Terror mortal

...a movie without a script totally bombs. From the writer of "Universal Soldier" (1 & 2) and "Hard to Hold", it's a wonder this movie is even as good as it is. The actors and director do a remarkable job despite the drivel they are forced to work with. If they did a total rewrite of this movie, it would probably be pretty good, but as it is, it is somewhat boring and just BLAH. It has some moments but I wouldn't bother unless it is on TV and you are bored anyways.

I've been on the lookout for this obscure early 80's slasher since many moons, for the same old reason why I often track down films I don't know anything about … Because the poster/cover image here on the IMDb, showing a killer with a knife in the reflection of a little kid's glasses, looks tremendously cool. That's all. So, of course, in too many of these cases the films turn out to be big disappointments, but luckily "Death Valley" is a worthwhile little hidden gem. It's a modest and reasonably stylish slasher/thriller with a marvelous setting (why there aren't any more horror flicks taking place in Death Valley, California is beyond me), an admirably creepy atmosphere, likable characters (no hormone driven teenagers out camping this time), a handful of unexpected brutal killings and a surprisingly well-written screenplay (sometimes). The film begins with a father in New York explaining to his intelligent and eloquent young son Billy – that Ralphie kid from "A Christmas Story" with the big glasses – that he has to spend his vacation with his mother and her new lover down in a touristy cowboy village near Death Valley, California. Once there, and in between the difficult acceptance of new parent process of little Billy, he spots a vicious looking old car following them around. There's a serial killer on the loose in Death Valley and he/she just butchered three people in a motor home. Billy wanders around the area and finds the killer's necklace. From then onwards he's the killer's prime target. "Death Valley" distinguishes itself from the other contemporary slasher flicks because of its dramatic and identifiable sub plot of parental divorce and the children's slow process of accepting mummy/daddy's new life partner. Many (too many even?) sequences revolve on conversations between Billy and his mother, begging him to give the new boyfriend a proper chance. The identity of the killer isn't exactly kept secret and the "twist" near the end is very predictable as well, still director Dick Richards attempts to bring more depth and tension-building than we are used to see in early 80's horror movies. The handful of murders are, as said, fairly gruesome with some slit throats and a lovely axe in the chest moment. There's also a hilarious comical interlude when Billy has to remain at home with the babysitter. She's a corpulent eating machine who munches all of the kid's chocolate, crisps and ice cream.

This film is not as bad as many people would have you believe. Peter "The Dirt Bike Kid" Billingsley, in his first starring role, plays Billy, a boy who is forced to vacation with his mother and her boyfriend in the middle of the hot California desert. During a desert outing, a bored Billy decides to do a little exploration and comes across a seemingly abandoned RV. Unbeknownst to Billy the RV contains the freshly butchered bodies of three teenagers who are stuffed into the forward compartment. Billy nearly opens the forward compartment's door when he's pulled out and reprimanded by his mother's boyfriend. Billy doesn't leave empty handed though; he has stolen a necklace that he found on the RV's floor.

Later the necklace becomes a clue that is handed over with much guilt and tears to the town's sheriff played by Wilford Brimley. Soon after, the sheriff has a mining pick stuck in his chest after stupidly going over to the killer's house with clue in hand and basically asking, "Hey, look what I found at a murder scene," and knowing full well that the necklace belongs to the killer. Oops!

The killer believes Billy knows too much and needs to be eliminated. From this point on the film becomes a tense cat-and-mouse game that ends with more than a few dead.

Death Valley was released in 1982 without much fanfare or promotion and was quickly lost among the glut of slasher films being churned out by Hollywood at that time. That is unfortunate because the film features everything horror fans love: breasts, gore and excitement. This film also features a tense Henry Manfredini-like musical score by Dana Kaproff and excellent cinematography by Stephen Burum. Billy's mother is played by the beautiful Katherine Hicks (spelled Catherine on the video box) who played Marilyn Monroe in the television movie, Marilyn: The Untold Story.

Another reason to watch this film is for the brief appearance of Gina Christian, in her only film role, as R.V. Girl. Gina Christian is the reason tube tops were invented. Wow!

Coming out during the influx of the slasher craze, "Death Valley" could be seen as one of those unlucky films that got lost in the crowd and was pushed aside with those lesser imitations. Unfortunately if that's the case it's undeserved (sadly no DVD release either), as it's a lot more accomplished than its rancid shockers. One thing though, it was one of those video cases that always drew me to its strikingly cool artwork.

Billy and his recently divorced mother leave New York for a vacation to California to meet up with her new boyfriend. For Billy it's hard seeing his mum with another man, but it's the less of his worries. As on their vacation to "Death Valley", Billy stumbles across an empty RV and picks up a necklace. Later they come across this RV again, but it was in an accident or so it seems. Unknowingly to them, there have been brutal murders in "Death Valley" and killer now has Billy in his sights.

"Death Valley" is like a second-rate Hitchcock-like thriller that decently grows on bone-rattling suspense, taking time to let the characters and circumstances unfold that when the threatening tic-tack-toe nature breaks out we're put in an act of alarm and desperation. It really puts the characters on the spot and breathing down an ominous air, the material doesn't do much to hide the killer's identity and the surprise twist is easy to figure out. The rural California locations do it wonders, as the secluded landscapes are harsh and vast with it being truly alienating --- nowhere to hide and help is a long way. Dick Richards directs with panache and vision, orchestrating the unhinged sounds (a suspenseful music score) and observatory imagery (moody camera angles and slow-motion) with the foreseeable one-track story. While slow-winding, as it's slowed up by passages involving family issues --- Billy accepting his mother's new boyfriend, but this does give it a grounded sincerity to the character's relationships and dynamics. These moments are broken up by the heighten tension and an odd nasty jolt that's well-timed by throwing you off with false bumps.

Performances are agreeable. Peter Billingsley (whose massive glasses are somewhat distracting) is likable as the know-all Billy and Catherine Hicks is simply delightful (although she does some questionable actions in the film's climax) as Billy's mother. Paul Le Mat is sturdy, but does look quite bemused more often. Wilford Brimley is hardy as the suspicious sheriff and Stephen McHattie is suitably random and menacing. There's also a minor part for Edward Herrmann at the beginning as Billy's father.

Nothing special, but a diverting, fine old-fashion thriller with the modern unpleasantness.

If the readers may permit a little intro about this movie, I'd already lost my hope to find this rarest movie that watched in far off 1988 around my teenager years, in fact I've just remember some small fragments, out of the blue in a quick research at my old friend Youtube appears it on dubbed version, well I can't believe in my own eyes, all this in fine print near DVD, well it sent me back on late eighties for one hour and a half.

The plot is quite simple the little boy Billy (Peter Billingsley) living in New York with her divorced mother Sally (Catherine Hicks) flying into California to meet her new boyfriend Mike (Paul Le Mat) for a vacation on Death Valley aiming for easy the feelings of Bill over a forthcoming engagement between his mother and Bill, an annoyed Billy is afraid that it could ward off his father, however the worst is coming when they reach in a old mine at Death Valley, Billy walking around find a necklace at empty motor-home, where moments early someone slashed tree occupiers, later it was found burning in a ravine nearby.

Turns out that Billy got the necklace and on the restaurant saw the waiter Hal (Stephen McHattie) wearing the same one, reaching at crash area seeing the motor-home in flame, Billy decides told the truth to local Sheriff (Wilford Brimley) about the strange object, it raises suspicions of the Sheriff due in such in past year had an akin murder on same patten, all victims were slashed, thus this necklace belongs to two local brothers that living on a desert area and could be the key to clarify those murders, not so fast the old Sheriff exposes to Hal all about over the necklace found by young Billy, henceforth he becomes a target to be slash.

A kind of B-flick mixing slash and thriller, many gorgeous girls, nude scenes with beauty Gina Christian, having the great landscape of the marvelous Death Valley as backdrop, also great casting as well and the undeniable eye candy Catherine Hicks in fine shape, without forget the strong performance of McHattie and Paul Le Mat and the veteran actor Wilford Brimley not despicable that some reviewers want implied.

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First watch: 1988 / How many: 1 / Source: TV-Youtube / Rating: 6.5.