 11 years of age named Wendy Richards, Nick McBride Jude Cunningham and Kelly Lynch who are all enjoying a game of hide and go seek in an old derelict School building. The children meet 10 year old Robin Hammond nearby and she joins in with the game also, but soon the group start to bully and tease her and tragically she falls from an upstairs window of the building to her death. The four children make a pact to never tell anyone that they bullied her to death and pretend it is all an accident, but little do they know that someone had been watching them that tragic night and is set on revenge.

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The storyline then quickly skips on six years to 1980 and to the eve of Robins death when her family are remembering her anniversary and the terrible event of how she died. Robin's sister and brother Kim (Jamie lee Curtis) and Alex, are getting ready for their school prom, which is being staged on the eve of Robins death also. During that day though Kelly, Jude and Wendy start to receive strange, frightening phone calls and find little threatening notes left around the place for them. Well this is where the fun, suspense and film really do begin and this thriller slowly unfolds.

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Well to sum this film up better, it really is a teenaged thriller, mostly set in a large High School in Canada with a lot of little sub plots involved that threaten the main event in this film, which is the Prom Night and they really do turn it all into a great horror story really.

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My Thoughts On Prom Night:

Well Prom Night is quite a slow moving film really. It really takes a while for it to get going and the prologue is a good ten minutes long . I guess if it did not have such a strong cast to it either, it would not of been as popular at the time. It does a great job though of having you guessing who done it right the way throughout this film and keeps you guessing right up until the very end of it also. Honestly you will think everyone is the obsessed killer in this film. This was one of Paul Lynch's first horror films he made and it seems as if two storylines are going on at once at times. It does flash back and forward between the two though and concludes with it all leading the same way and in quite strong detail. The first half of this film is filmed mostly during the day and the second half of this film is set at night.

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The second part of Prom Night really is when the horror side to this film kicks in and the deranged murderer actually only then starts killing people off. All the deaths play out quite well in my opinion also and are all interesting and very creepy to watch. Prom Night is also a fun film at times though and is quite enjoyable to watch. There is plenty of funny dialogue between all the teenagers, especially when they are misbehaving themselves. It is a very typical 80's type of horror though and Prom Night has a bit of a cheesy disco scene in it and when watching it today makes me think "Did I actually like and get on like this also?" Well it is bearable I guess, but this is five minutes of pure eighties cheese so be warned.

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I have watched the film "I know What You Did Last Summer" also and Prom Night really is quite similar to it in storyline, but made much better, so if you like that type of movie yourself, you certainly will like Prom Night.

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Special Effects, Scenes, Costumes and Make-up:

A great chase throughout the School building is filmed very well in Prom Night, which adds to the suspense of it all and helps to add the little twists that come with this film also. At the time it was probably well done, but watching it now on DVD, I have to say that the scenes are ok, but nothing special and perhaps a little predictable really. The films opening scenes of the children exploring an old School building are still quite eerie to me though, even when watching it today. The gorey bits in Prom Night are pretty average also now, but I think for it's time, it probably was the best job they could do and although it rarely makes you jump, it is still a good old fashioned horror with one very memorable scene which involves an axe.

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I also think because the second half of the film is filmed at night, it is quite dark in parts, even on the newer DVD version and some scenes are a little bit fuzzy at times also. It is ok though and not too bad, but could do with being digitally re-mastered to me.

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There is plenty of the heavy breathing phone calls in this film also and the raspy voice we hear down the phone line is quite convincing of that of a serial murdering stalker. The blood levels in Prom Night is minimum really, so those with a faint heart might find this film ok. What I liked also about Prom Night was the many little bits of suspense, the twists and turns it took, which kept it thoroughly interesting and had me completely caught up in it all. It really is an above average horror film I enjoyed.

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Prom night gradually builds up, collects the characters in it's storyline and gives you plenty of background on them all before the killer 'slowly' begins his revenge on them later in the film. It really is a relatively short film, but it is very entertaining in my opinion overall. To me it really all builds up slowly, then it lets rip eventually, the horror side to it, in one long and very scary Prom scene.

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The climax to Prom Night is also quite exciting in my opinion. It really will keep you on the edge of your seat and waiting impatiently for the obsessed raving lunatic to be revealed once and for all. It had me though the first time I watched it I remember and I got it all very wrong indeed.

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Well Prom Night is a creative movie and it's quite a teen drama really, but I think it worked well because it actually had a good story behind it and an actual motive for the killer, unlike many modern horrors today seem to leave out. It also sets a very realistic scene early on in the film that makes it slightly different to the films of it's time. Prom Night is just not as good as Friday 13th though (which was made a year or two before Prom Night) and is more of a suspense mystery, rather than your standard slasher horror film. The mystery to it all is great though and the kill scenes are really quite mild, with just a few little short scenes of blood and gore which to me lowers the rating down for younger viewers to be able to watch this film also.

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The start of Prom Night is set in an old derelict School house, looks very realistic to me and is shot well. The way the camera covers the shadows and takes on the killers point of view is also good. There is great shots set in the isolated empty high school corridors later on in Prom Night also that is filmed very well and really gives it a very eerie feel, makes you feel as if you're there yourself, alone in that School and has you spooked out a little.

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I also thought Lesley Nielson played his non-comedic role very well in Prom Night. It was hard to picture him at first in such a serious role because of all the comedy's he has starred in, but he does a great job really in this film. His character of the School principal is great, but his cheesy disco dancing makes you hide behind your pillow (not with fright though) but from cringing watching him move in true Travolta style.

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All of the other characters in Prom Night are fun to watch and play their parts very well in my opinion, from your typical bully to your young teenage virgin. I personally thought the acting was good from all of them. They are all quite likable characters really, but overall I think it's fun watching 22 year olds and over's playing a group of younger High School students.

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This Movie has three sequels to it:

• Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II (1987)
• Prom Night III: The Last Kiss (1990)
• Prom Night IV: Deliver us from Evil (1992)

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Music Throughout Prom Night:

The Prom Night soundtrack is highly sought after, but it was only ever released in Japan apparently. It has many great tracks on it, but it has never been released to date in the UK. It certainly is a very interesting soundtrack to a horror film with it's true eighties tunes, but they all work very well in helping to give the film it's overall effect.

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The make-up and special effects is quite good in Prom Night. The blood looks very real and the scene at the very start of the movie where the young girl dies is quite upsetting and looks very realistic in my opinion. The prom scene is where most of the special effects do take place though and the whole horror aspect is very well done, even though it was filmed way back in the early eighties.

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The Costumes in this film are very good and all the cast are dressed in true eighties style. The prom dresses wore by the girls where very trendy at that time I remember. The murderer wears a dark ski mask all of the time also which helps to give him his stalker effect and his scary, yet mysterious appearance that hides him so well. All the outdoor scenes are shot well also in Prom Night and certainly takes you back to the eighties era right down to it's cheesy, yet likable, disco tunes.

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Characters:

Jamie Lee Curtis in the early eighties was loved for her roles in these slasher type films. Well she plays her role as Kim Hammond very well in Prom Night. She certainly delivers the best role in this entire movie and shines out against the rest of the cast. Her character comes across as a very popular High School Student that's very independent really. I liked her character in Prom Night a lot and thought her acting skills where in top form from her.

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Tracks Played In This Film Include:

(01) All Is Gone - Blue Bazar
(02) Prom Night.
(03) Changes.
(04) Dancing In The Moonlight.
(05) Fade to Black.
(06) All Is Gone (Instrumental) - Blue Bazar.
(07) Time to Turn Around.
(08) Love Me Till I Die.
(09) Prom Night 2.
(10) Forever - Blue Bazar.

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My Favourite Quote From The Film:

Just remember it's not who takes you to the prom, it's who drives you home ~Wendy.

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Extras:

Well Prom Night came out a long time ago on video and when it was released onto DVD in 2004 all it had included on it is one disc with 5 chapter pauses and an awful looking menu. That is it. The 2008 version has more chapter stops I believe and a better menu to it, but that's it also. It really needs revamped as it is an old film. For those seeking extras with this film, well I am sorry to say there is none.

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My Overall Opinion:

Overall this is a very highly recommended Horror Movie by me that I have watched many times over the years and still enjoy watching it today. A new version of Prom Night was re-made and released last year, but it certainly was not as good as the original one. I would recommend this movie to everyone to watch, who enjoys a good "Who done in Horror Thriller" It might be an older Movie, but the effects are still good and the acting and music in this movie are very enjoyable also.

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Well Prom Night to me is just not as good as the film Halloween (which was released around the same time this film was). Prom Night has more of a storyline to it, but lacks at originality really, although it probably at the time was one of the first horror films to take on this storyline, but has been drowned out a little by the many similar ones made after it. It is still up there though as a great horror film (or more of a thriller) and it certainly takes on many in this genre and it is certainly much better than those I have watched in the last ten years have been.

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The final thirty minutes or so of this film to me, where actually the best in Prom Night with some fairly solid scenes and a lot of chasing, running around and real excitement happening. It really does keep you on the edge of your seat though and has you thinking hard to who this lunatic really could be.

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Well I personally think, that for it's age Prom Night does hold up well and is a great forgotten thriller of it's day. Even today it is very watchable like lots of the older horrors are and is certainly one I recommend watching if you have not done so before. It really is a good evenings entertainment in my opinion, that will keep you in suspense and have your mind really working overtime. I thoroughly enjoy it every time I watch it and I am sure you will also if your into horrors or thriller stories.

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I really do think Prom Night is a forgotten horror film. I am going to award it four stars overall. I took one star of for it being very dark in a little part of it though, but it's not a bad horror film for it's age.

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Prom Night is rated 18 (well this version is anyway) I would say 15 years + would be fine watching this film as it's more a thriller than a full blown slasher horror. It runs for 89 minutes and can also be purchased from £3- £16 online which is expensive really or it can be rented out also.

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Summary: Back In My Day Things Looked Better.

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(c)hillhead/hildas.

I have left spaces. Put dots between paragraphs to space them, left ten spaces and nothing works. I am a virgo. I can not have my reviews looking like this. Sorry : (

 

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