Heart of Midnight (1988)

Carol inherits a night club from her weird uncle. She moves into the place, only to find out just how weird her uncle really was. She begins to remember more about her very special ... See full summary »

Director:

Matthew Chapman

Writer:

Matthew Chapman

Stars:

Jennifer Jason Leigh, Brenda Vaccaro, Jack Hallett

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jennifer Jason Leigh	...	Carol
Brenda Vaccaro	...	Betty
Jack Hallett	...	Lawyer
Nicholas Love	...	Tom (as Nick Love)
James Rebhorn	...	Richard
Tico Wells	...	Henry
Sam Schacht	...	Uncle Fletcher (as Sam Schact)
Nina Lora	...	Carol as a Child
Steve Buscemi	...	Eddy
Frank Stallone	...	Ledray
Denise Dumont	...	Mariana (as Denise Dummont)
Peter Coyote	...	Sharpe / Larry
Jim Geallis	...	Lt. Sharpe (as James Geallis)
Ken Moser	...	Ledray's Sidekick
Nicholas Cimino	...	Boy with Kittens

Storyline

Carol inherits a night club from her weird uncle. She moves into the place, only to find out just how weird her uncle really was. She begins to remember more about her very special relationship with her uncle as she battles her memories and her surroundings in her new home.

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Plot Keywords:

uncle | nightclub owner | attic | voyeurism | rape | 

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Taglines:

Between the madness of what is real and the horror of her imagination lies the... Heart of Midnight.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 March 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Au coeur de minuit

Filming Locations:

Charleston, South Carolina, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$113,275 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Virgin Vision, AG Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color (TVC)

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"So Long"
Written by Russ Morgan, Irving Melsher, Remus Harris
Published by Shapiro Bernstein & Co., Inc.

User Reviews

Not poetically neurotic...but weird enough. (spoilers)

'Heart of Midnight' is an unusual, bizarre thriller. Jennifer Jason Leigh, in her trademark weird roles, plays an emotionally disturbed young woman who leaves home after a bout of extreme instability and tries a spat of independence upon inheriting her mysterious uncle's strange nightclub and home. But, cheerful Uncle Fletcher is not quite the endearing relative that the young woman remembers as she discovers more and more things about the house--many rooms designed for some weird sexual fantasies.

After an attempted rape, the young girl alerts the police who become involved in an investigation. Well, actually, one man does. Claiming to be a police detective from internal affairs investigating the death of one of the culprits, killed when fleeing the police who had arrived on the scene. But, the detective is not who he seems, and the young woman's paranoia becomes increasingly more unbearable for her and those who around her. The game of cat and mouse introduces a bizarre psychological thriller, although a doubtful one at that when it seems that the young woman sees hints of another presence in the house, but can't convince others of the same, never having enough evidence to make such claims credible.

The movie is especially bizarre, given the motives of those responsible for bothering the girl. The viewer is given little backstory on the uncle and his strange habits are eluded to only through what evidence the woman also receives. What are all of these rooms for? What was her uncle like? And so forth. Just as the girl's own background is strange, the viewer experience everything with such suspicion and to some extent, revulsion, as she does since we only get as much detail as she does. It is done stylishly so, at least as far as visual efforts, but may be for a certain audience. For those who enjoyed the early 90s noir thriller, Liebstraum, you might enjoy this less sophisticated, but equally odd tale of suspense.