Blackout (1985 TV Movie) User Reviews

Twisted dedication

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 5 December 2014]

Blackout is an HBO TV film that stars Richard Widmark as a dedicated cop who catches a grisly case of a family massacre along the lines of the infamous John List case. A wife and two children are slaughtered and the husband has skipped. Widmark pursues the case even into his retirement. I'm guessing seeing something like that will give you a twisted dedication.

The latest lead takes him to another town a few hundred miles away where Keith Carradine was an amnesia patient and no memory of his after surviving a fiery car crash and needing much plastic surgery. He marries his nurse Kathleen Quinlan and now they have three children seven years after the other incident.

Could he be Widmark's quarry? No evidence, no forensic evidence to go either way. There's another complicating factor, a serial rapist starts operating in the area whom the cops suspect is Carradine. At least one cop is pursuing that. Michael Beck has not forgotten that Carradine snatched Quinlan from him. He'd love to get him out of the way.

Widmark as the veteran cop dominates this film. Only at the beginning and the end does this film merit being called a slasher flick. Otherwise it's a good nail biting mystery.

Pretty good thriller.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 7/10 · 23 January 2004]

A woman and her three children are brutally murdered-and her husband mysteriously disappeared.The police chief who handled the case remains obsessed with tracking down the killer.An anonymous tip points him in the direction of a totally disfigured amnesiac."Blackout" is a pretty good thriller.The action is slow-paced,but there is plenty of suspense.The acting is pretty good and there are some horrifying moments.Check it out.7 out of 10.

Another "Who am I ?" only this one is worth seeking out ........

[merklekranz · 7/10 · 3 January 2014]

"Blackout" is similar to at least a bunch of other films, in that someone has no recollection of who they are or their past history. Obsessed detective, Richard Widmark, believes he finally has found his prime suspect in a seven year old murder investigation. Problem is their identity cannot be confirmed because of reconstructive surgery following a horrific car accident, and they remember nothing. The film tries to cast doubt on Widmark's suspicions, even so far as suggesting he planted evidence to help his cause. This TV movie is way above average, with an intriguing script, creative photography, and convincing acting, especially from suspect Keith Carradine. Although the audience has several theories to choose from, the conclusion is both frightening and logical. - MERK

Solid suspense

[Cujo108 · 9 May 2010]

Superior TV film opens with a murdered mother and her kids set up as if they were celebrating the youngest's birthday, which was when the murders took place. The father/husband, Ed Vincent, is missing and assumed the culprit. Detective Steiner (Richard Widmark) becomes obsessed with finding Vincent. Meanwhile, a guy picks up a hitcher only to wreck shortly thereafter. One man dies, the other (Keith Carradine) has no memory and needs facial reconstruction surgery. The survivor eventually recovers and marries his nurse (Kathleen Quinlan). Years later, a still obsessed Steiner receives an anonymous tip in the form of a newspaper clipping. He's thus led to believe that the survivor is in fact Ed Vincent, and sets out to be sure.

Great film, I really enjoyed it. Supported by a strong cast, the characters are all fleshed out and feel real. The film also plays with your expectations, turning them around time and time again. This in turn ratchets up the tension. There are some creepy moments as well, like sinister phone calls and the scenes with the zipper-faced maniac on the prowl. Speaking of that, I loved the mask, and wished it had been used more. It comes off too soon during the finale. Two other minor quibbles: I didn't find Quinlan's character sympathetic, and there's one bothersome contrivance involving a radio towards the end.

Highly recommended film with a strong central theme.

Dark for a TV movie!

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 11 January 2018]

Douglas Hickox directed one of my favorite films, Vincent Price's Theater of Blood. And he also directed this - a TV movie turned video store favorite thanks to its striking box art.

Joe Steiner (Richard Widmark, whose portrayal of Tommy Udo in Kiss of Death would inspire Eric Binford in 1980's Fade to Black) is a cop who can't let go. A brutal slayer of an entire family on a child's birthday has scarred him and he promises the dead family that he won't rest until he brings their killer to justice.

Allen Devlin (Keith Carradine, Nashville) is a man without an identity. He was in a car crash that destroyed both his face and memory. He wakes up with a scarred visage that upsets nearly everyone that sees it except for his nurse, Chris Graham (Kathleen Quinlan, Airport '77).

Mike Patterson (Michael Back, Swan from The Warriors) is another cop who was Chris' boyfriend and lost her to Allen. He can't let go.

All three men are trapped by the past: Steiner believes that Allen is the family killer. Mike wants Chris back at nearly any cost. And Allen might be a new person, born on the day of his car crash, but he may also be that killer. Even he isn't so sure.

So how is this a giallo? It doesn't have the expected psychosexual and fashionista elements, nor the camerawork showing the killer's POV. However, it does feature plenty of identity confusion and a main character who may or may not be the villain.

Come to think of it, this film has a strange narrative in that there is no real hero of the piece, with all three men and Chris serving as characters within the story framework instead of a sole protagonist for us to root for.

For a TV movie, this gets pretty dark, with some uncomfortable male on female violence at the end. There's also a great steadicam sequence where Chris opens door after door to try and find either her children or the killer, with the smooth movement of the camera slowly increasing her worry and making the scene quite claustrophobic.

Originally airing on July 28, 1995 on HBO, Blackout gained even more notoriety as it inspired Ed Sherman's murder of his wife Ellen in August of that year. Sherman also used an air conditioner to slow the decomposition of his wife's dead body in an attempt to establish his alibi.

Interesting, unusual premise becomes belabored

[adrianovasconcelos · 6/10 · 15 December 2023]

Director Douglas Hickox, about whom I know nothing, directs this 1985 made for TV programme. It begins rather weirdly: first we see a woman call at a friend's house only to discover her and her children murdered with what appears to be a bat. Then, without further ado or explanation, a road accident involving a large truck loaded with goods, and a sedan, resulting in the latter's total destruction in a fire.

Immediately thereafter, a man in hospital with his face under bandages. He cannot talk, so he just opens and shuts his eyes in response to the questions he is asked. Cleverly done bit. THE BLACKOUT could have easily been shorn of 20 minutes for its own benefit. Instead, we see the plot getting more and more stretched between two men, beautiful Quinlan's ex and her new hubby, tall and handsome Carradine. Only one of them can be the serial killer and retired detective Widmark is making sure that the baddie does not walk free again.

Widmark steals the show with a serious performance. Carradine is let down by implausible character and poor plot. Quinlan is the essence of femininity and of the film's saving graces.

The scene where the culprits bashes the car's windows with breaking them, leaving Quinlan locked and unable to see, deserves plaudits for the expert bat action but it has more to do with horror, especially when the murderer's finally juts in through a hole in the glass. Too belabored and telegraphed, with a kinky leather mask as a special effect. Hmmm. 6/10.

Above Average Suspenser.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 30 September 2014]

A man murders his wife and children during a birthday part in Ohio, sets up their battered bodies like dolls, and disappears. The detective in charge of the case, Widmark, is so revolted by the scene that he becomes obsessed and determines to track down the vanished husband.

Meanwhile, we see a car crash on a highway in Washington state. There are two men in the car. One is burned beyond recognition; the other is Keith Carradine, so bashed up that he must undergo extensive cosmetic surgery and winds up spending so much time in the hospital that he and his nurse, Quinlan, fall in love and are married. Carradine, though he is able to become a successful businessman, can remember nothing of his past.

Years go by. Widmark has been forced into retirement. Then he receives an anonymous newspaper clipping that leads him to Carradine in Washington. Widmark meets Carradine, pokes around, and convinces himself that Carradine is the disgusting murderer from Ohio, only he can't prove it. Widmark believes that somewhere inside the successful businessman is a family murderer trying to get out. On his part, Carradine is disturbed by the accusation and does what he can to prove his innocence. Only occasionally does he drop a hint or two of instability.

The local police captain, Michael Beck, is a former lover of Quinlan's and it develops that he still has a fierce yen for her. He's built a kind of shrine to her in his bedroom. Would he like to get Carradine out of the way and get it on with Quinlan again? You bet he would.

Evidence accumulates until there are now three suspects of crimes and other acts that all point towards Carradine. Perhaps Widmark is right and Carradine can't entirely control his inner rage. Or the police captain, still in love with his ex paramour, may be trying to frame Carradine. Even Widmark, so convinced of Carradine's guilt, may be trying to frame him in order to put him away.

It's a nice set up with a lot of promise. I hate to say it but, what with all that inner and outer guilt, it's the kind of story that Hitchcock could have handled with aplomb. (All that's missing is the domineering mother.) As it stands, and I hate to say this too, it's a little flat because it's all done rather carelessly. The tinny musical score, with its electronic organ, sounds like it's ripped off from a cheap Italian sex movie. The direction is flat. During the last half, the writers lose the thread of the mystery and have thrown in some junk about hidden masks, serial rapists, and so forth. There are also chintz scenes of women in danger entering dark rooms, hooded figures appearing from the shadows.

The first half of the film is quite nicely done. And then, like the killer himself, it descends into the vulgate.

Fairly well-done but overly familiar.

[gridoon · 5/10 · 30 October 1999]

"Blackout" is a decent, fairly well-done thriller, made for TV. Although the idea of an amnesiac hero is as old as the movies themselves, the film offers a few insights into the situation and wonders how responsible an amnesiac is for crimes that he may (or may not) have commited in his past life. The film plays like a murder mystery and mostly succeeds in keeping you interested. However, it doesn't rise above mediocrity, because many plot elements are overly familiar.

Awesome!!!!!

[nice_louisiana_guy00 · 10/10 · 19 January 2007]

I saw Blackout for the first time when I was a kid and it SCARED THE HELL OUT OF ME FOR A LONG TIME! I had trouble sleeping because of Blackout for a long time. I could not walk down a hall by myself at night because of Blackout. Blackout is the only movie that REALLY SCARED ME. Blackout is LOADED with suspense and has some frightening scenes. The killer wears a zipper-face black mask and that, to me, is scary looking. Watching Blackout now, of course, I don't get afraid like I did when I was a kid. This film, in my opinion, is wonderful! Blackout has GOT TO BE one of Richard Widmark's greatest performances as Detective Joe Steiner. Keith Carradine is excellent as always. Kathleen Quinlen is great as Keith's wife. Michael Beck from The Warriors gives a very good supporting role. The script is top-notch stuff. The music score could not fit the film any better. KUDOS to ALL of the cast and crew of Blackout. I'm not going to give the outstanding plot because you can find that out for yourself. I just wanted to get my thoughts out on this wonderful murder mystery. I believe Blackout is now out of print so it may be hard to find for some. I found a copy on E-bay. If you want to look for Blackout, you may come across a copy/copies on E-bay/Amazon. I really don't see how anyone could not enjoy, in my mind, A TRUE GEM!---Blackout from director Douglas Hickox. Thank you for reading my thoughts and have a nice day/night.

Solid made for TV psycho thriller

[Stevieboy666 · 7/10 · 19 April 2020]

A retired policeman is obsessed with an unsolved murder case in which a man brutally murdered his wife and kids, then disappeared. He thinks he has found the culprit but proving it is not straight forward. I can remember seeing Blackout on the shelf in my VHS rental shop back in the 1980's, the image of a man wearing a black leather mask and brandishing a sharp blade on the cover gave me the impression that it was a nasty looking, sleazy horror flick. Blackout certainly is part horror movie - the carnage of the opening scene could easily be from any number of slasher movie, and there are some good, tense scenes later on. But it is also very much a police/mystery thriller, and it combines these genres very well. Richard Widmark as the detective is the driving force but credit to the whole cast, it is very well acting. My VHS cover proclaims "Taut...Tense...Terrifying..." and although this is no psycho thriller classic it is a good, solid movie, made for TV but you wouldn't really know it. Recommended.

ZZZZZZZZZZZ

[Rainey-Dawn · 1/10 · 9 December 2019]

BOORRRRINGGGG! Was not remotely interested in this - I love a good thriller/horror but this sucked. The film might interest some viewers but I just couldn't like it.

1/10

It's a good thing, I do remember.

[lost-in-limbo · 8/10 · 5 July 2008]

A TV presentation that was better than expected and managed to throw up a good amount of jarring suspense and genuine twists in a customary murder mystery thriller set-up. Director Douglas Hickox (father of director Anthony Hickox) gets the goods out of his first-rate cast consisting of Richard Widmark, Keith Carradine, Kathleen Quinlan and Michael Beck. Widmark's hardened ex-cop and Quinlan's concerned wife are pure class. Carradine is terrifically convincing in the lead role.

After the discovery of a brutally murdered mother and her children, the search begins for the father, but he seems to have disappeared. Six years later the cop who was in charge of the case is retired by the force, but still looking into the case. In the mail he receives an anonymous letter with an article that features a man who recovered from a devastating car accident, but had lost his memory about his past. Now his starting a new life with a family, but could he be the killer?

In the air are a disturbing and glum vibe, and the opening sequence cements it. What begins is quite slow-going in a melodrama format, but the gradually tight build-up psychologically toys around with the viewer of what to possibility to believe. It's resourcefully written and relies on Hickox's competently accomplished directorial timing to get the most out of mysterious avenues and intense flourishes. Never does it fall into anything cheap or uninspired, and the red herrings are pulled off effectively and the intensity grows to lead onto the final revelation. The enliven score is well-placed and sorrowfully orchestrated for maximum impact.

The TV feature 'Blackout' is one to look out for.

I think he want's to be stopped! That's because he can't stop himself!

[sol-kay · 7/10 · 28 November 2010]

***SPOILERS*** Despite being a made for TV movie "Blackout" is much better than many theatrical released suspense films of it's type with Richard Widmark giving one of his best performances in years as the burnt-out Ceder Grove Ohio police detective Joe Steiner. Det.Steiner was at the scene of the Vincent Family murders and the sheer brutality of the killings, Ed Vincent's wife Lucy and her three children, had Det.Steiner become obsessed in solving the Vincent murders and putting the person who committed these horrendous crimes behind bars.

It's now six years later and there's a brake in the case in a car accident outside Seattle city limits. The car had been traced back to Ed Vincent who rented the car but two persons were in it at the time of the accident! One was burned beyond recognition with the other having survived with his face almost burned off. It's that man who's identity is determined, with what seemed to be his credit cards and drivers license in tact, to be Allen Devlin, Keith Carradine!

In no time at all after recovering from his injuries Devlin falls in love and marries his nurse Chris Graham, Kathleen Quinlan, who tended him while in the hospital getting patched up. It's when Chris had dropped her boyfriend local police chief Mike Patterson, Michael Beck, in order to marry Devlin that had things started to turn against her new husband Allen Devlin. It's later when the now retired Det.Joe Steiner got a newspaper clipping about Devlin being named his community's real-tor of the year that Steiner started suspecting that he in fact was really the on the lamb Ed Vincent who himself was also a real-tor back in Cender Grove. That had Steiner drive to the Seattle suburb to check him out and see if he really was whom he suspected the real deal fugitive from justice Ed Vincent!

***SPOILERS*** It's then that like what happened back in Ceder Grove a number of rape murders takes place with a leather masked killer on the loose who besides being suspected in murdering the Vincent family was also suspected in a number of rape-murders back in Ohio six years ago. It seems very obvious that the killer is non other then Allen Devlin but the evidence seems to implicate police chief Mike Patterson in wanting to put Devlin out of the picture and get a second chance with his former lover Chris who in fact wants nothing to do with him!

The shocking truth to who the masked killer is comes out when he tries to duplicate the Vincent killings by murdering Chris and her now three children, with Allen Devlin, the same way he murdered Lucy Vincent and her three children back in Ceader Grove Ohio! It was a stroke of good luck that when Det.Steiner heard on the car radio about the Devlin's birthday celebration of their youngest child that something clicked in his head, in how the brutal Vincent murders were carried out, to what was about to happen. And it was that hunch on Joe Steiner's part that prevented a similar massacre from happening!

This horror crime movie is about assault and abuse against women and murdering kids.

[crosswalkx · 1/10 · 4 August 2019]

I am very sensitive towards R rated movies and this one is too scary disturbing to watch, it's about a perverted policeman who becomes a monster and murders people in their houses and assaults women in the dark, there was graphic violence, bloody violence, which makes this an R rated movie that you would see in a horror movie.

It's about the detective who's trying to kill the creepy robber in the mask. There was a car crash which caused psychological to a man in the accident. I was shocked about the amount of profanity and graphic violence, abuse, vandalism and sexual assault towards women, kids being murdered in the house, a stalker attacking the woman in the garage and vandalism at night, there's nudity and bedroom scenes, there are words like Damn, Hell, Female Dog, and the S word, and the F word even used in the 1980s, I was shocked by the F word used during this time when it wasn't as prevalent as it is now. This is clearly a Rated R horror movie.

I can't believe this movie is free to watch on youtube and viewed by anybody, I hope the youtube company restricts the video for mature audiences and restrict people under 17 from watching this perverted film. I wouldn't recommend this movie to anyone, if anything I think this movie should no longer be available to watch even for free.

I hated this movie very much it upset me so much. Please skip this negative graphic violent, perverted, profanity filled movie and pretend it didn't exist, there are better films to watch. I've never been a fan of horror crime movies.

My rating for this movie is Rated R: For disturbing scenes, scary images, bloody violence, abuse, strong language, sexual content, graphic nudity.

Good movie though easy enough to figure out.

[Aaron1375 · 6/10 · 14 July 2009]

I saw this is one of those movies that is only going to be really good the first time it is watched. It has a bit of mystery to it, that while not to hard to figure out is kind of one of those plot devices that makes the movie less watchable when you know it. Still, this made for television movie is rather good for a television movie though I think that is more because it was in fact HBO that made it so it could be a bit more risqué than one made on one of the major networks. The story has a person killing their families at the beginning of the movie, he then proceeds to hitchhike and ends up in a car wreck where both bodies are horribly disfigured. One of them survives though and you are left wondering who did in fact survive, the killer or the guy just giving him a lift. Easy enough question if you ask me as what kind of movie would it be if the killer got killed. If that is not reason enough to easily figure it out, the rape that occurs midway through the movie should remove all doubts. Still it plays out pretty good and is enjoyable to watch as everything comes together.

Blackout

[Toronto85 · 7/10 · 14 June 2013]

Blackout starts out with us seeing a family who have been murdered. Two kids and their mother slain by the man of the house Ed Vincent. We then see a car get into a wreck, flipping over and burning in flames. Two men were in that car, one being a random person and the other being the killer of the family. Only one survives, and he is horribly disfigured so there is no way of telling if he is the murderer. The disfigured man also has no memory of who he is. Anyways, the man (with the name Allen Devlin) falls for his nurse Chris, and the two get together. Fast forward six years and see that the police officer Joe Steiner who was in charge of the investigation is still hung up on the fact that the killer was never caught. Pretty someone starts tipping off Joe that Allen might really be Ed...A psychopath begins stalking women in town...Chris begins getting calls from a man saying he's Ed and that's he's coming to kill her...is Allen really the crazed Ed Vincent, or is this stalker someone completely different?

I enjoyed Blackout a lot. It was a made for TV movie on HBO, and it plays out like a cop/crime drama. It has its slow parts, but for the most part keeps viewers on the edge. There's a very sad element to the movie as well as we see a six year marriage start to crumble because of the possibility that Allen is Ed. Kathleen Quinlan puts in a great job as the wife. The special effects for the disfigured face were amazing! We get some up close shots of an eyeball sticking out, as well as burnt skin. Some of the stalking scenes were down well too, especially because of the killer's mask. As you see on the cover of the VHS, it's a leather mask which works very well.

Overall 'Blackout' is a top notch suspense/horror/crime movie that I recommend. It has a good story and kept me interested the whole way through. The ending is great too, both devastating yet satisfying. Pick it up if you can!

7/10

seen it before

[trashgang · 5/10 · 13 November 2008]

I noticed on the net that there was a great search for this flick. Still an OOP, I was lucky to find this ex rental at a flea market for just 2 euro's or around 3 dollars. I noticed the cover seeing the performance of Richard Widmark. Strange that it never was released. So I plugged it into the VCR. Starts off pretty nice with some scenes of a killing, but after 20 minutes you already can guess who's the killer. All actors are believable but something is missing in this horror/thriller. You can see the plot coming from miles away. So no suspense in this flick. One thing was funny, the hospital scenes were you have this POV, flickering the eyes was a nice thing made me remind of The New York Ripper scene were the camera has a POV from the sliced throat. But it never fails also, except for the bad editing. My god is that one of the worst kind. Being in the business I can tell. So I guess it's a low budget flick. You will never be bored watching it and never regret it that you bought it or seen it but something is missing, or is it my blackout?

A good early filmmaking effort by HBO

[AlsExGal · 8/10 · 19 November 2023]

A grisly murder occurs in Ohio in which a woman and her three children are murdered. It has occurred during the youngest child's birthday celebration, and the murderer has posed the children, with their mother's arms around them, and birthday celebration hats on the kids' heads. Seasoned detective Joe Steiner (Richard Widmark) is the homicide detective on the case, obviously shaken by the murder scene. The husband of the family, Ed Vincent, is missing and is the prime suspect in the case.

Meanwhile, in Washington state, there is a car accident resulting in a fiery crash. One passenger is killed and burned beyond recognition. The other (Keith Carridine) is thrown clear of the wreckage and survives, but is badly burned and will need extensive facial reconstructive surgery. He has completely lost his memory and no ID is found at the accident site. The police do some tracing and figure that one of the occupants is named "Alan Devlin". That is the name that the survivor takes, although he can find nobody in the town or surrounding area who knows him or why he is there. He spends a year in the hospital, falls in love with his nurse, Chris (Kathleen Quinlan), and they marry. They have a child of their own plus her two kids from a previous marriage. Alan becomes a very successful realtor and seven years pass.

Back in Ohio, Steiner was forcibly retired from his job, but he continues to work on the murder case from seven years before. Then one day he gets an anonymous letter saying that Devlin may be his man. Accompanying the note is an article from the local paper showing Devlin and family - Alan won realtor of the year in his town. The age is right, the height and general appearance are right, but of course he can't be exactly physically identified because of the extensive plastic surgery. So Steiner is off to Washington to see if Devlin is in fact Ed Vincent, the suspect in the Ohio murder case. Realize that the ability to analyze DNA evidence did not exist in 1985 or else this would have been a very short movie. Lots of complications and twists and turns ensue.

I loved Richard Widmark's character (who said all the things the audience was probably thinking.) Keith Carradine is always good at playing affable family men, and his role here is no exception. This was an early HBO effort at filmmaking and I'd say they did well.

Several people pick on different aspects of this one, but I had only one major sticking point that really has no impact on the plot. When in the hospital, Alan Devlin has no ID, no name, no memory, and thus no health insurance that can be identified. And the first thing out of the doctors' mouths is all about the extensive plastic surgery they'll be doing with obviously no insurance to pay for it? Not now and certainly not in 1985 if we are talking about any hospital in the United States. Any hospital in America would leave you on the curb looking like Frankenstein's monster if you have no means of payment. But then we'd have no movie.

I highly recommend BLACKOUT

[oluaa · 8/10 · 6 August 2006]

I saw this film when it first aired on t.v. many years ago. I have always remembered it as being thrilling, psychologically interesting and well acted by the entire cast. It holds the dubious honor as being one of the first of its kind in the genre of reality based films. Keith Carradine did a fine job. He was able to move from monster to nice guy real estate agent back to monster in a seamless, believable, frightening portrayal. One of my favorite actors bears mentioning here, Richard Widmark was the consummate professional yet again. While Blackout has some flaws and is not In Cold Blood or Compulsion, I believe its aim was accomplished. It entertained, was interesting and is worth viewing. I've seen it several times.

Beat movie I ever saw in the 80's

[fierypoeticgirl · 8/10 · 24 May 2013]

As far as psychological thrillers go, (not to mention this movie was before classics like "The Silence of the Lambs) I was thoroughly entertained by the plot and acting. Keith Carradine and Kathleen Quinlan were magnificent. Well, everyone ways good. If you don't have the right people together in a movie, it could be disastrous. It remains as one of the top ten thrillers in my book! You won't be disappointed if you spend a little over an hour watching this masterpiece. It covers a range of things...not just a psychopathic killer. There is a struggle between good and evil within one man. The one side of his personality is a loving, hard-working man. Then he completely reverts to an unrecognizable killer of women and children. I had to watch this movie several times as not to miss any of the hidden clues, etc. I give it an 8 on the rating scale because of its plot, characters, execution of acting and ability to entertain.

Creepy psychological thriller will keep you guessing

[nicholas123abc · 10/10 · 22 April 2002]

This movie starts off scary and never stops. Is he the killer? Or is he the killer ? Are they both maniacs? You don't know till the finale . Great acting by cast especially Quinlan .This should have been theatrically released .An absolute knockout.

Richard Widmark still going strong as a nuisance of a retired cop

[clanciai · 9/10 · 29 November 2023]

Richard Widmark was 70 when he made this film. He is a retired policeman who can't let go of a case that never was solved, a gruesome massacre on a family of a mother and three children, apparently committed by her husband, who vanished without a trace and never could be found. But Richard thinks he is still around somewhere. After six years a friend sends him a tip about a happy family with three children who are very much like the massacred family of long ago. The father of that family was saved with difficulty out of a dreadful car accident with a demolished face and a total blackout instead of any memory. The theory turns up that this father is a ticking time bomb, that he is the family murderer of six years ago, that he is asleep inside this new happy father without a memory, and that he might do the same thing again, if triggered by for example some infuriated jealousy. That is the case.

There are many twists and turns in this thriller, you think you believe something one moment to then get a totally different idea the next, and so it goes on, until it is time for a crisis. The script is splendid and very cleverly contrived, the actors are perfect, and Richard Widmark is still the old hard-boiled Widmark of the 40s and has all the greatest repartees. It is a great thriller which you will remember.

The many dead ends, twists and surprises make this an unusual suspense film.

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 16 March 2017]

This is an early HBO production and has a rather impressive cast-- Richard Widmark and Keith Carradine in the leads.

When the story begins, a maniac named Ed Vincent has butchered his family and compulsively arranged the bodies about the home---and even left a birthday hat on his murdered 5 year-old! Considered he not only killed his wife but his three kids, this is a case that really weighs heavily on Detective Joe Steiner (Widmark). However, despite looking for seven years, the case remains unsolved and Steiner retires from the police force.

In the meantime, some man is involved in a horrible auto accident where they are completely disfigured. After being in the hospital many months, he's rebuilt by doctors and is ready for discharge. However, during this time, no one has been able to determine who he is...and the guy appears to have no idea who he is as well. He names himself Allen Devlin and eventually he gets married and has some kids...and appears to be leading a rather normal life.

Steiner has refused to let the old case die and follows a lead taking him to the guy in the accident. Perhaps this was Ed Vincent...though after all the plastic surgery, it doesn't look like Vincent. So Steiner digs a bit deeper and even approaches Devlin to tell him his suspicions. At this point, Devlin is willing to listen...and wonders if perhaps he IS Ed Vincent. So, Devlin begins to investigate on his own...to see if anything can link him to the monster, Ed Vincent. What's next in this suspense film? Well, a weird masked man begins assaulting women...and it looks a lot like a case that coincided with the disappearance of Ed Vincent.

As far as suspense films go, this one provides a lot of suspense. It also keeps you guessing and has a lot of misdirection to keep confusing the audience (in a good way). Excellent acting and a film worth seeing.

Pretty intense and disturbing for a TV-thriller!

[Coventry · 8/10 · 4 December 2007]

Well here's another fine example to state why you shouldn't always judge movies on their appearance and production values. I almost deliberately missed out on this "gem" of the 1980's because it's a made-for-TV movie, and those usually stand for no blood, politically correct story lines, derivative plots and an annoying overload of sentimentality. "Blackout" immediately bursts through this clichéd image of the TV-movie with an exceptionally tense and atmospheric opening sequence. The story opens with the disturbing discovery of 3 dead bodies, a mother and her two children, nightmarishly exhibited as if they were celebrating the youngest one's birthday. The elderly cop Steiner promptly becomes obsessed with finding the killer, which undoubtedly is the husband and father. Almost at the same time of the discovery and a couple of States further, a man survives a horrible car accident, albeit with a total loss of memory and in desperate need for plastic surgery. His memory doesn't return, but he starts a new life under the name Allen Devlin and marries the nurse who treated him. Six years later, the meanwhile retired Steiner is still looking for the killer and receives an anonymous letter with a picture of Devlin and his new family. Is he the vanished killer who doesn't remember his past? Or is someone trying to sabotage his newly found happiness? "Blackout" is a truly effective and suspenseful thriller. There are very few possibilities of whom the killer may be, yet the intelligently written script keeps you guessing and doubting till the very last twist. Even with the quite large number familiar themes, like amnesia and love-triangles, the plot feels original and the suspense feels genuine. As expected, there aren't any vile murders shown on screen and the use of blood and make-up effects is kept to a minimum. Hey, it's a TV-movie, remember, and the emphasis lies on tension. Naturally a lot of credit must go to director Douglas Hickox, who's clearly one class above the average TV-movie director. Hickox previously directed the Vincent Price horror classic "Theater of Blood" and the historical drama "Zulu Down", so he definitely knows how build up an ambiance and how to guide his cast in the required direction. Speaking of which, the cast is excellent with Richard Widmark, Keith Carradine and Michael Beck. "Blackout" comes with my highest possible recommendation and, for once, one the IMDb's recommendations is spot-on as well. The site encourages you to watch "The Pledge" (starring Jack Nicholson), which also revolves on a retired copper continuing to obsessively hunt down the culprit of a long-forgotten crime.

great suspense

[wheels0329 · 10/10 · 21 October 2006]

I'm surprised anyone would fail to enjoy this movie. This movie keeps you in a constant state of bewilderment, is this guy a good family man or a brutal serial killer. The beginning has a man kill his entire family and then head out in the the family car, along the way he picks up a hitchhiker and soon thereafter are involved in a horrendous accident. Only one of the two survive and because of the fire involved in the crash they cannot be sure which of the 2 men survived. This surviving man seems to be a good person and seems to have little memory of his life. He goes on to marry and begin a family, but is he the killer or not? In the end the answer comes to light.