Hell Night

“As an initiation rite into Alpha Sigma Rho fraternity, four pledges must spend a night in Garth Manor, twelve years to the day after the previous resident murdered his entire family. Two of the pledges, Marti and Jeff ignore the rumors that the now-deserted mansion is haunted by a crazed killer, until one by one, members of their group mysteriously disappear. Could this be a part of a fraternity prank … or is a demented former tenant seeking revenge?

When this seemingly innocent night turns deadly, these college students will do anything to survive Hell Night. Directed by genre filmmaker Tom DeSimone (Reform School Girls, Angel III: The Final Chapter), this slasher classic has a talented young cast including Linda Blair (The Exorcist), Vincent Van Patten (Rock ‘N’ Roll High School), Peter Barton (Friday The 13th: The Final Chapter) and Kevin Brophy (The Seduction).”

Linda Blair is no doubt a household name when it comes to horror, thanks to The Exorcist that still terrifies audiences to this day with the green bile and spinning head. For me, the most terrifying thing about the film revolves around those amazing effects, and I was anxious to see if Hell Night could live up to the cult status that didn’t rely on Linda Blair’s name alone. The short answer is a resounding no. While this isn’t entirely Linda Blair’s fault, as the film suffers from a myriad of problems that stem from a poorly written story and characters that produce a painfully dull film.

We learn from the obligatory explanation that the old house that a fraternity forces new recruits to spend the night in that the previous owners we brutally murdered, and one of the family members are still believed to live inside the house somewhere. The story begins like a museum tour that is easily forgettable, which can cause confusion later in the film when you are trying to figure out what is even going on. Four people, including Linda Blair, are locked in for the night and left to their own resolves as the rest of the fraternity plan to come back later on to play pranks on them.

The pranks don’t fool the intended victims for very long, but that’s when they begin to escalate into something more than playful stunts meant to scare them, and this is when the film goes from bad to worse. A mystery figure begins tormenting them, killing them one by one as the kids are forced to try and figure out what’s going on, which is a true mystery, because even after watching the film I had a hard time myself. Hell Night is a culmination of tired clichés and a horrible formulaic story that does nothing to explain itself or offer any satisfaction in a conclusion that makes sense. If Hell Night makes one thing clear, Linda Blair’s name alone should not invoke cult status, as her acting is almost as painful to watch as the dull story that unfolds before us. Instead of screams, it’ll be head scratches, as there will be no figuring out what the hell is happening.

Video

Hell Night is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen 1.85:1. The film is presented with a new 4k scan from the best archival film print that was available, with the following note that accompanies the film:

“A Note About Our New 4K Scan:  We did an extensive search for the original film elements, but were unable to locate them. Therefore, this new transfer comes from a 4K scan of the best surviving archival 35mm film print of Hell Night. We did extensive color correction and film restoration to clean up any film damage. Because the print was missing some minor footage, so we have inserted a small amount of standard definition footage to deliver the complete film. We hope you enjoy this new restoration of this ‘80s horror classic.”

Although there was quite a bit of work done on the film to bring the best available quality possible, the film suffers from major issues due to the poor quality of the archival print, including extensive scratches and damage. Despite this, Scream Factory does its best to bring the best that they possibly can to their Collector’s Editions.

Audio

The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio Mono. For a mono track, it sounds fine, with some loud and powerful effects and screams that balance nicely with the score.

Special Features

There are some very interesting interviews on this set that are worth taking a look at, especially with Linda Blair and learning about her memories of her career. On this set you’re going to see:

• NEW4K Scan Of The Film Taken From The Best Surviving Archival Print
• NEWInterviews With Actors Linda Blair, Peter Barton, Vincent Van Patten, Suki Goodwin, Kevin Brophy, And Jenny Neumann
• Audio Commentary With Linda Blair, Tom DeSimone, Irwin Yablans, And Bruce Cohn Curtis
• Original Theatrical Trailer & TV Spots

Blu-ray Disc Exclusive Bonus Features:

• NEWInterview With Director Tom DeSimone
• NEWInterview With Producer Bruce Cohn Curtis
• NEWInterview With Writer Randolph Feldman
• NEW– Anatomy Of The Death Scenes With Tom DeSimone, Randolph Feldman, Make-up Artist Pam Peitzman, Art Director Steven G. Legler, And Special Effects Artist John Eggett
• NEW– On Location At The Kimberly Crest House With Tom DeSimone
• NEW– Gothic Design In Hell Night With Steven G. Legler
• Original Radio Spot
• Photo Gallery Featuring Rare, Never-before-seen Stills

DVD Disc:

• NEW4K Scan Of The Film Taken From The Best Surviving Archival Print
• NEWInterviews With Actors Linda Blair, Peter Barton, Vincent Van Patten, Suki Goodwin, Kevin Brophy, And Jenny Neumann
• Audio Commentary With Linda Blair, Tom DeSimone, Irwin Yablans, And Bruce Cohn Curtis
• Original Theatrical Trailer & TV Spots

Although I didn’t enjoy Hell Night as much as some of the other Collector’s Editions that Scream Factory puts out, fans of the film will surely want to pick it up, simply for the amazing treatment that Scream Factory has given it.