Blinded by the Light

Kristy McNichol (looking wan in a short, boyish hairdo) strives to get brother James Vincent (no longer Jimmy) out from a religious sect, which is dramatized as something akin to a revival meeting. She reaches out to him, tries to talk sensibly with him, but the cult has made James vacant and sullen. He is so morose, in fact, it's a wonder the culties don't just ask him to take his bossy sis and scram. By the end, the sect may have gotten to Kristy as well (in the final shots, the filmmakers seem to be asking, "Will they take her too?"). This TV-movie from Robin F. Brancato's book panders to the lowest common denominator: the viewer who knows nothing about the subject matter but who may be willing to swallow what's being delivered simply because it's competently made. This scenario should be much more sinister--who were director John Alonzo (also the director of photography) and writers Robin Vote, Stephen Black and Henry Stern afraid of offending? *1/2 from ****