Intruder (1989)

Director:

Scott Spiegel

Writers:

Lawrence Bender (story)
Scott Spiegel (screenplay)

Genre:

Crime | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

A new dimension in terror.

Plot:

The ex-boyfriend of a check-out girl at a supermarket returns at closing time to make trouble. They...

Plot Keywords:

Supermarket | Employee | Stabbing | Pay Phone | Hook

Cast

Elizabeth Cox	...	Jennifer Ross
Renée Estevez	...	Linda
Dan Hicks	...	Bill Roberts
David Byrnes	...	Craig Peterson
Sam Raimi	...	Randy
Eugene Robert Glazer	...	Danny (as Eugene R. Glazer)
Billy Marti	...	Dave
Burr Steers	...	Bub
Craig Stark	...	Tim
Ted Raimi	...	Produce Joe
Alvy Moore	...	Officer Dalton
Tom Lester	...	Officer Mathews
Emil Sitka	...	Mr. Abernathy
Bruce Campbell	...	Officer Howard
Lawrence Bender	...	Officer Adams

Also Known As:

Night Crew (USA) (working title)
Night Crew: The Final Checkout (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

83 min | 88 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

West Germany:18 (heavily cut) | New Zealand:R16 (2009) | Australia:R | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Bell, California, USA

Company:

Beyond Infinity

Trivia:

The "head in one hand, sandwich in the other" speech was previously used in Raising Arizona (1987).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When the butcher gets his face stuck on the hook and hangs from it you can see a wire next to the hook holding him up.

Quotes:

Bub: I swear to God. If my brother hadn't hit him in the head repeatedly with a blender, he would've killed me!
Linda: A blender?
Bub: Yeah, uh... a Hamilton Beach Blender.

Movie Connections:

References Brideless Groom (1947)

Grim and grisly grocery store slaughter.

The staff of a grocery store, on the night that they're told that they will soon have to find new jobs, are lined up for slaughter by a nasty and most sadistic maniac, in this very enjoyable late entry in the slasher film cycle.

Director Scott Spiegel goes a little overboard in the early going with his crazy ideas of where to place the camera, but eventually settles down and crafts a fine and entertaining film of its kind. He stages his many stalking and slashing sequences with considerable flair; the K.N.B. group, in one of their earlier gigs, supply him with some eye-popping splatter. It's pretty good for a low budget flick. Suffice it to say that our killer here really makes excellent use of all the tools at hand.

The grocery store makes for a rather effective setting. Decent pacing, plenty of darker-than-dark humor (it was a real kick seeing a guy get beat down by a severed head!), spooky music, a good final act, and a downer of a finish add to the surprising effectiveness of this little picture.

The acting from the likable cast is variable; Dan Hicks is an undeniable standout as Bill, although it's really cool to see director Sam Raimi and his actor brother Ted among the assorted victims. Very brief cameos by the likes of Bruce Campbell and Alvy Moore certainly don't hurt. The cute Renee Estevez ("Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers") is an appealing presence for the duration of her role.

Concocted by genre veteran Spiegel along with future film producer Lawrence Bender (whose noteworthy credits include his association with Quentin Tarantino), this is a real fun hoot of a slasher film certain to appeal to fans of the genre.

8/10