There are apparently several movies called Frightmare. I guess it's an easy pun - apparently there are a bunch of episodes of TV shows that go by the name too. There was one a.k.a Horror Star from 1983 (per imdb: "Drama students decide to pay tribute to their favorite horror star by stealing his body from his crypt for a farewell party." Presumably horrific shenanigans ensue.) Another a.k.a. Paranoid from 2000 ("A group of high school seniors put on a haunted house to raise money... when 3 people are killed, they hunt for a serial killer before the haunted house is shut down.") The one I watched for today is a.k.a Cover Up, and is about a crazy cannibal woman and her estranged family. Odd that not even one is about dreaming, but I guess Frightmare is generic enough. Oddly enough, there is no Frighttime or Nightscare...
Anyways, my Frightmare starts out London in 1957 with scene shot in a rather unconvincing old-timey B&W. A man wanders through a deserted carnival and goes into a trailer where he asks an unseen person for some vague assistance. The next thing we know, he's dead with his face is all torn up (really, it looks like a jar of jam exploded all over his cheek). Cut to a court, where our unseen assailants (a woman aided by her husband) are found guilty of "the most disturbing case" our judge has ever seen. He thinks they should be sent to death, but due to insanity they are sent to a mental institution - his final words being "let the members of the public be assured, that you shall remain in this mental institution until there can be no doubt what so ever, that you are fit and able to take your place in society again." Let's see how that works out.
October 26th, 2014 - Frightmare (1974)
Twenty years later, we're introduced to Debbie, a 15-year old troublemaker causing trouble in a bar with her hooligan friends. After a run-in with the bartender, they wait outside until bar close and attack him. Debbie stays behind and does something mysterious... but what? When she finally gets home, we meet her half-sister Jackie, who is a bit older and seemingly more responsible. Jackie has been left in charge of Debbie, who was orphaned as a baby and only recently kicked out of the orphanage for bad behavior. Debbie is obviously a troubled teenager, sassing to her sister, coming home late, and generally just being a brat. But Jackie has her own mysterious agenda... she is visiting their parents late at night - parents Debbie doesn't even know she has! She is also bringing along packages containing - again - something mysterious. Mystery is everywhere in Frightmare!
If I keep just summarizing the story, I'll basically ruin the movie. And I don't really want to do that. It's an okay film, but the strength of it relies on the story and the twists and turns it takes. If you know what happens, there would be no reason to watch it. There is no giant "I see dead people"-type revelation, just bits of small twists along the way. It's just a pretty interesting story of a family disrupted by violent tendencies and how they come to terms with it.
I made the mistake of not taking notes with this one, so I'm having trouble doing the like/not like thing. But I don't feel terribly strong about it either way. The acting/direction in it were just fine - I particularly thought the father (played by Rupert Davies in his last role) did a great job as a man who clearly loves his family but is disgusted by the deeds they commit. The overall vibe of Frightmare was enjoyable too - decent moody music, a creepy old farmhouse, and enough 70's style to keep you preoccupied. And I don't know, occasionally I think a movie is sometimes worth watching for it's "Englishness" alone - call me a stupid American, but I love the accents and slang.
I wish I had more to say. Nothing sticks out too much, either good or bad. I wouldn't really rave about it, but it was just fine.
I would probably recommend this movie.
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