Fade to Black

I was 11 when this came on Showtime. When I saw it, sneaking into the TV room late at night, keeping the volume low, hoping to see boobies, I was shocked by the violence, particularly the senselessness of it. I wish I'd had parental guidance to help me sort through the emotional impact of this film. I like to think I "turned out okay" except now I am afraid of Marilyn Monroe impersonators.

The concept for Fade To Black could go many different directions, but the film wavers between serious character drama a la Joker, made for TV melodrama, and a cursory attempt at a slasher film. They never really mesh and the film feels too confused to make much of an impact in spite of a wonderful central performance by Dennis Christopher. Linda Kerrige also makes for a smashing Marilyn Monroe impersonator.

A movie-obsessed nerd has enough of people not taking his cinematic ambitions seriously, so he kills them in disguises inspired by his favorite movie characters. As many good things as Fade To Black has going for it, the finished product is unsatisfying in a variety of ways. It's torn between tortured character study and also trying to keep up with the culture's current obsession with slasher movies and doesn't commit to either fully enough to satisfy and it's neither as thrilling or psychologically complex as it could be. Dennis Christopher's performance holds it together even when it comes close to crumbling down.

Eric Binford (Dennis Christopher) is a troubled nebbish with an obsession for old movies. One day he snaps, causing him to take vengeance upon those who have wronged him. The cool thing about this movie is Binford's method of dispatching his victims. He shows up dressed in full costume and makeup as Dracula, The Mummy, a cowboy, and a gangster to deliver his version of justice. Christopher is believable in his unhinged role, and the movie itself is entertaining and a novel take on the slasher / revenge film...

This is a favorite movie of mine. I rushed out and got it on video when I heard it had been released. A lot of people here have given impressions of the story, I won't add to their great comments. What I would like to say is this this movie is a tremendous tribute to Hollywood Classic Movies. You will see snippets of many films here, all will be readily recognized. You will see Dennis Christopher's character slip deep into psychosis and take on the personas (and look..) of many of these characters in order to wreak his revenge. The more you know about old movies, the more you will get out of this film. Yes, it's essentially a slasher movie but this goes beyond the genre to get deep into the head of a killer. I like to think of this movie as a movie-fans version of "Sunset Boulevard", showing a broken mind on the other side of the fence. Worth seeing.

It's a pretty good film, it's odd but has nice a mix of comedy, horror & thriller. The first 30/35 minutes lay the backdrop for the things in the last hour of the film - and that last hour is a decent watch. Eric Binford is a guy obsessed with classic films of all genres. The love of his life is the famed actress Marilyn Monroe and he sees Marilyn O'Connor as Monroe. He's slowing "cracking up" when we are introduced to him... but as the film progresses we watch him fall deeper into madness. His obsession with the classic films turns deadly. Overall I enjoyed this film - it's not a great film, but it's not a bad film at all! Worth watching if you like horror movies. 7/10