User reviews

Six years ago four kids make a pack to keep a secret, which involved the mysterious death of child Robin Hammond. They thought that were the only ones who knew what had happened, but some else witnessed it to. Now that person strings them along, to eventually plan their revenge during Prom night.

A real thank-you to the commercial success of "Halloween (1977)" and "Friday the 13th (1980), which saw the influx of slasher films and "Prom Night" was one of the first to step up. Too bad that we have here is an unspectacular so-so, if slick looking slasher effort that got caught labouring along with very little happening and providing us with corny school melodramatics. When it came to the crunch, most of the Prom Night sequences was about getting the groove on and listening to funky dory disco soundtrack. Oh it just makes you want to bogey; well it didn't stop Jamie Lee Curtis from strutting her stuff. However when it came to the good stuff, I thought the novel deaths were soundly executed, and there's a certain unpleasantness about them. When the black hooded killer (who's quite fast on their feet and would make for a good shaker too) is tormenting and stalking the victims (from be it to the phone calls or hanging about in the shadowy corridors) there's an ominous air to proceedings, which director Paul Lynch pulls off rather well. It's just too bad that most of the time is used setting this all up with ineffective red herrings and below par, drawn out script. Too many loose ends creep in, even though the premise is quite slight and you can find yourself laughing at its unintentional goofiness and picking up on it predictability.

Robert New's stunningly vivid camera movements are atmospherically airy and Paul Zaza and Carl Zittrer's sorrowfully twisted musical score gets it cues right. The performances from the cast are acceptable with a likable Jamie Lee Curtis (earning her scream queen tag at the time) proves herself as an upcoming talent. Weak character, but well judged performance. Leslie Nielsen looks awkwardly distracted, and seems to duck off in a phone-in performance and George Touliatos gives the film some solidarity. Anne-Marie Martin is a delight as the scheming sexpot Wendy, David Mucci is perfect as the boorish brute Lou and Casey Stevens is modest as Curtis' prom date Nick.

This post-Halloween slasher is familiar and slowly plotted, but its competent technical handling helps.

A pretty mediocre slasher - one of the duller and more forgettable entries in the genre. Paul Lynch's 'Prom Night' has too many characters and doesn't bother to develop any of them other than with a few rushed clichés here and there. You end up with shallow characters you don't care about. The buildup takes too long while the killings are really artificial and lacking suspense. None of the acting is worth mentioning. Not even Jamie Lee Curtis is good here.

Maybe the reason "Prom Night" doesn't have brilliant scores on IMDb is because it's supposed to be a horror movie, but it isn't. It is more of a thriller mixed with a teen movie. A good and entertaining teen movie at that. It has interesting and likable characters, some gloriously cheesy (even hilarious) scenes and nice disco music. Performances of the actors are decent and there is even a pretty good chase scene which looks like something that inspired Craven's chase scenes in Scream! Objectively, this movie is a good piece of fun featuring Jamie Lee Curtis in her prime and Leslie Nielsen (it's really weird to see him trying to be serious and you are just waiting to drop some jokes) and if you like a comfy teen movie with a little slasher thrown in the mix, you will have a good time. If you on the other hand want just horror like "Halloween" was, well, you are in for a disappointment. 7.5/10! I recommend it to both veterans and casuals alike!

The opening to the film started good with a slow pace building up to the classmate's death, however, after flashing forward six years, the film starts to slow down. Immediately for the majority of the whole hour of the hour and a half film. It's just build-up to the prom there are long scenes with the killer is just calling up all his victims and just threatening trying to scare them.it overstays its welcome it just drags the movie out. Along with Jamie Lee Curtis, none of the other characters are really that interesting or we get to know anything about them throughout the whole movie it's just them talking and goofing around. By the hour mark is where it starts to get interesting because that's when the prom actually happens with the killer pursuing his victims but more generic and cliché with teenagers just making dumb decisions there's a scene with one girl just runs further away for the auditorium where all the students are dancing and just runs to the far end of the school where no one would even know she was here. This entire film they constantly hammer and the possibility of suspects who the killer might be. The ending is disappointing and Lazy. The most recognizable scene in this movie is the dance with the Prom night song playing. This movie could've been cut down to a short film instead of feature-length.

All of these characters look too old to be in high school, and it is a bit distracting. Jamie Lee Curtis looks too old for the part, even though she's just 21. She is rather ho-hum in Act I, but comes alive in Act III and especially the finale.

There's an effective, if rather by the book, setup to the movie, and that really is its saving grace, aside from a good score and willing cast. A little suspense, a decent mystery, and it is an alright slasher flick. Nothing overly special, but it is rather decent. I watch it maybe twice a year.

Decent enough, and if you are a slasher fan, it is a must own.

Semi-classic

'Prom Night' is a decent little slasher-mystery starring Jamie Lee Curtis in her third scream queen role. The movie also stars Leslie Nielsen as Jamie Lee's father and Hamilton High School principal. Everyone else in it are just bit players, but we must consider that this film stars one of the wickedest you-know-whats in slasher movie history. Her name is Wendy, and she is played by Anne-Marie Martin. Who this actress is, or was, I have no idea, but I know I hated her character with a passion. One of the biggest bonuses for horror fans in this movie will be the big chase scene with her and the killer quite near the end which was deliberately filmed super dark. You can hardly see what's going on and for me it is the best scene in the whole movie. Big points for Wendy's chase scene. It works since she plays the role well, and we've waited so long for this scene and it comes pretty much near the end, but it delivers.

Anyway, 'Prom Night' opens with a tragedy in which young Robin Hammond, who is Jamie Lee's character's little sister, accidentally falls to her death from a two-story window after being cornered by four brats(Wendy, Nick, Kelly, and Jude)who were trying to scare her. Freaked out that they may be in serious trouble, they all make a pact to take it to the grave, initiated by Wendy, the leader of the brats. Ultimately the blame gets pegged on some serial pedophile and no one ever suspects the four kids. But someone else knows and was there and saw the whole thing. We continue twelve years later. It's the day of the prom and all four of the kids receive raspy phone calls, asking them to "come out to play". It concerns most of them, but eventually their minds stray back to the prom. Some of them have dates, some don't. Jamie Lee ends up going with Nick who just dumped Wendy, so Wendy hooks up with Lou, who sort of serves as John Travolta's Billy Nolan from 'Carrie', and the two of them plan to play a prank on Jamie Lee and Nick since they were voted Prom King and Queen. Pause real quick. Remember, Nick is one of the kids who was involved with the death of Jamie Lee's little sister. Could you really keep a secret that big from someone you are "going steady" with? Also, the two other girls involved, Kelly and Jude, appear to be good friends with Jamie Lee's character. I don't think there is much logic in that, but hey, it's a horror movie. I have to overlook it.

In the end, prom dreams are sliced and diced as the vengeful killer begins knocking each of them off, eighties style. The movie is definitely pretty corny and cheaply made, but that's all part of it's charm. The suspense is there, the score is really creepy, and Jamie Lee does her thing. However, the best part is the mystery. Who is the killer? I'm sure we all know twenty-five years later, but it was fun finding out. Everyone is a suspect in 'Prom Night', as mentioned by Randy from the first 'Scream', and it will keep you guessing right up to the climax. Well, actually, when it gets to that point there are only a couple people left that it can be...but it was still a bit of a surprise.

Honestly, I think 'Prom Night' could use a remake. My VCR copy has such awful quality that it's really quite hard to see what's going on on the screen, and I hear that the DVD isn't any better, so I think we could all benefit from a remastered version, or even a remake at this point.

6/10 is my vote. A decent little slice and dice mystery from days long gone. How I miss them...

So there we were, Professor Marvel, CaptainLouisRenault and I, in our halcyon days, knocking around Times Square, ready to laugh at another badly-made horror film that, in 1980, were proliferating faster than "Disco Sucks" t-shirts. And for the most part, "Prom Night" fit the bill. It had the obligatory starring role by Jamie Leigh Curtis; Canada filling in badly for the U.S. (we got to know the bad graphics like those that appear on the sign for "Alexander Hamilton High"--apparently Alex got around); the pacing, which was precisely the same throughout the whole movie, with no alteration; and the poor photography (at that time, all Canadian films were technically unsophisticated: scenes were lit the same whether it was an interior or exterior, night or day; shots began with the establishing-shot pan that moved at EXACTLY the same speed no matter what was happening or how close to the climax you were). And yet, "Prom Night" stands out for one reason alone: the character "Slick," played by one Sheldon Rybowski. Here were the same too-cute teeny-bopper slasher-fodder, most of whom deserved to be slashed, and here comes a chubby, geeky kid with a van, ready for lovin'. You just HAD to admire his chutzpah-which is something for a good Catholic boy to say. Anyway, the movie only was alive while "Slick" was...alive. Mr. Rybowski, so far as I know, has never gotten the credit he deserves for raising this film out of the ordinary. So I raise my...well, SOMETHING...and say, "Mr. Rybowski, I salute you."

I saw Prom Night when it was released back in 1980. So in honor of my 16 year old son's prom this past week, I decided to re-visit this clunky classic and see if I can re-capture my youth. And you know what? I think I enjoyed Prom Night better the second time around. There was actually a pretty good red-herring or two thrown in the mix to "confuse" the viewer into thinking who the killer really was. As a matter of fact since it's been so long, I forgot who the really turned out to be (I was after only 16 myself when I saw this movie 30 years ago!) and was actually surprised at the reveal.

Although there were and still are certain things that ruin the movie for me (like the fact that most of the actors look to be well in their 30s and that disco had already made a quick exit), it's kinda fun to see how campy the film really is. I recommend watching it at least once and enjoy it for what it really is: a time capsule to those lost years of the early slasher movies.

Prom Night is one of those slasher films regarded as a classic, but it seems the only reason is because it featured Jamie Lee Curtis. Jamie Lee is an excellent actress but seems bored all the way through this film. Prom Night starts off promising with some great camera-work and what seems to be an attempt to build suspense, but soon loses steam. About 3 quarters into the film I was wondering if I was watching a slasher or a high school drama, because nothing really happens until the end. When things do start to happen, your senses are bombarded with cheesy disco music and some tedious stalk and slash scenes which are completely devoid of suspense. There is also no real gore apart from a severed head. The severed head scene is cool in a cheesy way, but that's about it.

Watch this if you must, but please stop billing it as a classic. Halloween was a classic, and even Terror Train had something going for it, but Jamie Lee was really slumming it with Prom Night.

One of the Halloween follow-ups that would give Jamie Lee Curtis the title of "scream queen".

Children accidentally cause the death of a little girl, now years later they are in high school and getting ready for the prom. However, it seems someone else is planning on getting some murderous revenge on prom night.

Prom Night is a formula slasher film, with plenty of the slasher trappings, but there are some elements that raise this film above some of the others of it kind. The director gives this movie a truly dark and eerie atmosphere, with the help of Paul Zaza's spooky music score. The plot remains engaging throughout and the creep-factor is kept high. One difference from the slasher "norms" is the fact that we ultimately have sympathy and even sorrow for the film's killer.

While Prom Night is hardly a flawless movie, in fact there are a few scenes where the lighting is way too low and the disco prom dates the film, it does hold it's own. The cast gives good performances, especially Curtis, Eddie Benton, and the late Casey Stevens. There's also a few good rock numbers like "Prom Night" and the mellow "Fade to Black".

Worth a look for slasher fans.

*** out of ****

Not good words to hear if you want to watch a film but then those are the words that best fit this film. This movie was an attempt at a slasher-style horror thriller but it's no better than a FRIDAY THE 13TH sequel and actually less fun than many of those. Despite fine acting talent like Leslie Neilsen and Jamie Lee Curtis, this film drags and drags and then there's that horrible disco dance music. Slow and plodding describes it perfectly.

In truth, this is standard fair for a slasher. Only slightly above the level of many other slasher outings at the time. The killer only gets active during the last half hour of the movie, his identity easily guessed in the end (naturally revolving around a trauma from his past). The red herring is also very obvious. Lots of disco-dancing too in this one. At the time, I imagine it became mildly notorious because of one decapitation scene and gained a little recognition because of scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis starring in it. If you're a slasher fan, this is one you ought to see, even if it's not the most exciting watch you'll ever have.

I just wrapped up Prom Night (1980) off Tubi. I hadn't watched this in ages. This was honestly very average. I was actually rooting for Jamie Lee Curtis' rival. This was a mix of Saturday Night Fever (John Travolta) and Slaughter High...which honestly probably sounds like a description of any given night at Finnigan Somers' house. This is obviously a must see for die hard horror fans as it is technically a classic...but also nothing special overall. This also has the clumsiest killer I've seen in awhile. If you want to see a good horrror movie about the prom, turn to Carrie. 4.5/10 for me.

This 80s slasher film is a bit of a snooze. The storyline is interesting but too much time is spent on the high school drama. The slasher kills are obviously low budget, but they mostly work.

Children playing a game of hide and seek in an abandoned building accidentally throw a classmate off the roof, killing her. They make a pact to never speak of this again and let the world believe she was the victim of some crazed maniac. Flash forward to their senior year of high school and someone is leaving them threatening messages and phone calls on the anniversary of the child's death which just so happens to take place on prom night. This isn't a great slasher movie and most of the actual slashing takes over an hour to get to, but some of the characters are interesting to spend time with and the finale more than makes up for any slow periods earlier in the film.

As kids, a group of friends push a girl out of a window and she dies in a most heinous manner. Many years later, the same friends (who look thirty, but are apparently eighteen) are ready to go to the prom, but a masked killer wants them all dead. Is it the madman who recently escaped from the insane asylum? To find out, you will have to wait for the shocking conclusion...

As my headline proclaims, I thought this was a horror classic. And I still think some people think it is, because they made numerous sequels and a lackluster remake recently came out. But I want to know why. This film was mostly boring, with really awful lighting and characters I could not keep straight or give two figs about. It comes across as something like "I Know What You Did Last Summer" (only much earlier, obviously), except for one major difference: the girl who gets killed in the beginning is certainly very dead.

Director Paul Lynch should not take pride in this. Not that he has done anything to really take pride in (besides some decent episodes of "Star Trek"). If I were to sit down and enjoy a chai tea with Paul, I would have so many questions to ask him about what possessed him to make such an awful film. And then I would make him buy my tea. (Though, to be fair, this was an early attempt from him, having really only worked on the forgotten "Blood & Guts", which was also written by "Prom Night"'s William Gray, who penned the much better "The Changeling" that same year.)

The casting is confusing. Leslie Neilsen appears, in a serious role, but he adds essentially nothing to the movie for the brief moments he is in it. Jamie Lee Curtis, fresh from "Halloween", shows up as the heroine and I think we are supposed to think she is an attractive teenager. But she looks like a 30-year old cross-dressing man. If people in 1980 thought this was sexy, I am really glad I was not around to be a part of that. Then again, my friend Seth still does, so who knows? All the other actors are forgettable, besides maybe Sheldon Rybowski, the guy who plays Slick.

Only one scene in the entire movie was actually cool for the horror fans, and you will have to wait for over an hour to see it -- and if you blink or do not have slow-motion on your DVD player, you may likely miss it. I will not say what happens, but a character gets killed. Very quickly.

There is also a really elaborate dancing scene (that I hope is in the remake, but disco probably is not cool anymore). I enjoyed that, and I freely admit it. So, despite all the trash I talk in this review, I have to confess there were parts I liked... oh, you know, like every scene with Slick.

I suppose with the remake having come out, you should watch the original first. Might give you some perspective. I thought it was safe to say the new one would be vastly superior, especially if they had cast up and coming starlets like Mary Elizabeth Winstead. But they did not, and that is just my personal bias. So, it seems the old boring film might be better than the new... a small miracle, really. The one thing that is hard about being a horror fan is trying to explain why Jamie Lee Curtis is a horror actress... and I just do not have the heart to defend her. Do not watch this film unless you want to be confused and disappointed.

Synapse Films is releasing a 2K digital restoration in 2014. I was able to catch an advance screening, though I have to say it falls under that old story: you can polish a poop, but it is still a poop.

I first saw Prom Night back when I was 10 years old, but didn't appreciate it as a film until re-watching it at 19. Watching it a second time was like discovering a priceless gem and I must say, as a screenwriter, I still look to this movie as motivation and inspiration. Unlike most Hollywood horror/slasher movies, it did what most of the latter cannot, which is provide a combination of good lucks and good acting, therefor ensuring we care about the characters.

Scream most definitely took a page from this movie as inspiration for its mystery theme. Though the budget was low and this movie was made in 1980 I feel that it still has enough of a story to keep us entertained and also enough of a punch to make us jump a bit. But what really makes Prom Night a success is its actors. Jamie Leigh was wonderful as always, but one character I felt that stole the show was the character of Wendy. As vile and wicked as they made her, the actress portraying her gave her depth. I felt as a viewer that she was more than just the typical bitch character. With killer lines, a beautiful face, and a chase scene that has been the foundation of future horror movie chase scenes, this girl makes the movie worth watching.

If you happen to see this movie on or notice it in a video store I would suggest giving it a look. I would love to see a remake, ONLY if they kept the plot the same, but intensified the horror, much like what was done in TTCM remake. And, of course, to have Edie Benton and Jamie Leigh make an cameo or guest appearance somewhere!

It's fun, but much too slow. Still, I definitely enjoyed myself and never entertained the thought of turning it off. Jamie Lee Curtis and some nice, easygoing cinematography really carried this film.

The kills are pretty forgettable and not at all impressive. Somehow even the kills felt too slow.

While some of the obvious slasher tropes are here, this felt more like a slow burn suspense-thriller.

The twist definitely caught me off guard, though. Didn't see that coming.

I gotta ask: how was Jamie Lee Curtis playing a high school student when she didn't even play a high school student in Halloween which came out two years prior? She looked 26 in this movie.

Besides the adults playing teens I had a problem with the pacing of this movie. It took over an hour for the first kill! I wanted a scary movie and I got a mesh between your typical high school movie and Saturday Night Fever. It was highly annoying.

Carrie is still the best prom night on film and this movie didn't even threaten that title.

I just watched Prom Night for the first time in over ten years, and a few things stuck with me after the viewing.

First of all, after a creepy opening sequence, detailing the cruel, yet accidental death of an innocent girl, the movie CRAWWWWWLLLLSSSSS... In other films of it's genre, such as the superior Friday the 13th series, the murders are usually evenly spread throughout the film, setting the tone for a climactic ending. Not here. The first hour of Prom Night seems like it could be from some long forgotten 70's after school special.

Secondly, it amazed me how much this movie has in common with Jennifer Love Hewitt's hit "I Know What You Did Last Summer". Both movies feature a group of characters that accidentally kill an innocent, then act irrationally as they attempt to avoid blame. They bully each other into promising never to talk about the death ever again. At some future point (one year later in IKWYDLS, six years later in Prom Night...) all the participants receive threatening reminders of their crime as a precursor to the actual murders. Makes me wonder if the producers of IKWYDLS didn't INTENTIONALLY steal the plot, and just change the particulars.

At any rate, Jamie Lee Curtis is always welcome in these slasher films, (even though she looks a little old to play a high school student) and Leslie Nielsen plays the principal of the school whom happens to be Jamie's father.

It's not bad as early 80's slasher go, as the killings (especially the punk whom gets beheaded...) are fairly graphic, but the slow pace really lessens the impact of the entire film.

Also, is it just me, or does the disco music being played at the prom sound like outtakes from an Abba recording session?