Midnight (1982)

A teenage girl runs away from home because police officer/stepfather puts the moves on her. Hitchhiking to California, she's picked up by two guys who are also traveling cross-country. ... See full summary »

Director:

John A. Russo

Writers:

John A. Russo (novel), John A. Russo (screenplay)

Stars:

Melanie Verlin, Lawrence Tierney, John Hall

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Melanie Verlin	...	Nancy Johnson (as Melanie Verliin)
Lawrence Tierney	...	Bert Johnson
John Hall	...	Tom
Charles Jackson	...	Hank
Doris Hackney	...	Harriet Johnson
Bob Johnson	...	Reverend Carrington
Lachele Carl	...	Sandra Carrington (as LaChele Carl)
David Marchick	...	Cyrus
Greg Besnak	...	Luke
John Amplas	...	Abraham
Robin Walsh	...	Cynthia
Jackie Nicoll	...	Mama
Amy Brinton	...	Girl in Trap
Debra Smith	...	Young Cynthia
Daniel Costello	...	Young Abraham

Storyline

A teenage girl runs away from home because police officer/stepfather puts the moves on her. Hitchhiking to California, she's picked up by two guys who are also traveling cross-country. Along the way, they decide to camp out in the woods and run across a family of Satanists who keep their dead mother in the attic.

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Plot Keywords:

satanist | dead mother | pennsylvania | three brothers | insane mother | 

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Taglines:

A Startling & Shocking Adventure - As Three College Students Take a Strange Detour to the Land of the LIVING DEAD!

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 December 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

John Russo's Midnight

Filming Locations:

Butler County, Pennsylvania, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Congregational

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Crazy Credits

The film's closing credits only include the cast, something common in older films, but unusual for a film made in the 1980s.

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Connections

References Psycho (1960)

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Soundtracks

"Midnight Again"
Written by T. Mazzei, E. Mazzei, F. Mazzei, and L. Mazzei

User Reviews

Ripsnorting old school nastiness

I find it completely baffling that this great movie has such a low average score. In my opinion its only a whisker away from being one of the greatest horror films of the late seventies and early eighties. There was one scene that I thought was pretty stupid (a kill where the victim acts in a truly moronic way), and the opening half hour or so dragged in places. Plus, as with a lot of these films, the acting and dialogue of the leads was occasionally off (though I don't find this too much of an issue. However when the film locks down to its dirty business, it becomes truly great. Like all the greats, the atmosphere is surreal and nightmarish and the satanic shenanigans, though hardly original were at times thoroughly grim and creepy. No one likes to be at the mercy of satanists or caged for sacrifice and these horrors are put to good use There is some very nifty gore, not a huge amount but a fair number of people get some cruel demises. Tom Savini mostly handles the effects and they're all pretty great, whilst those filmed after his departure from the film are good too. Anyone looking for Dawn of The Dead style spectacle will be disappointed though. John Russo does an excellent job at directing after a slightly flat first half and the writing is mostly pretty fine too, although Lawrence Tierney could possibly have been used better. All in all, I really, really liked this film and I can't believe it isn't better known and better liked. Though a lot of people seem to disagree, I say track it down and a enjoy a splendidly dark and often disturbing gem.