Deathdream

Presumably taking cues from Romero, Clark's Deathdream is an unusual blend of horror, domestic drama and social commentary, grafting an effective, if somewhat simplistic, critique of the tragic effects of war on soldiers and families onto the skeletal base of a cheap zombie flick. It's no Black Christmas, but it surprisingly works due to the efforts of a committed cast, Ormsby's coherent script and Clark's atmospheric direction. Savini's makeup is also fine given its budgetary limitations.

The acting is a bit wobbly in places...but the zombie guy is undeniably cool (and he even smiles a bit!). Our (anti)hero ends up looking like Lou Reed near the end (for his big date). Poor Joanne though...she definitely deserved better than that.

It's pretty refreshing to see a relatively simple film like this succeed in creating an atmosphere of doom and gloom. I wasn't really engaged throughout the whole thing (partly because of the at times annoying soundtrack), but as the end approaches things got pretty dark and my interest increased. Some decent make-up work from Savini and the guy who plays Andy does a good job being a creepy psycho.

Double feature this with "Johnny Got His Gun" and prepare yourself for the most depressingly miserable evening of your life. Great idea, with no explanations or character development and lots of atmosphere.

Bob Clark has the most unhinged filmography of any director. Total chaos. Oh you want a Vietnam story well how about a Christmas classic well guess what heres some 50s sex comedy and hey hang on come back did you ever wonder if baby's could talk

It’s got Jack Woltz from The Godfather! Oh, and that Anya Ormsby and a couple of others from Children Shouldn’t...etc. Quite a creepy set up, played through some unsettling moments. It certainly feels more accomplished than Clark’s earlier work, on pretty much every level. Nicely handled, with some creditable performances. A horror film that feels more like a somewhat tragic drama. Decent.

I can't imagine how this played in 1974, because now, forty years after Vietnam, Bob Clark's horror tragedy is incredibly sad. While the photography and makeup make this worth a watch alone, it is the fantastic performances by Marley and Carlin that sell the story of two grieving parents unwilling to accept the loss of their son.

Way ahead of its time.

Absolutely vicious picture of post-Vietnam America. Andy gives off major Anthony Perkins energy in his rocking chair.

Neat little horror film, dated but charmingly so. There's some depth (not much) to it, yet despite allegorical pretentions the film never feels like it bites off more than it can chew and it's modest aspirations are fully realized. It's not essential in any way, but it's an enjoyably unpleasant way to spend an hour and a half, worthy of both a rewatch and an early spot on an allnight horrorthon.

Great mixture of 50's melodrama and trashy horror.

I really dug Lou Reed as a soldier, who also happens to be a zombie--and a vampire.

Viewed October 20, 2020.

Surprisingly tame and uneventful. The acting was just as bad as I expected and the story was as interesting but this just really didn't do it for me.

A brilliantly sick allegory. The final scene is a fright-film classic in this Ernest Hemingway's "Soldier's Home" Meets _Night of the Living Dead_.

A traumatised Vietnam vet returns home more dead than living, and with a ghoulish urge to kill: just as BLACK CHRISTMAS could be seen as foreshadowing HALLOWEEN, so too this obliquely anticipates TAXI DRIVER. Also concerns the uncanniness of familial life that has become “out of joint”, where things continue but with no connection between the members. But in this regard it seems to have inverted THE GRADUATE, being about a Jewish man with a gentile wife and kids. Good moments, but a bit rickety.

I'm not sure if he was a zombie or a vampire. Maybe both? Very effective and tragic horror drama that bravely tackled the Vietnam War era shortly after the US ended their part in the conflict.

Some great ol' horror shock here.

An original take on the vampire/zombie genre. Not much to be said because not a lot happens throughout the movie.

The Brooks family, told their son/brother died in Vietnam, are delighted to see him reappear... until people in town start dying mysteriously. Great idea is given flat treatment.

I died for you.

O Bob Clark dos anos 70 era excepcional, entre os melhores do cinema de horror na década, aqui ele atinge uma excelência não só no gênero, mas em questões sócio-políticas-psicanalíticas também, o elenco magnificente ajuda e muito no ajuste da tensão. DVD Versátil Zumbis no Cinema Volume 3

A bit of a frustrating watch. The underlying conceit is reminscent of early Romero--where the concept of the undead was a political satire and not the too familiar vacuous monstrocity. But God, is this hard too watch: bad acting (barring the lead's creepy smiles), hokey photography and effects really make this feel like a Tale from the Crypt when this had the potential to be a true classic. I guess Clark decided to put all his attention into Black Christmas that year...

Clarks other '74 cult classic is a brilliant tale of a soldier's return to his family.

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