Pulse (1988) User Reviews

Pulse

[Toronto85 · 6/10 · 31 December 2012]

Late one night, Bill and his girlfriend Ellen were woke up by their neighbour who was yelling at the top of his lungs inside of his home. When the cops arrived, the man was dead and the house had wires hanging from the ceiling and the walls. We are then introduced to Bill's son David who is staying with Bill and his new wife for the summer. Pretty soon, David begins to see weird things happening to the television set in the house. The picture goes in and out, and it turns on and off on it's own. similar strange things happen to other appliances around the house as well. It quickly becomes apparent to both son and father that something is not right, and that an evil electrical "Pulse" is growing within their house.

I got Pulse in the horror section, but it's more of a sci-fi/thriller flick. And a pretty good one at that! The plot of "killer appliances" may sound ridiculous, but 'Pulse' does a good job at making it realistic enough for a full length film. We see that the characters are in actual danger because of the electrical force, and that the pulse can cause serious occurrences such as gas leaks and water burns. The acting was a positive, Joseph Lawrence (who was at a very young age) did a great job in the lead. Cliff De Young and Roxanne Hart were great as well. Some of the special effects were effective as well. 'Pulse' takes us inside of the television at one point as shows us all of the wiring. It's done well.

The bodycount is pretty much non-existent, therefore 'Pulse' isn't a much of horror film. It's an effective sci-fi/thriller film that is worth a look if you come across it.

6/10

Could've done with a bit more spark

[Stevieboy666 · 6/10 · 27 December 2023]

A young boy called David travels from Colorado to visit his father and stepmother in Los Angeles but before he arrives a mysterious and deadly incident happens at the house next door to his Dad's, David is convinced that something evil, intelligent and deadly is going on with the electricity supply and that his house will be next. However his stepmom (who is really nice by the way) and Dad see his strange behaviour as a push against being there and away from his mother. "Pulse - the ultimate shocker", so says the movie's trailer. For most of its running time it is hardly electrifying, I would say that it is something of a slow burn, however it does build to a worthwhile finale. The acting quality is good and the musical score is excellent. It is not a special effects driven movie but there are a few good effects involving household electrical appliances versus humans. The plot makes a change from the countless slasher and monster films of the 1980's however no explanation is given as to why the events happen, ultimately this was a disappointment. One character is a creepy guy credited as Old Man Holger (played by Charles Tyner), surely he was modelled on Crazy Ralph from the first "Friday the 13th" movies!

Entertaining but not believable. Foul language uncalled for.

[acearms · 5/10 · 16 November 2003]

Okay, so the power generating conspiracy is set to wipe out customers one by one and make them appear to be crazy in the process. An entertaining sci-fi movie which is fast and loose with the physical and material matter. Such as the natural gas pipe fatigued due to sun light heating it; total BS. While the house repair contractor was great, the TV repairman with his foul language and familiarity was completely out of place. Be that as it may, the actors did reasonable portrayals in what one has to consider a typical B grade Hollywood horror/sci-fi movie of no redeeming value.

Mild Current Instead Of A Jolt

[Cobbler · 10 January 2000]

This one wasn't so much frightening as it was an interesting attempt at a horror/sci-fi mix. I think the script needed a little juking, a few more twists and turns and genuinely suspenseful moments, before I could recommend it. There was a little too much macro-photography of wires melting, and not enough attention paid to the characters (one of the major ones is inexplicably written out of the story before the climax.) I never thought I'd say this, but Joey Lawrence actually gives a good performance, and there are some nice, subtle moments-- particularly some strong observations about family. I was never scared, but the ambiguity & unusual premise kept me interested. I think POLTERGEIST was much more effective in creating horror in inanimate objects. Still, a good try. 6/10.

"Pulse" doesn't have much pulse.

[gridoon · 3/10 · 16 December 2001]

The main problem with this movie is that its premise is quintessentially, thoroughly unscary. It's no coincidence that the only two even remotely scary scenes (suffocation by gas and a very hot shower) are not even directly linked to electricity! And how IS the evil circuit able to control doors and windows?? This picture has some decent acting at least, but you should only see it if you're desperate and have run out of good horror flicks to watch. (*1/2)

A Newfound 80s horror favorite.

[paulclaassen · 7/10 · 29 June 2020]

Give me a moment while I give director Paul Golding a standing ovation! 'Pulse' is such a well made movie, it almost doesn't look like an 80's film. If you were to tell me this was a 2020 release, I'd have believed you. Even the decor and hair styles don't look dated. And how on earth did they manage to shoot the film the way they did back in the 80s?

'Pulse' doesn't rely on blood, guts and gore to send chills down your spine. So let me tell you straight out, if its guts and gore you're looking for, you might be disappointed. 'Pulse' has a really great script. Things that might seem trivial in the beginning, plays a huge part later. The film has a well designed plan and incredibly well executed. To further enhance the viewing pleasure, the acting and visuals are also very good. The photography truly is astounding given this was made in 1988.

There's no annoying loud jump scares here; just genuine scares. The film's protagonist is David, played by 12-year old Joey Lawrence, who is fantastic. There's an amazing scene of him trapped in the garage - truly nerve wrecking! The film's climax is also fantastic!! I absolutely loved this!

'Pulse' was a pleasant surprise and now rates as one of my favorite 80s horror films.

Would I watch it again? Absolutely!

A family gets attacked by electricity. I get some Z's

[Kelly G. · 2/10 · 8 January 1999]

A family is terrorized in their own house when alien "pulses" travel through their powerlines and into their electronic appliances. This idea plays better on paper than it does on the screen. On the plus side, there's some neat macro-photography of electronic equipment melting. And there is a creepy turn by an old man who claims to be hunting down the source of the pulses. Unfortunately with a PG-13 rating, there isn't any real violence. And the director's idea of suspense is having perennial horror movie doof Cliff DeYoung look around in dark rooms for minutes at a time. If this concept sounds good to you, check out the underrated "Ghost in the Machine" from 1993.

Ohm my god, watt a fun little film.

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 5 March 2017]

When we are little, they tell us not to mess with electricity, but they don't tell us what to do if electricity messes with us. In Pulse, a young boy, David (Joey Lawrence), finds himself powerless against a malevolent electrical force (of possibly extraterrestrial origin) that travels from house to house causing fatal accidents and fires.

The premise might sound a little far-fetched, but thanks to everyone involved opting to play it completely straight, the film comes across as a very credible techno horror/thriller, with Lawrence putting in a fine central performance as the boy who struggles to convince his father (Cliff De Young) of the truth.

Director Paul Golding keeps the action moving at a fairly measured pace, gradually building the tension up to the inevitable 'humans versus electricity' finale, but he also includes a couple of exciting set pieces along the way—David almost coming a cropper in the garage and the scalding of his stepmother Ellen (Roxanne Hart) in the shower—as well as delivering some impressive macro photography of melting circuits, fuses and wires, and a cool synth score, all of which makes Pulse a nifty little '80s treat.

A thriller on life-support...

[moonspinner55 · 1/10 · 15 October 2007]

Writer-director Paul Golding's abysmal, completely forgettable thriller distributed by a major studio (Columbia) but filled with low-rent talent. Story has a young boy (Joey Lawrence) attempting to save his dad and stepmother from evil, unseen forces within their home. As the stubborn father, Cliff De Young once again gives his usual knucklehead performance; he has made a specialty out of playing impatient grown-ups who have no ear (or use) for the truth, and yet we're supposed to care what happens to the guy? Lawrence is kept near the verge of hysteria throughout, but this begins to look pretty silly--especially when there's not much happening plot-wise. * from ****

Hot Wired!

[bsmith5552 · 7/10 · 8 July 2020]

"Pulse" is a different kind of horror movie. In it the villain is a pulse of electricity crested by a lightning strike that moves from house to house over the power lines.

Bill (Cliff DeYoung) and Ellen (Roxanne Hart) are a typical American couple replete with Corvette Sting Ray, living in an up scale Los Angeles neighborhood. One night they witness the neighbor across the street apparently going mad within his home. Following the incident, we see that the interior of the home has been totally destroyed.

The next day, Bill's son David (Joey Lawrence) from a previous marriage, arrives to spend the summer with his dad. He is uncomfortable with his surroundings after being told of the incident across the street. Along with neighbor's kid Stevie (Matthew Lawrence) David sneaks into the closed up housevto see for himself what damage has occurred. He is confronted by a mysterious old man Charles Tyner) who warns him of the immanent danger to the neighborhood.

Later, David is left alone in their house while Bill and Ellen go out for the evening. Strange things begin to happen. The TV's innards are fried while David is watching a ball game and unusual noises are heard through out the house. Bill and Ellen also begin to experience unusual noises and happenings when they return.

Davis gets trapped in the garage when all exits are blocked by an unknown source. The hydro worker is unable to explain the cause of the electrical "problems". As the family continues to experience weird events, Ellen is scalded in the shower when she is unable to escape the suddenly hot water. Taken to the hospital, David and Bill are offered refuge by a neighbor Howard (Myron Healy.

That night, Bill sneaks out and goes back to his home to investigate. David sees him and follows. Bill goes to the basement and is trapped when the exit door is blocked. He is knocked out when struck by a flying object. David, meanwhile, searches the upstairs and becomes cornered by a spreading fire and ...................

The special effects in this film are very good. Flying appliances and exploding TVs and electrical outlets are quite well done and the electrical pulses moving through the power lines is realistic looking.

Joey and Matthew Lawrence are brothers. I was delighted to see an old favorite Myron Healey in a small role years after he was a prominent "B" western villain.

Not as good as Plan 9 From Outer Space

[mrllsass · 1/10 · 3 September 2002]

How this dog got 2 1/2 stars could only be explained by an absentee ballot. It is less scary than a Road Runner cartoon, less plot too. Hard to say what's worst, the acting, 'special' effects, or the script. The scariest thing that this this joke ever got released.

For God's Sake, Get Out!

[golbez-1 · 10/10 · 10 April 2005]

If this tag line seems familiar to you, it's because it is. It's the famous tag line for "The Amityville Horror". Not much happened in this movie, and yet it's considered a classic. We never, in the movie, understood the full source of evil from Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining", and yet it's one of the most horrifying films of the 20th century. Better leave things unexplained, and you'll have a great time. Do the same with "Pulse" and you'll enjoy it to the max. I sure did. I always liked how the movie never explained the source of the evil electricity. It makes things scarier. Once I'll find out, it's like spoiling a movie's ending. As the tag line for "Amityville", one is wondered why the occupants of the house do not leave yet. Well, the answer's simple, and Cliff DeYoung's character clearly showed it in the movie. It's because there's a rational explanation behind all of this. And the house is not entirely paid, they have to sleep there, eat there, and... just a place to sit down and relax. Because if they leave, they will look like crazy people. That's all the movie is about. What makes sense? What is best to do? I keep myself on the edge of my seat seeing for myself as what will be coming up next. "Pulse" is indeed an undiscovered gem. What a shame.

We're going to rock down to Electric Avenue!

[Coventry · 7/10 · 15 August 2010]

The opinions on "Pulse" appear to be very diverged around here. Approximately half of the reviewers claim it's a very original and genuinely suspenseful thriller, whereas the other half thinks it's a ludicrous and far-fetched piece of rubbish. Even the rating is exactly 5.0 out of 10 at this particular moment, so I guess it's safe to say this is a film you either love or hate. I must admit I belong in the first camp. The basic idea of electrical impulses suddenly developing homicidal tendencies may indeed sound a bit grotesque and implausible, and the complete lack of valid explanation is most unfortunate, but generally speaking "Pulse" contains more positive aspects than negative ones. For starters, the continuously high level of suspense. This might very well be the horror film with the absolute lowest death toll of the entire 80's decade, and yet it didn't bother me for a single second because the tension was constantly there and often even nearly unbearable. There's only one fatality, at the very beginning of the movie and even appearing off-screen, still you'll be sitting on the edge of your seat more than once. This is also one of the rare 80's genre films where you honestly care for the lead characters and actually don't want for them to die! The leads are a three-headed suburban family, existing of the father, son and stepmother. The son joins his father and his sympathetic new wife during school holiday, but quickly notices something isn't kosher in the neighborhood. And David is right, as a seemingly intelligent electrical pulse is gradually taking over all the circuits and transforming electronic devices into murderous machines. The same thing overcame their neighbor, but everybody just thought he was crazy. Writer/director Paul Golding definitely had some bright ideas when making this film, and it's admirable that he was resistant to turning this into a bloody carnage flick. Oddly enough, the sight of melting circuits and vibrating wires is a lot scarier than I thought. "Pulse" features some extremely powerful sequences, like Roxanne Hart in the shower and Cliff De Young narrowly escaping death by electrocution in the flooded kitchen. Roxanne Hart depicts the most lovable female horror character I've seen in years! She's the most atypical stepmother imaginable: gorgeous, friendly, helpful and intelligent. She almost immediately believes the drivel about electric terror, and that's not common in horror films. "Pulse" is definitely an underrated 80's horror/thriller gem.

this movie barely has a...Pulse(1988)

[disdressed12 · 4/10 · 2 February 2007]

OK,quick synopsis.electricity in people's houses starts going haywire.it starts whispering to people,driving them insane.it then takes over their houses,turning them into death traps and murdering them.notice i said murder,not kill.this is because the deaths are deliberate,not accidental.r-i-i-i-ght.obviously the whole idea is ludicrous.now, the implausibility of the basic premise could be somewhat forgiven if there were any reason or explanation given for what is happening, but alas,there isn't.no attempt is even made to explain the events.they just happen and that is a large problem.even a lame attempt would be better than none.and don't get me started on the ending.oh what the heck.the ending- makes no sense at all.the movie basically just ends.no loose ends are tied up.but there were some positives.the acting was decent,given that the actors had so little to work with.and there were some tense moments.not the worst movie ever made just not a good one. all in all ,an empty unsatisfying experience. a low 4/10

Shocking Movie!

[DJ-21 · 19 March 2000]

I remember I saw this movie about 5 years ago and recently found a videotape with it on. I watched it and thought, it's still a good movie. The electricity is a good touch turning appliances into killers. It's not really a cheesy movie you would expect by it's tagline but goes on the lines of "what would happen if this was true" of course there is no way scientifically possible for any of this to happen... or is there?!

A very restrained horror flick about evil electricity

[Red-Barracuda · 5/10 · 1 July 2013]

I remember watching this one a couple of times back in the 80's. I recall liking it. Having now watched it again for the first time since those days, I have to admit that it's not quite as good as I remembered. The main problem with this one is its central premise is pretty unscary. Electricity is not the most threatening of things and it's quite difficult to base a horror movie around the concept of evil electricity. The film-makers were possibly in a bit of a conundrum regarding this as well seeing as they ultimately offer no real explanation for these electrical impulses, although it is made clear that it comes from a lightning bolt that strikes near a power plant. To confuse things somewhat we have a guy who pops up and suggests that the electricity company are to blame for these pulses. At the end of the day, your guess is as good as mine.

The story is about a boy who moves back in with his dad and step-mum. A seemingly intelligent electrical pulse is turning some suburban homes in the area into deadly death-traps. The film begins with one such victim going mad as a result of this and destroying his home. Lo and behold, the same thing starts happening again.

Pulse is pretty unusual in that no one actually dies. This is extremely rare in horror cinema and the movie in general is very restrained indeed. Maybe too restrained but I appreciate the fact that this one was going against expectations. The only vaguely disturbing scene was when a character is scalded very badly when being trapped in a shower with the hot water on full blast. But the most well executed scenes involve close-up shots of melting electrical circuits. I suppose the fact that these were the best bits might go some way to explaining part of the problem with Pulse. It's a likable enough film with decent characters and performances. It's just not very thrilling and that's essentially the problem.

Pulse

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 7 January 2007]

An electrical force(possibly alien, although the director, who also wrote it, doesn't specify exactly)terrorizes The Rocklands(Cliff De Young & Roxanne Hart). Bill Rockland's young son David(remember Joey Lawrence)comes to stay in LA for the summer. The entire family begin to notice their appliances and mechanized systems are malfunctioning often effecting even their water. Soon violence will erupt with scary results.

The director Paul Golding does a good job with showing us how the force takes over mechanical devices with starling effects. We see this mechanical fungus-like evolution forming..I've never seen anything quite like it. Golding also enforces our dependency on electrical appliances and machinery as we have moved into a more modern age. It's a set-up "what-if" scenario with the force working almost as a virus moving from house to house effecting those who live within each place one at a time. Obviously, those on the outside look at the victims of the pulses as crazy..that is until it happens to them next.

"I didn't tell nobody round here nothing... I'll be glad to tell you the same thing." Average horror/thriller.

[poolandrews · 5/10 · 16 July 2006]

Pulse starts in an ordinary L.A. street which is disturbed by the antics of one of it's residents named Hank Jordan who is wrecking his house with a baseball bat, the police are called & break into Hank's house but find him dead. Young David Rockland (Joseph Lawrence) is flying into L.A. from Colorado to spend some time with his Father & Stepmother Bill (Cliff De Young) & Ellen (Roxanne Hart), things go well at first but one night when David is left home alone the T.V. & other various electrical appliances seem to take a life of their own & after almost being burned alive by a pilot light David is understandably nervous. Then David hears about the stories concerning the Jordan's & what happened, David becomes convinced that there is an evil presence in his Father's house that will try to kill them, at first Bill isn't having any of it but as the mysterious 'accidents' begin to add up he starts to change his mind...

Written & directed by Paul Golding I thought Pulse was an average horror/thriller that never even came close to getting my pulse racing. The script doesn't seem to know what it wants to be or who it wants to appeal too & is loose to say the least, nothing is explained in any sort of detail. What the evil electrical force is or where it came from or what it's trying to do, absolutely nothing about it is revealed. I also think that Pulse will disappoint most potential viewers in the sense that as a fan of horror films which Pulse supposedly is I was expecting a widespread outbreak of electrical devices turning against their owners all across America but in actual fact the pulse never leaves the confines of one house even though it could go anywhere & it doesn't kill a single person on screen, that's right not one person is killed in Pulse which just isn't good enough as far as I'm concerned. Instead director Golding thinks his audience would rather sit through chunks of boring dialogue, stupid unexplained narrative & an annoying teenage kid as the lead, well Mr. Golding I can tell you now that most horror fans like films which are scary & contain some semblance of horror. As it is Pulse tells it's story competently enough despite it's lack of any explanations & while there's nothing spectacular about it it's an OK way to pass 90 odd minutes if you don't expect too much.

Director Golding films everything without much style or visual flair but there are a few really effective scenes in which his camera goes 'into' the electrical equipment & there are some nice close-up shots of the circuit boards & wiring as the pulse melts the solder & rearranges it for reasons I'm not sure about, these shots are easily the most memorable thing about Pulse which says it all really. Pulse isn't scary & there's not much of a horror atmosphere to it either. There are some really dumb bits at the end when David a young kid manages to stop his Father falling back by grabbing him even though his Father probably weighs three times that of David, it wouldn't work in reality would it? Neither can I forget the scene when a circular saw manages to fire a screw at Bill & hit him in the forehead! Forget about any proper gore, someone's hand gets cut, someone is burnt & a screw hits someone's forehead is all we get.

Technically Pulse is alright, there's nothing really wrong with it. The acting is OK but again nothing special, Lawrence as the young kid gets very irritating.

Pulse is an OK film, I'm sure there are people out there who will like it but for me it was too dull, it never explained itself & the decision not to kill anyone during the entire duration of the film was a bad one, a very bad one. There are better films out there.

Cozy 80's Suburban Horror With Good Old Special Effects

[lukem-52760 · 7/10 · 13 January 2024]

"PULSE" was a film i remember catching always on t.v in the middle of the night & never from the beginning but i always watched what i could of it.

Yep back in the 90's i would often catch Pulse nearly half way through or so but always liked what i saw & always remembered it.

You cannot beat old school 80's movies from any genre, but Horror was mind blowing because of the use of practical effects that seemed like real movie magic.

A young boy goes to stay with his father & his father's girlfriend in a lovely Los Angeles suburbs where all the houses are nice big beautiful Looking places of comfort. But there's a sinister paranormal or extraterrestrial pulse that has travelled through electricity into the family home. The young boy David, starts to notice all the weird happenings in his dad's high-tech home & of course his father Bill doesn't believe him until things start to get more & more serious. All performances are very good for this type of fun 80's horror thriller. Cliff De Young is decent as the dad that just can't believe there's something sinister out to hurt his family. Cliff De Young was a good choice because he's such an ordinary Looking guy & so can play a hard working suburban father easily. I loved the family house it's so 80's & so cozy & the cinematographer lit it perfectly. The house is a character as we never see the evil pulse entity thingy, we just see electronic equipment going haywire & becoming dangerous & it's done so well that it works fine that we don't actually see a monster.

There's a fun cautionary tale to Pulse that is basically about relying to much on high-tech stuff (abit like the futuristic Tom Selleck sci-fi thriller RUNWAY,1984) but that film was more about actual Robots rather than electric equipment & appliances but similar still in nature of the fear of a high-tech futuristic world. Pulse felt similar in spirit to Maximum Overdrive (1986) with it's otherworldly signal travelling through electricity & infecting electrical equipment. The 80's did all best & made these films so full of excitement & fun.

Joey Lawrence as David (Bills son) & Roxanne Hart as Ellen (Bills wife) are great.

The big house is used perfectly to feel menacing & as a huge threat. I totally enjoyed this film as i love cozy suburban horror fun & Pulse fits in with the likes of Poltergeist & The 'Burbs for an example. The music is an awesome pure 80's expected horror score & film has a nice easy relaxing vibe to it.

I love 80's horror movies & sci-fi stuff & that's exactly what Pulse is & it works. Pulse is old school 80's fun horror filmmaking through & through & because of all its nice little qualities it makes it a nice time capsule of 80's Los Angeles 'burbs & for its time, high-tech household gadgets.

There's definitely a comforting Nostalgic feel to Pulse that makes you long for those good old past times again & makes you want to watch it again.

Molasses in January

[wondertimeorange · 1/10 · 3 November 2018]

If this movie were a rocket launch then ten minutes after ignition, the rocket would still be sitting on the launch pad.

Electric shock and other accidents aka Electric Poltergeist

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 17 June 2021]

So this has nothing to do with a more recent horror movie called Pulse ... neither the original nor the US remake of that more recent effort and stab at horror. No pun intended of course. This has 80s written all over it. For better or worse, which will be depending on how you view things and what your personal liking is of course.

The horror works quite fine and the family that plays the lead is very well cast too. If you are into supernatural horror you'll enjoy this ... There's really not much to add to that ... apart from characters not alway doing what would seem logical ... but then again what is logical in a world like that? Exactly ... other parameters that seem to define the fear of technology taking over ... or at least being more of an enemy to mankind rather than a helping hand ...

It's okay...

[liminalone · 5/10 · 10 April 2007]

The idea of a malevolent force living inside the local power lines (and thus, inside your home) is not a bad one. We can probably live with the plot, but what about the movie? The fact that we are treated to multiple shots of stuff like, oh I don't know, the thermostat (accompanied by tense music) to heighten our fear should give you the answer.

Apparently an electrical storm causes something to happen at a substation. Exactly what happens we will never know, because we pretty much see the lightning strike, then spend some time watching different film angles of power lines and equipment overlaid with the opening credits. I think that the lightning strike created "The Pulse," allowing it to travel over the wires finding a safe place to kill people, but do not quote me on that.

Enter Bill, Ellen, and David, the standard (fissionable) elements of a nuclear family. His dad's house might be in a well to do neighborhood, but Bill has installed all sorts of bars on the windows to prevent forced entry. Since the chances of a burglary in this film are probably nil, we can bet they will be unable to leave the cursed house at some point due to Bill's paranoid security measures.

Demonic forces (even ones with polarity) love to torment young children and the little wuss makes a perfect target, so how does it screw with David? By cracking gas mains, making the television go freaky, and eventually turning the home into a flaming death trap. It is all very silly to me, including the grass dying around the house. The current usually stays inside the wires or various appliances, why would plant matter start dying? Guess it just seemed like a "horrific" thing to happen.

If there was ever a movie the Amish would enjoy this is it ("See Jeremiah! Machines are the Devil's work! Now go outside and round up your six brothers for supper."), perhaps that was the audience targeted when it was produced? If so then someone in marketing got fired, probably beat up and then fired now that I think about it.

Good old fashioned creeps

[spost8260 · 8/10 · 20 March 2006]

I agree that some of the lines in this film are 'cheesy', but its been a long time since I've seen a film that actually gave me a good case of the creeps and this filled the bill. I'm sick of the blood, gore, sex and foul language. SOmetimes its okay, but gets painfully boring after awhile. I want to be able to be spooked or creeped out; to be able to walk away looking over my shoulder or wondering "what if" and this film was the last film ever made that gave me this feeling. Not many films do, because it seems blood and filth is what horror is supposed to be about. Well I like good old spooky stories, too and this film has what it takes to give you a good case of the creeps. If you like blood, gore and sex, then you probably wont like this film. But if you want to spend the next two weeks walking on the paranoid side, check it out!

Solid but not terribly earth shattering

[dnlmonaco · 6/10 · 11 February 2018]

One of the problems that cinema of the 1990s and 1980s is that filmmakers and audiences never really knew what they had on their hands. The Exorcist III by William Peter Blatty, for instance, was probably one of the greatest thrillers ever made and yet audiences and Hollywood executives at the time just didn't know what they had. Pulse is another example of a film that came just too early to be appreciated. It's a solid concept and a solid thriller that probably would be a bigger hit today than in the 1980s when there were no cell phones or computer controlled cars because the idea is so much scarier and more real these days. So on the one hand, Pulse suffers from being too early.

But on the other hand, it's also not exactly good. When you talk about all the underrated horror gems of the 80s and 90s (Exorcist III, Pumpkinhead, In the Mouth of Madness, The Resurrected, Prince of Darkness, or Event Horizon) Pulse will never make that list because it's just too flawed.

Pulse suffers from "Writer/Director disease", where there isn't enough eyes on a single scene or concept to really understand how it works. The idea of making the main character a little kid instead of the step mom (who steals the show) seems like something someone else should've mentioned during pre-production. Certain scenes feel out of place in the film and you can tell that a large part of the movie was left on the cutting room floor. I'm not saying the movie would do better with a longer running time, because in this case the film is tight enough to hang together, but a lot of ideas are picked up and dropped (voices in the wires, a tv set that seems to talk to you, other houses in the neighborhood being infected).

All in all, Pulse suffers from being too early and not well defined enough from the rest of the 80s horror pack. It tries very hard to be Poltergeist but the flaws in the script and the direction just can't pull it off.

Kinda hokey, but I did finish watching it

[edriejk · 4/10 · 12 June 2007]

Although this film was kinda hokey, I did finish watching it. Partly, I was interested because the director got the idea from staying at my parents' house in the suburb of Norwalk, Ca during the Watts riots (we were married at the time). Too bad he hasn't done anything else since then as a director. Good choice of actors, I thought. Could it be redone with more modern CGI effects? Get his friend George to help? Make it a little darker, maybe, with a supernatural twist. Or, add another one of his ideas, which was that ideas are the fruit of an underground plant with roots connected all over the world. Perhaps that last would make a movie of its own. I'd like to see that one done.