Bad Dreams (1988)

Strong and Moving!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

"Bad Dreams" has Cynthia (Jennifer Rubin) awaking from a thirteen year-long coma that she was put into when the leader of a cult which her mother was a part of led a mass suicide by fire in a remote farmhouse. As Cynthia tries to assimilate into life again, those around her in the hospital begin dying in mysterious suicides— and the fact that Cynthia is beginning to see the ghost of the cult leader lurking around doesn't make things look all that great.This was one film that has been on my "to watch" list for a long time, but I have to say it was a pleasant surprise and far exceeded my expectations. Surprisingly high-gloss, the film, directed by Andrew Fleming (who later found success as a mainstream Hollywood director) was released in 1988 by 20th Century Fox with the expectation that it would become a blockbuster and ignite a franchise of sorts— neither of these things happened, and for understandable reasons, but that doesn't detract from the fact that this is a really well-made horror film, especially by '80s standards.The comparisons to "A Nightmare on Elm Street" are fair enough, although the truth is that this film really doesn't have all that much to do with dreams at all— it's really about the traumatic effects dealt onto a young woman who spent her childhood in a sinister cult, which makes for grim subject matter as is. It is a slasher film in an unconventional sense— that being that the deaths are suicides— but the setups for each of them are based on the maneuvering hand of Harris, the malevolent cult leader's ghost. Lots of great special effects here that should be taken note of, and really nice photography. The film has a polished studio look that isn't particularly common for slasher films of this era. Jennifer Rubin plays the doe- eyed, flighty Cynthia convincingly, and "Re-Animantor's" Bruce Abbott plays her psychiatrist/eventual love interest; Richard Lynch is in stark opposition as the wild-eyed cult leader, who spends half of the film covered in gruesome fourth degree burns.Overall, "Bad Dreams" is an effective thriller and is a surprisingly classy oddball of the late 1980s slasher crop. While the film's victim count feels by-the-numbers, it is still an entertaining watch bolstering some solid performances and a visibly adept craftsmanship behind it. It's no surprise that Fleming found success with his later more mainstream pictures given what he was able to pull off here. Worth some attention from any fans of eighties horror. 7/10.

I actually quite liked this movie. For a horror movie that came out a quarter of a century ago it still proves to be scary. I haven't seen a cult horror movie in a long time and it was a welcome topic. Cults always have a way of coming off creepy and provide the perfect material for a scary movie. The scariest thing is when you witness the strong beliefs of cult members and just how trusting they can be.If your looking for a creepy 80's horror film (along the same lines as nightmare on elm street) then this is a great choice. It made me nervous the whole way through with it's eerie music and clinical setting. The actors also did a fantastic job. Surprisingly everything felt real and they completely immersed themselves in their characters. A must see for all lovers of vintage horror movies.

Bad Dreams is a fun late 80's horror film that feels a lot like The third part of A Nightmare on Elm St. Like that movie, Bad Dreams takes place in a hospital setting. The story goes that a girl named Cynthia was the sole survivor of a mass suicide in a cult community named "Unity Fields". She ends up in a coma for thirteen years, but when she awakes, several of her fellow patients at the psychiatric hospital start dying. It appears like they are committing suicide, but could it be murder? The film is a lot like A Nightmare on Elm St 3, which also stared Jennifer Rubin. There is a burned man seemingly going after the patients, the doctors believe the people are killing themselves are refuse to think otherwise. Although it is similar, Bad Dreams is a decent horror flick with some gruesome moments.The hospital setting in a horror film is always fun to me. You would think it's safe, but it almost never is. The acting is pretty good in this as well. There is also a nice little twist to the story as well. The DVD is hard to find, I own the VHS. So if you come across this, I say buy it.8/10

Bad Dreams (1988) Director: Andrew Fleming (The Craft) ***out of**** Review After barely escaping crazy cult guru's (able Richard Lynch) fiery suicide pact, Cynthia (the very gorgeous and likable Jennifer Rubin) finds herself awaking 13 years later, in year 1988. Trying to get on with her life, she starts to realize that her fellow patients in the mental hospital start dying in brutal ways, and start seeing hallucinations/dreams/visions of Harris, the burnt up cult leader. Is he back from the grave, vowing revenge for Cynthia's survival, or is something more sinister going on? Rather then going the cliché way in my review and bashing this movie for its direct influences from A Nightmare on Elm Street 3, I'll just say that they never got in the way of my enjoyment of this film. A lot of movies rip off others all the time, so I don't seem to ever get annoyed by these.The film has top notch production values, a very entertaining cast, and some warped out death scenes. You can see how the movie just wants to be a good thriller and does so almost effortlessly. I remember my dad buying a old VHS copy when I was 9 or so and not really liking it's cover, but since I didn't want to hurt my dad's feelings I stuck it up and pretended to be excited, and watched it, and ever since then I have a place in my (movie watching) heart for this, perhaps just based on that back story alone.One thing that I really enjoy is the actors. Lot's of familiar and likable faces in the house. I invested more into the movie by that way. I do admit the characters of the mental patients aren't fully developed enough though, I wanted to know more and see more about them, like the very sympathetic Lana (played quite well by Elizabeth Daily). She has a scene where she opens up her heart and I started liking her, but the movie is quick to get to the gore and kills and her plight is cut way to short. Same could be said for Dean Cameron and Susan Barnes.The directing by Andrew Fleming is basically there to serve the story, nothing to stand out. I would have preferred to see a director with a more unique visual voice (all of the Flemings movies never have stand out visuals) it would have made the movie more stand out, and his angles are pretty bland. Good scene transitions though.The soundtrack by Jay Ferguson was much appreciated and quite dreamy. Far better then his over the top attempt with Nightmare 5: Dream Child.The kills and gore are very queasy, and people who have dealt with a suicide or (god forbid) seen a suicide will surly be offended by this movie, but since I'm a avid horror fan I was never offended, but they certainly had cruel streak.Some flaws that hurt the movie are the lack of character development (as stated) and the movie's ending felt rushed, forced, and cut short. What happened to our survivors? I hate endings that never show the characters reactions after the events are over. One thing I will compare to Nightmare 3 is the ending, which was done there was well. Please take at least 4 or so minutes to better resolve our characters. The "surprise" in the end wasn't fully explored either, it somewhat didn't make much sense to me. What is this persons final goal when he succeeds? So maybe because I didn't want to hurt my dad's feelings at an early age, makes me warm up to this easier, or maybe it is just decent effort that can be watched from time to time. But be warned, this movie deals with suicide in a crude manner and surely will offend some.