gavin6942 In the wealthy and isolated desert community of Tucson, a sound expert (David Keith) is targeted as the prime suspect of a series of brutal murders of local suburban housewives who were attacked and mutilated in their homes. Tucson is the perfect home for this killer, as it provides a mix of the "civilized" and the wild.This is one of those titles that has faded more or less into obscurity. As I understand it, the movie was released in 1987 to critical acclaim but low box office returns, causing it never to get a proper release. At least not until Scream Factory came along and put the film on Blu-ray, along with some special features. (Unfortunately, the director had long since passed.) The film is beautifully shot, using extensive time to show the landscape and surroundings. This does slow the picture down, which will scare some viewers off, but at least for the first half of the movie, it is more of a work of art than a thriller or horror picture. The artsy shots during the murders (not focused on the murder itself), the classical music... it is quite a feast.Things go from subdued to bizarre in the second half. Not wanting to give anything away, I cannot even mention the strangest moments. But after the first half, you could never even guess the sort of things you will see. It is like the first half is more or less an attempt to emulate the Italian giallo (we even see nothing of the killer beyond an eye and some gloves). Then it becomes more like what we expect from Cannon Films.Someone ought to explain what is wrong with the daughter. Is she mentally disabled or just socially awkward? But maybe that is just to contribute more to the strange vibe the film gives off. That unusual casting is contrasted with the return of Cathy Moriarty ("Raging Bull"), who had come back from a five-year acting hiatus following a serious car accident. Audiences today may know her best as the villain in "Casper", but it is great to see her in this more challenging role.The Scream Factory audio commentary comes from Cammell biographer Sam Umland, who is surprisingly knowledgeable not just on Cammell, but on the various shots of this film and how they may be references to obscure French and Italian films. He finds many subtle hints that may or may not have been intentional, such as the parallels between the plot of the film and the plot of the opera that Paul White sings. We can also learn of the multiple homages to "Peeping Tom", most notably the use of a mirror during murder. Very, very wise decision, Scream.The disc also comes with two deleted scenes and an interview with the Steadicam operator, Larry McConkey. (Actually, there are other interviews on the disc not listed on the case, which are very much worth your time.) For a film that has been widely forgotten, Scream pulled all the stops and gave this just about as good of a release as anyone could hope for.

dbdumonteil The last half of the movie is a "shining" ripoff ;to be fair ,one should add there's a final "unexpected " twist for good measure,and plenty of gore .It's a wonder attractive Cathy Moriarty did not go nuts after such an adventure.The first half suffers from a loose screenplay .Most of the scenes do not bring much to the thin plot.The most interesting side is the guy-next-door side of the hero ,but the "I can't help it,It's another person " neurosis is as old as the hills ,itw as already what Peter Lorre said in Lang's "M".If you do not ask for too much,you may have a look ,but only if you are into the "serial killer" sub genre.

sol ***SPOILER ALERT*** Before were even introduced to the major characters in the film we witness one of the most brutal and sadistic murders in all of motion picture history. The savage slashing and dismantling of the murder victim makes the shower scene in "Psycho" look like as if someone nicked their face shaving in comparison.At the scene of the crime local cop Det. Charles Mendoza, Art Evens, not only notices very distinct tire tracks but things lined up, in the murder victim's house, that resemble that of an ancient Apache direction marker or weather-vane. It turns out that the tire tracks fits the truck tires that Paul White (David Keith), the areas crackerjack electronic and sound upgrade expert, drives. The movie then seems to go off kilter with David's love life, not his being suspected in a number of horrific crimes in and around Globe Arizona, being the main focus of its story.We get a number of flashbacks of a younger David, looking like a 1960's hippie, meeting his future wife Joan, Cathy Moriarty, who together with her boyfriend Mike DeSantos, Alen Rosenberg,stopped off at his repair shop on their way to Malibu to get their eight track tape recorder fixed. We soon realize that the handsome and sure of himself David stole Cathy away from Mike which greatly, to say the least, upset him. Now some ten years later with both David & Cathy happily married with and eight year old daughter Danielle, Danielle Smith, a bitter Mike, who had since served time behind bars, shows up out of the blue! David for his part has been cheating on Cathy for what seems like years with him having an affair with one of his customers, whom he installed a TV and stereo unite, the sultry Ann Mason, Alberta Watson. What all this had to do with David being suspected in a string of vicious murders, which by then you almost forgot about, made you wounder if the film's storyline somehow got lost on the cutting room floor? ****SPOILERS**** It's in the last fifteen or so minutes of the movie, after Mike showed up, that we get to understand what all these disjointed events had to do with the series of murders in and around Arizona. It all had to do with a hunting trip back in 1976 that both David & Mike went on. Something happened on that hunting trip in the Arizona Rockies that later changed things around in the movie not only forever but for the absolute worst!I doubt if anyone can match the murderous psycho in the movie "White Of The Eye" who's actions, while both crazy and normal, should have easily earned him, or the actor who played him, the best actor Academy Award for 1987. The final and unbelievable showdown in the broiling and empty Arizona desert has the totally deranged madman go out in a blaze of glory to the thunderous sounds of Gustav Mahler's Second Symphony! Which in him being the great music lover that he is was more then a fitting ending for him.

snowboarderbo this films is definitely an under-seen gem... David Keith will scare the crap out of you. Beautifully filmed, excellent pacing, and Cathy Moriarity is as sexy a woman as has ever graced the screen. Glad to see that a few others were lucky/smart enough to see this film... for years i thought i was one of about 4 people who had even heard of it.