A woman from a "cursed" family is released from a mental facility, and soon dismembered corpses start turning up.A woman from a "cursed" family is released from a mental facility, and soon dismembered corpses start turning up.A woman from a "cursed" family is released from a mental facility, and soon dismembered corpses start turning up.
William Szarka
- Billy Kent
- (as Bill Szarka)
Chris Smith
- Sam Kent
- (credit only)
Dee Cummins
- Vicki Todd
- (credit only)
Larry Hunter
- Larry Todd
- (as Norman Main)
Mary Lamay
- Ann Todd
- (as Mary Lomay)
Rob DeRosa
- Marty
- (as Robert De Rosa)
Ursula Austin
- Wife Looking in Mirror
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to an unverified claim by director Doris Wishman, much of the negative for the movie was destroyed by a disgruntled lab employee. Wishman then spent the next few years re-writing and re-editing the film, mixing new and existing footage and adding a voice-over narration to the soundtrack.
- GoofsActress Alexandria is credited in the film's on-screen credits as playing "Nancy". In reality, she plays "Bonnie Kent". Actor Larry Hunter is credited as playing "Larry" but his actual role is "Uncle Sebastian".
- Alternate versionsA 79-minute version of the film, originally claimed by Wishman to have been destroyed in a photo processing lab, was discovered in 2018. Samantha Fox does not appear in this film. It has a different plot and music from the released version. The newly discovered cut was the original or "lost" version.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Schlock! The Secret History of American Movies (2001)
Featured review
A Night To Dismember Is A Film To Forget. 1-2-Miss.
Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of A Night To Dismember; here's the breakdown of my ratings:
Story: 0.25 Direction: 0.00 Pace: 0.00 Acting: 0.00 Enjoyment: 0.25
TOTAL: 0.50 out of 10.00
The one saving grace of A Night To Dismember is that it was written, directed, and starred amateurs. But that grace doesn't make it any the less odious.
The solitary light in the gloom was the story. The concept was credible and would still make for a decent story and a good movie. A mentally unstable woman gets sent to an asylum for murder. Upon her release, after years of therapy, she returns to the family home, where she finds very little has changed. Her mother has kept her room unchanged, and her sister and brother still live with their parents. Though her father is dubious about her return, he welcomes her back, though her mother possesses the welcoming arms. Her siblings want her gone: Back to the asylum or...worse. As we progress through the narrative, the writer sprinkles in some seeds of doubt, especially about the murders she was convicted of committing and her family's sanity. So all of this sounds great, and you think you'll give it a look-see.
Stop! Don't do it! Read on.
Sadly the way the story's handled, or I should say, mishandled, is atrocious. It had so much potential - and still does - that what these guys and gals did to it is more horrific than any of the murders they recollect. It's horrifically structured and oftentimes makes little or no sense. The characters are less than one-dimensional, and none possess the hint of a sliver of a soul. The events and incidents are jagged and haphazard. It is one confusing and tedious tale indeed.
And the direction is worse as there's not even a twinkle of light in this murkiness of cinematography. The director chose to go narration-heavy. Most segments only have a talk-over and seldomly do we get to hear the performers speak. Why he decided on this route is lost in time - who can say(?) What I can say is that the narration doesn't work. It only added to my annoyance, which was already high due to the lack of story structure and decent camerawork. I'll give the cameraman this - his shots may be hideously composed, but he does keep the camera steady, which is the opposite of what many camera people suffer from today. The editor must have undergone an extreme case of Deja Vu as numerous scenes are recurring. However, they're not repeated further along in the film but directly after their first run. This repetitiveness isn't even an amateurish mistake. When you understand the process of splicing in scenes, you realise they're intentional. But, Why(?)
As for the cast, well, they turned up on set. It's hard to give them much credit if any. The narration robbed them of dialogue, and they're not skilled enough to only act through their body language. And whenever there's a killing, it's too timid and impotent. Nobody gets into their characters, and I cannot blame them in the slightest.
All I can say for A Night To Dismember is that this movie is one to miss - and to miss with extreme prejudice. So if you have to buy the film, pour lighter fluid over it and set it alight, then send it through a diamond shredder and force-feed the charred remains to your Great Aunt Tilly just before she jets off home to the other side of the world, I would rank that as a fantastic idea and say go for it!
Wave goodbye to Great Aunt Tilly, then come and check my Killer Thriller Chillers list to see where I ranked A Night To Dismember - and find something better for your entertainment.
Take Care & Stay Well.
Story: 0.25 Direction: 0.00 Pace: 0.00 Acting: 0.00 Enjoyment: 0.25
TOTAL: 0.50 out of 10.00
The one saving grace of A Night To Dismember is that it was written, directed, and starred amateurs. But that grace doesn't make it any the less odious.
The solitary light in the gloom was the story. The concept was credible and would still make for a decent story and a good movie. A mentally unstable woman gets sent to an asylum for murder. Upon her release, after years of therapy, she returns to the family home, where she finds very little has changed. Her mother has kept her room unchanged, and her sister and brother still live with their parents. Though her father is dubious about her return, he welcomes her back, though her mother possesses the welcoming arms. Her siblings want her gone: Back to the asylum or...worse. As we progress through the narrative, the writer sprinkles in some seeds of doubt, especially about the murders she was convicted of committing and her family's sanity. So all of this sounds great, and you think you'll give it a look-see.
Stop! Don't do it! Read on.
Sadly the way the story's handled, or I should say, mishandled, is atrocious. It had so much potential - and still does - that what these guys and gals did to it is more horrific than any of the murders they recollect. It's horrifically structured and oftentimes makes little or no sense. The characters are less than one-dimensional, and none possess the hint of a sliver of a soul. The events and incidents are jagged and haphazard. It is one confusing and tedious tale indeed.
And the direction is worse as there's not even a twinkle of light in this murkiness of cinematography. The director chose to go narration-heavy. Most segments only have a talk-over and seldomly do we get to hear the performers speak. Why he decided on this route is lost in time - who can say(?) What I can say is that the narration doesn't work. It only added to my annoyance, which was already high due to the lack of story structure and decent camerawork. I'll give the cameraman this - his shots may be hideously composed, but he does keep the camera steady, which is the opposite of what many camera people suffer from today. The editor must have undergone an extreme case of Deja Vu as numerous scenes are recurring. However, they're not repeated further along in the film but directly after their first run. This repetitiveness isn't even an amateurish mistake. When you understand the process of splicing in scenes, you realise they're intentional. But, Why(?)
As for the cast, well, they turned up on set. It's hard to give them much credit if any. The narration robbed them of dialogue, and they're not skilled enough to only act through their body language. And whenever there's a killing, it's too timid and impotent. Nobody gets into their characters, and I cannot blame them in the slightest.
All I can say for A Night To Dismember is that this movie is one to miss - and to miss with extreme prejudice. So if you have to buy the film, pour lighter fluid over it and set it alight, then send it through a diamond shredder and force-feed the charred remains to your Great Aunt Tilly just before she jets off home to the other side of the world, I would rank that as a fantastic idea and say go for it!
Wave goodbye to Great Aunt Tilly, then come and check my Killer Thriller Chillers list to see where I ranked A Night To Dismember - and find something better for your entertainment.
Take Care & Stay Well.
helpful•00
- P3n-E-W1s3
- Jul 9, 2022
- How long is A Night to Dismember?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Doris Wishman's A Night to Dismember
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content