The Silent Scream

source: The Silent Scream

Trailer—The Silent Scream

The Silent Scream

When this came out originally it looked kind of stupid. I was going to skip it but two things changed my mind--a local Boston newspaper gave it a rave review (this was from a critic who HATED horror films) and it had Barbara Steele in it. It's about these four college kids sharing this huge mansion with owner (Yvonne De Carlo) and her teenage son. However somebody kills two of them and the two left are fighting for their lives. But who is it...and why? Pretty mild horror film. The killings are pretty tame as is the one sex scene. The dialogue is terrible and the film looks cheap. It feels like an R rated made for TV film. Also except for De Carlo and Steele (both wasted) the acting is lousy. Still I sort of liked this. It's competently directed and there were a few minor chills here and there. There's also one VERY gruesome scene where a pregnant teenage girl tries to hang herself. That probably earned the film an R rating. Mild but not bad.

I've never really heard of thos movie but I picked it up at a horror con with 2 others that were 3 for $50. I'm always a sucker for a good deal and always looking out for hidden gems I may have missed. Well unlike most times I actually found one. Silent scream is a tense little slasher about college kids being offed one by one in brutal fashion after moving into suggested student housing. The movie is fun in that retro way and the story and twists are surprisingly good. That being said I can understand why it's not referred to that much. Although entertaining it's just not all that memorable. Still in the history of slashers it's a classier one that's well made with a great performance by scream queen Barbara Steele. Box Office$ 8m 3.5/5

For a film as cliche ridden as Silent Scream, it's a minor miracle that it came out as enjoyable and fun as it did. The story is well-worn and only slightly remixed for the late 70's/early 80's slasher craze. A young college student finds herself without housing, so she finds a room for rent at a spooky beachside home operated by a repressed young man and his nearly mute mother. Pretty soon, the bodies are piling up and family secrets are flying out of closets left and right. Only a useless cop subplot (featuring Cameron Mitchell and Avery Schrieber) kills the pacing here and there and feels extraneous. The cast happens to be a likable, agreeable bunch with the charming and spunky Rebecca Balding leading. Veterans Yvonne DeCarlo and Barbara Steele show up to add some class to the seedy proceedings and it works. Silent Scream feels like a cut above most of the early slasher glut due to an emphasis on suspense, mood, and interesting characters.

When Scotty Parker and three other students move into Mrs Engels' boarding house on the coast,they soon begin to suspect that something strange is happening.Landlady Mrs Engels hides away in her attic room and her son Mason is a creepy character who likes to watch brutal TV shows.Then the students start to disappear..."Silent Scream" is pretty good.It's true that some of its elements are stolen from Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho"(check out the shower scene!),but still the film manages to be quite creepy.The characters are reasonably appealing-a horror queen Barbara Steele is another reason to see "Silent Scream".Overall I enjoyed this little suspense horror.Check it out.8 out of 10.

College student Scotty Parker waits too long to apply for on campus housing and as a result must rent a room at a spooky seaside mansion owned by the equally spooky Engels family. Soon, one of the other college student renters is brutally murdered and Scotty unknowingly begins to unravel the secrets of the Engels family and the murders. The creepy, atmospheric little gem is a homage to Psycho through and through. Though it is a slow-burner, there is always an uneasiness present as the viewer is made aware through minor clues that something is not right with the Engels family. There is little to no gore; instead the focus on on building tension leading into the frantic and frenzied climax. Barbara Steele steals the film without saying a word and her performance will certainly give you chills. Highly underrated and one of the better entries into the early 80's slasher genre, though today's audience may be turned off by the slow pace. FrightMeter Grade: B

A cloying atmosphere. A large, wooden mansion close to the beach. A camera prowling the hallways. An arm grabbed in a crawlspace. Barbara Steele. The strange, bespecled son who puts on an old army uniform and stays in his room. The mother we rarely see. The grim tone. I recall these fleeting aspects of "Silent Scream" and I recall the trailer featuring the arm grabbed. The film is not very bloody and not a lot happens, but director Denny Harris chooses to focus on the dysfunctional family who rent rooms to college students. One of them, Rebecca Balding, a strong, no-nonsense actress, cottons on to what's happening and starts to investigate. Although the film was inspired by Halloween, it plays more like "Psycho" or "Terror House" and benefits from its downbeat look and score.