Dressed To Kill (1980)

Dressed to Kill is a horror / thriller film released in 1980 and directed by Brian De Palma.  The film revolves around the murder of a sexually active housewife (Angie Dickenson) who is killed and witnessed by a young prostitute (Nancy Allen) and her teenage son (Keith Gordon). The young prostitute is seeing a psychiatrist about her sexuality, yet he seems to be confused about his own as well. The psychiatrist (Michael Cain) is a transvestite trapped inside a man’s body who when is sexually excited, his female side takes over and kills. As he stalks his prey dressed as a blonde haired woman this crime filled thriller keeps you at the edge of your seat and reminds me of many of the Italian Giallo films produced, due to its erotic nature and the use of a razor blade. It’s one film I am glad I saw and enjoyed it very much. It has a solid plot and twists that you’d never expect. Dressed to Kill has been released as a Criterion Collection on Blu-Ray restored with 4k footage and bonus features it is a must own for any fan of the Italian Giallo films, as this one seems to fit the American profile quite well.

Death Valley (1982)

Death Valley is a classic horror film from 1982 and directed by Dick Richards and written by Richard Rothstein.  Newly divorced Paul Stanton (Edward Herrmann) and his son Billy (Stephen McHattie) decide to venture into Death Valley during a road trip.  They stumble upon a serial killer, who enjoys wearing a pink male thong and his demented twin. Both enjoy tap-dancing and belting out old cowboy songs. Billy finds the murder instrument and decides to keep it unfortunately, allowing him to become stalked by a serial killer.  Billy wanders upon an old RV stuffed with dead bodies; he suspects what might be going on.  When the local sheriff (Wilford Brimley) becomes one of the victims, Billy sets off to find out more about the crime. Death Valley is a well directed and produced horror film with an original tale not to miss. The film has been currently released by the horror release masters Scream! Factory and is on a DVD/BluRay Combo pack with bonus features of various Trailers of the film. This release is not one to pass up. Purchase Death Valley directly from Scream! Factory.

Bad Dreams (1988)

Bad Dreams is a classic 80’s Horror Film by director and co-writer Andrew Fleming and produced by Gale Anne Hurd. The film begins with a cult known as Unity Fields, gathering with its psychopathic leader Franklin Harris (Richard Lynch) dousing his members with gasoline and lighting his followers on fire in a mass suicide. One survivor Cynthia (Jennifer Rubin) survived and recently awakened from a thirteen year coma with occasional reminders of the suicide. Dr. Alex Karmen (Bruce Abbot) is the resident psychiatrist determined to help his patients but as people in her group therapy begin to commit suicide in gruesome ways, Cynthia believes she is being stalked by the ghost of the evil cult leader. But are these deaths suicides or murders from an unseen entity of the sinister cult leader Franklin Harris?  As it turns out, her dreams become more vivid with each day confusing  of what’s left of her reality into a horror as Franklin has come back to claim his “Love child”. This film is a great thriller with horror elements that remind one of the classic Elm Street series. Now released as a double feature BluRay/DVD by Scream! Factory, Bad Dreams comes packed with extras such as an original alternate ending, a behind the scenes and a make-up effects featurette.

Visiting Hours “The Fright, Get Well Soon” (1982)

Visiting Hours Aka “The Fright and Get Well Soon” is a slasher horror film directed by Jean-Claude Lord. The plot is focused on a feminist TV journalist Deborah Ballin (Lee Grant) who is being followed by a malicious serial killer who previously attacked her and wants to finish his work. Deborah’s view on women’s rights anger Colt Hawker who is one of the studios’ cleaning staff and a homicidal psycho and misogynist. Hawker despises woman ever since he was a young boy and saw his mother throw boiling oil on his father. He has developed a fascination on photographing his victims he stabs as they spasm to death. After more than a few closely related assaults and murders take place, Deborah tries to convince Gary Baylor (William Shatner) her boss, that she and her friend, Sheila Munroe (Linda Purl) are not safe. Deborah discovers the identity of the attacker and how he thinks, suspecting that she is his main target. Originally not cleared for video released and censored under UK’s “Video Nasty” list it is now available for purchase by Scream! Factory as a re-release and as a double feature on BluRay from its previous DVD that has been placed “Out of Print”.