The Final Terror (1983)

Not the way I remembered it, 26 December 2005

I saw The Final Terror in the theater in 1983. For 22 years, I've had fond memories of the movie and have considered it one of the better slasher films of the 80s. I re-watched it the other day and realized that time has not been kind to this movie. It's not the way I remembered it. I remembered a fairly innovative movie about a backwoods killer. In reality, it's all pretty standard stuff. There's really nothing here to get all that excited about. As for the killer, I normally complain that the killers in these movies have too much screen time. But in The Final Terror, by the time the killer shows up, the movie is over. Sadly, it appears that I've been wrong about this movie for over two decades.

The Final Terror will be remembered for one thing, though – the cast. Even if you don't recognize the names, most movie fans will recognize more than a few of the faces. Darryl Hannah, Rachel Ward, Joe Pantoliano, and a few others have appeared in a surprising number of memorable movies and television series.

5/10