A Night to Dismember (1983)

A Night to Dismember (1983). 1h 9m | Not Rated

“Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of A Night To Dismember; hereu0026#39;s the breakdown of my ratings:u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eStory: 0.25nDirection: 0.00nPace: 0.00nActing: 0.00nEnjoyment: 0.25u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTOTAL: 0.50 out of 10.00u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe one saving grace of A Night To Dismember is that it was written, directed, and starred amateurs. But that grace doesnu0026#39;t make it any the less odious.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe solitary light in the gloom was the story. The concept was credible and would still make for a decent story and a good movie. A mentally unstable woman gets sent to an asylum for murder. Upon her release, after years of therapy, she returns to the family home, where she finds very little has changed. Her mother has kept her room unchanged, and her sister and brother still live with their parents. Though her father is dubious about her return, he welcomes her back, though her mother possesses the welcoming arms. Her siblings want her gone: Back to the asylum or…worse. As we progress through the narrative, the writer sprinkles in some seeds of doubt, especially about the murders she was convicted of committing and her familyu0026#39;s sanity. So all of this sounds great, and you think youu0026#39;ll give it a look-see.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eStop! Donu0026#39;t do it! Read on.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSadly the way the storyu0026#39;s handled, or I should say, mishandled, is atrocious. It had so much potential – and still does – that what these guys and gals did to it is more horrific than any of the murders they recollect. Itu0026#39;s horrifically structured and oftentimes makes little or no sense. The characters are less than one-dimensional, and none possess the hint of a sliver of a soul. The events and incidents are jagged and haphazard. It is one confusing and tedious tale indeed.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnd the direction is worse as thereu0026#39;s not even a twinkle of light in this murkiness of cinematography. The director chose to go narration-heavy. Most segments only have a talk-over and seldomly do we get to hear the performers speak. Why he decided on this route is lost in time – who can say(?) What I can say is that the narration doesnu0026#39;t work. It only added to my annoyance, which was already high due to the lack of story structure and decent camerawork. Iu0026#39;ll give the cameraman this – his shots may be hideously composed, but he does keep the camera steady, which is the opposite of what many camera people suffer from today. The editor must have undergone an extreme case of Deja Vu as numerous scenes are recurring. However, theyu0026#39;re not repeated further along in the film but directly after their first run. This repetitiveness isnu0026#39;t even an amateurish mistake. When you understand the process of splicing in scenes, you realise theyu0026#39;re intentional. But, Why(?)u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs for the cast, well, they turned up on set. Itu0026#39;s hard to give them much credit if any. The narration robbed them of dialogue, and theyu0026#39;re not skilled enough to only act through their body language. And whenever thereu0026#39;s a killing, itu0026#39;s too timid and impotent. Nobody gets into their characters, and I cannot blame them in the slightest.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAll I can say for A Night To Dismember is that this movie is one to miss – and to miss with extreme prejudice. So if you have to buy the film, pour lighter fluid over it and set it alight, then send it through a diamond shredder and force-feed the charred remains to your Great Aunt Tilly just before she jets off home to the other side of the world, I would rank that as a fantastic idea and say go for it!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWave goodbye to Great Aunt Tilly, then come and check my Killer Thriller Chillers list to see where I ranked A Night To Dismember – and find something better for your entertainment.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTake Care u0026amp; Stay Well.”