Visiting Hours (1982)

User Rating:

4.2/10   

Director:

Jean-Claude Lord

Writer:

Brian Taggert (writer)

Release Date:

28 May 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

There is no known cure.....for MURDER.

Plot:

A crazed, women-hating killer (Ironside) rapes and brutalizes journalist Deborah Ballin (Grant). When he discovers that his attack didn't kill Deborah, he comes to the hospital to finish what he started.

Plot Keywords:

Hospital | Journalist | Closet | Injury | Rape

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Michael Ironside	...	Colt Hawker
Lee Grant	...	Deborah Ballin
Linda Purl	...	Sheila Munroe
William Shatner	...	Gary Baylor
Lenore Zann	...	Lisa
Harvey Atkin	...	Vinnie Bradshaw
Helen Hughes	...	Louise Shepherd
Michael J. Reynolds	...	Porter Halstrom
Kirsten Bishop	...	Denise
Deborah Kirshenbaum	...	Connie Wexler
Elizabeth Leigh-Milne	...	Patricia Ellis
Maureen McRae	...	Elizabeth Hawker
Dustin Waln	...	Mr.Hawker
Neil Affleck	...	Police Officer
Damir Andrei	...	Paramedic

Also Known As:

Get Well Soon
Terreur à l'hôpital central (Canada: French title)
The Fright

Runtime:

105 min | USA:103 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | Norway:18 (video premiere) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Iceland:(Banned) | Iceland:16 (cut) | Norway:(Banned) (1982-2003) (cinema release) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company:

Canadian Film Development Corporation (CFDC)

Trivia:

The limp Michael Ironside sports at the end of the movie was real; he broke his ankle on the first day of filming.

Quotes:

Colt Hawker: [Letters framed on his wall] God, you blast them all: blacks, Jews, Mexicans...

Movie Connections:

References Halloween II (1981)

Certainly No Hospital - ity!

I started watching this film with somewhat low expectations. I mean the video box cover looked like some typical slasher film from the 80's with its cover containing a skull embedded over a weird looking hospital. After five minutes my expectations rose, because this film is a rollercoaster ride for all one hour and forty-five minutes. It is not-stop action as we, the audience, watch both victim(Lee Grant) and murderer(Michael Ironside) cope with being prey and predator respectively. The film has some loose holes in plot and believability, but the action and pace of the film more than amply make up for its shortcomings. Lee Grant does a fine job as a somewhat older female lead, but it is Ironside's performance which is truly impressive. He is one dark, mean, cruel killer. Apparently as a child he saw his father disabled by his mother, and then grew up with this hatred of strong females(of which Grant is one as a media celebrity). His flashback sequences are abstract and never fully explained, but Ironside really conveys the hate, fear, and emotional void with a thorough performance. Most of his role is done with little speech. Linda Purl(lovely as ever) gives a nice performance too. Oh!...William Shatner has a role in this too. His part is pretty useless, as is his performance. Credit must also be given to director Jean-Luc Lord and his wonderful ability to pace and use hackneyed plot contrivances and horror cliches with an amazing freshness. A scary, disturbing film!