Just Before Dawn (1981)

Director:

Jeff Lieberman

Writers:

Mark Arywitz (writer)
Jeff Lieberman (writer)

Release Date:

March 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Will Anyone Survive Those Hours Just Before Dawn?

Plot:

Five campers arrive in the mountains to examine some property they have bought, but are warned by the...

Plot Keywords:

Ranger | Forest Ranger | Mountain | Forest | Camper

Cast

George Kennedy	...	Roy McLean
Mike Kellin	...	Ty
Chris Lemmon	...	Jonathan
Gregg Henry	...	Warren
Deborah Benson	...	Constance
Ralph Seymour	...	Daniel
Katie Powell	...	Merry Cat Logan (as Kati Powell)
John Hunsaker	...	Mountain Twins
Charles Bartlett	...	Vachel
Jamie Rose	...	Megan
Hap Oslund	...	Pa Logan
Barbara Spencer	...	Ma Logan

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:18 (re-rating) (2005) | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Norway:16 (1982) | Sweden:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Silver Falls State Park, Sublimity, Oregon, USA

Company:

Oakland Productions

Trivia:

Director Jeff Lieberman said that countless strangers showed up at the filming location on the day that the scene of Jamie Rose swimming topless was to be filmed. Lieberman said that word of this shoot had apparently gotten out among the local forest rangers.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Just Before Dawn: Lions, Tigers and Inbred Twins (2005) (V)

Soundtrack:

Heart Of Glass

Frightening and bizarrely compelling

Very scary backwoods slasher is much better than others, such as "The Prey" and some of the later "Friday the 13th" sequels. The story has to do with five teenager campers running afoul of a pair of psychotic, machete-wielding hillbilly twins. One by one they are dispatched by the murderous giants (who giggle as they slaughter their prey). This has some great photography of the Oregon wilderness, a creepy musical score, and some of the best shocks ever put into a horror/slasher film. I really enjoy the scene where Daniel and Megan are menaced by one of the killers. A classic that deserves a video re-release. I actually stumbled across this one for four bucks at a resale shop in Northern Michigan.