Death Screams (1982)

Teenagers are stalked and murdered by a maniac at a town fair.

Director:

David Nelson

Writer:

Paul C. Elliott

Stars:

Susan Kiger, Martin Tucker, William T. Hicks

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Susan Kiger	...	Lily Carpenter
Martin Tucker	...	Coach Neil Marshall
William T. Hicks	...	Sheriff Avery
Jennifer Chase	...	Ramona
Jody Kay	...	Sandy
John Kohler	...	Diddle
Andrea Savio	...	Kathy (as Andria Savio)
Curt Rector	...	Bob
Josh Gamble	...	Tom
Hanns Manship	...	Casey
Helene Tryon	...	Edna Sharpe
Mary Fran Lyman	...	Agnes Bottomly
Monica Boston	...	Sheila
Mike Brown	...	Walker
Sharon Alley	...	Sara

Storyline

Locals are celebrating the last night of carnival, such as newly in-love couple Bob and Kathy, coach, Neil Marshall, waitresses, timid blonde Lily and comely, nubile Ramona, their boss Jackson and learning difficulties teenage peeping tom Casey who's dad Avery is the town sheriff. Several them decide to spend the night down at the river, where a unknown double homicide climaxed there some nights before. But among the fairgoers is the one responsible for the deaths and as he/she lurks in the shadow troubled over a tragic past (or just about one thing or another) deciding to take his/her frustrations out with a machete on those he/she blames for all the misfortunes in his/her life. Following the group back to his/her riverside stamping grounds he/she sets about ensuring no one leaves the area alive.

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Plot Keywords:

carnival | machete | sheriff | head cut off | shot dead | 

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Taglines:

The last scream you hear... is your own!

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

May 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

House of Death

Filming Locations:

Lake Lure, North Carolina, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

ABA Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

Diddle: We're going down to the river tonight. It'll be a night to go down in history!

User Reviews

Not good but definitely weird

This early 80's slasher effort should receive some kudos for being somewhat original. Unfortunately, it's not original in any way that makes it especially effective or good. The movie does a good job of establishing a bucolic small-town setting (perhaps, it's not a coincidence that the director is the grown-up David Nelson of "Ozzie and Harriet" fame). There is also a lot more character development than usual, but regrettably the characters are still the usual annoying teen stereotypes. The murders are few and far between until the very end when the bodies start to stack up in a hurry. They're pretty low-tech (they obviously couldn't afford Tom Savini), but they try to make up for by being bizarre. The first victims are strangled simultaneously somehow while having sex on a motorcycle. Their bodies are thrown in a river where, as a running joke, they are seen floating down at various points throughout the movie. Another victim wanders away from the town carnival and is struck by an arrow, but instead of screaming for help or anything, she staggers over to an abandoned carousel and sits down so the killer can (somehow) finish her off with a plastic bag.

The actors are all ridiculously over-aged considering they're supposedly high school students, but this is actually a good thing considering the male protagonist is a "coach" who apparently both parties with and dates his students (which they tend to frown on in real high schools). The goody-good female protagonist is played Susan Lynn Kiger, who had an interesting career going from hardcore porn to "Playboy" to more legitimate acting. While it is nice to see a young woman in Hollywood have the opposite of the usual career trajectory, Kiger's talents unfortunately were probably better suited to her earlier career choices. Kiger stays dressed, but there is some gratuitous nudity, of course, including the girl on the motorcycle, a girl who showers with her bra on (which quickly becomes so transparent you wonder why she bothered), and a pretty blonde girl who goes for a full-frontal skinny-dip (which ALMOST keeps you from contemplating the absurdity of why anyone would go skinny-dipping in a RIVER).

I don't want to imply this movie is in anyway good, but it sure is weird.