StageFright (1987)

A group of stage actors lock themselves in the theater for a rehearsal of their upcoming musical production, unaware that an escaped psychopath has sneaked into the theater with them.

Director:

Michele Soavi (as Michael Soavi)

Writers:

George Eastman (as Lew Cooper), Sheila Goldberg (dialogue)

Stars:

David Brandon, Barbara Cupisti, Domenico Fiore

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Brandon	...	Peter
Barbara Cupisti	...	Alicia
Domenico Fiore	...	Police Chief (as Don Fiore)
Robert Gligorov	...	Danny
Mickey Knox	...	Old Cop
Giovanni Lombardo Radice	...	Brett (as John Morghen)
Clain Parker	...	Irving Wallace
Loredana Parrella	...	Corinne (as Lori Parrel)
Martin Philips	...	Mark
James Sampson	...	Willy (as James E.R. Sampson)
Ulrike Schwerk	...	Betty
Mary Sellers	...	Laurel
Jo Ann Smith	...	Sybil (as Jo Anne Smith)
Piero Vida	...	Ferrari
Richard Barkeley	...	Dr. Porter

Storyline

A troupe of struggling stage actors is rehearsing for a small-town production of a play. Everything seems to be as it should until one of the cast members turns up dead. In a panic, the others try to get out, only to find they are now locked in the theater with the killer! Which one of them committed the murder, and who will get out alive?

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Plot Keywords:

cult film | backstage | theatre | mask | owl mask | 

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Taglines:

The theatre of death

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

21 August 1987 (Italy)

Also Known As:

StageFright

Filming Locations:

Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DMV Distribuzione, Filmirage

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Brandon played Caligula in Joe D'Amato's "Caligula: The Untold Story" (1982), while Robert Gligorov played Caligula in Lorenzo Onorati's "Caligula's Slaves" (1984).

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Goofs

The old man tells Alicia that her Browning Hi-Power pistol would not fire because the safety catch was engaged. Later, he says that all Alicia had needed to do is load a round into the firing-chamber. On the Browning Hi-Power pistol, releasing the safety catch does not load a round into the firing-chamber.

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Quotes

Peter: [Laurel is seen kissing Dominic when a light, operated by Brett, is shined on them] Is our, uh, Cinderella ready to her scene, or does she still need time to warm up?
Laurel: Brett, you're a fucking bastard!
Brett: Arose by any other name.

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Alternate Versions

The Australian VHS release of StageFright as it's called, has a few shots cut for it to be released, otherwise, it would have been banned. The shots cut are:

• Under shot of Brett with the Driller through his chest is cut
• Close up of the drill with loads of blood is cut
• Wide shot of Danny pulling up Cybil with the intestines showing is cut
• Close up of chainsaw cutting through Danny's chest
• Irving sawing off Peter's arm remains for a few seconds but copious bleeding from the severed arm is cut
• 2nd shot of Peters head rolling is cut

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Connections

References Antropophagus (1980)

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Soundtracks

Mystery Rouge
Performed by Mia

User Reviews

Strong slasher debut from Soavi.

'Stage Fright' is an impressive directorial debut from Dario Argento collaborator Michele Soavi. Like most Italian horror the plot, characters and dialogue are nothing to write home about, the movie is really an excuse for some inventive and visually striking murders. Soavi shows he has learnt a lot stylistically from Argento, and I actually enjoyed this more than many of the latters post 'Tenebre' efforts. Soavi manages to give a refreshing twist on the often tired slasher genre, which is no mean feat, and something that hasn't been able to be achieved in the post-'Scream' slasher revival. While I liked 'Stage Fright', and recommend it, Soavi found his true voice later on with the superb zombie movie 'Dellamorte Dellamore', and the profoundly weird Satanic thriller 'The Sect' (co-written with his mentor Argento). 'Stage Fright' is above average but doesn't compare to the originality of those two.