Woodyanders Review of Scared to Death

Scared to Death (1980)

A really likable and enjoyable low-budget earthbound "ALIEN" clone

[8/10 · 26 January 2007]

A lethal scientific mistake called a Syngenor (an acronym for Synthetic Genetic Organism) makes its home in the Los Angeles sewer system and occasionally comes out to either stick its slimy forked tongue down people's throats so it can feast on their spinal fluid or drag various unfortunate folks underground to feed its grotesque shellfish-like offspring. Dorky ex-cop turned bestselling novelist Ted Lonergan (an engaging performance by John Stinson) and attractive genetics student Sherry Carpenter (the fetching Toni Janotta, who resembles a young Barbara Steele) go after the malevolent humanoid reptilian monster (Kermit Eller in a nifty rubber suit) while the police make fools out of themselves trying to figure out the baffling clues. This really fun and lively earthbound "ALIEN" clone starts out rather sluggishly, but still winds up delivering the satisfying creature feature goods with an especially stirring and suspenseful conclusion. Writer/director William Malone, who went on to helm the big budget "House on Haunted Hill" remake and the dreadful "FearDotCom," keeps the pace moving at a reasonably brisk clip, only slowing things down for a few dreary dialogue scenes and a boring romance between Lonergan and girlfriend Jennifer Stanton (the lovely Diana Davidson) that are sandwiched between the pleasingly snappy and fairly gruesome beast attack set pieces. Moreover, the sequences in the sewer have a genuinely creepy and claustrophobic atmosphere to them, the monster is very cool, and the film overall has a certain earnest quality to it that's both endearing and entertaining.