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.

Terror Train (1980)

Terror Train is a classic retro horror film directed by Roger Spottiswoode written by T.Y. Drake and produced by Daniel Grodnik . Terror Train stars Jamie Lee Curtis, Ben Johnson and David Copperfield as himself. It’s New Years Eve and a number of kids from a college fraternity play a cruel prank on a disturbed and shy kid Kenny Hampson (Derek Mckinnon). Three years pass by after the prank has gone horribly wrong and left Kenny in a psychiatric hospital, it’s now a New Year again and the fraternity throws a New Year’s Eve masquerade party on a train with Ben Carson as the train conductor. David Copperfield cameos as a magician on the train. During the long ride across town, the party goers parade around from bunk to bunk in a fancy train headed to nowhere. This night it will leave them going nowhere, as Kenny is back and he kills one by one by wearing the costumes of the party goers. Kenny changes costume masks for all the killings disguising himself from an alien lizard, a bird, and an old hag. As the train travels through the icy terrain, the student’s that were responsible for the prank are murdered. The film is packed with thrilling guesses as to who is beneath the mask; with scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis (Alana Maxwell) as Kenny attempts to redeem the kiss from the prank that made him go crazy. All aboard... If you dare! Terror Train has finally been released on a BluRay/DVD combo pack by Scream! Factory the collector’s edition feature is packed with tons of bonus features including, an interview With Production Executive Don Carmody, Producer Daniel Grodnik, Production Designer Glenn Bydwell And Composer John Mills-Cockell and is a must own for any fan of this classic slasher film. You can purchase Terror Train from either Amazon or directly from Scream! Factory as of Oct. 16, 2012. 

Schizoid (Murder by Mail) (1980)

Schizoid Aka (Murder by Mail) is an American horror film directed and written by David Paulsen staring Klaus Kinski and Christopher Lloyd. The story revolves around a young advice columnist Julie (Marianna Hill) who begins receiving threatening notes of murder and other gruesome acts. She attends a routine therapy session with another group of young women who unfortunately, are stabbed and killed one by one by a mysterious killer. Her friends and the police believe that the murder notes she received is a hoax since the note talks about murder with a gun and not a knife. Throughout the film it becomes more apparent that there is someone closer to her that is responsible for the murder notes. Is it Pieter (Klaus Kinski) her therapist who has sex with his patients before they get murdered? Many motives present themselves in this Thriller as everyone who surrounds Julie, even her ex-husband Doug (Craig Wasson), seems to be disturbed enough to commit these heinous acts. With more murder notes, tensions tighten as the young advice columnist begins to not know who to trust. She wonders if she is next.  If not, why? This edge of your seat thriller will keep you guessing and is a must see for any fan of the murder mystery genre. Originally released in 1980, it recently was re-released as a double feature by Scream! Factory which was released on BluRay and includes a bonus interview with Donna Wilkes. This film is packed with insatiable actions by Klaus Kinski and Christopher Lloyd.  This film is a must own for any fan of their work.