Dom Robinson reviews

Distributed by
Encore Entertainment

Cat.no: EE 1137

Cert: 18

Running time: 119 minutes

Sides: 2 (CLV)

Year: 1982

Pressing: 1998

Chapters: 29 (15/13+1)

Sound: Dolby Surround

Widescreen: 2.35:1 (Panavision)

Price: £19.99

Extras : Original Theatrical Trailer

---

Director:

Sidney Furie (Appaloosa, The Ipcress File, Iron Eagle 4, The Rage, Superman 4: The Quest For Peace, Top Of The World, Wonderful Life, The Young Ones)

Producer:

Harold Schneider

Screenplay:

Frank DeFelitta (based on his novel)

Music:

Charles Bernstein

Cast:

Carla Moran: Barbara Hershey (Aunt Julia And The Scriptwriter, Beaches, A Dangerous Woman, Falling Down, Hannah And Her Sisters, Last Temptation Of Christ, The Pallbearer, Paris Trout, Portrait Of A Lady, Return To Lonesome Dove, The Right Stuff, Splitting Heirs, The Stunt Man)
Phil Sneiderman: Ron Silver (The Arrival, Blind Side, Blue Steel, Deadly Takeover, Fellow Traveller, Girl 6, Kane And Abel, Live Wire, Mister Saturday Night, Silent Rage, Timecop, TV: "Chicago Hope")
Billy: David Labiosa
Dr. Weber: George Coe (Nick And Jane)
Cindy Nash: Margaret Blye (Liar's Moon)
Dr. Cooley: Jacqueline Brooks

---

Carla Moran quietly undresses for bed. Suddenly, she is thrown across the room and violently raped - but she sees no-one. There is no explanation for her bruises, nor for the furniture tossed around everywhere. No explanation except... The Entity.

In the film, Carla battles a terrifying invisible presence that is determined to posess her body and soul.

"She was so injured, so hurt by this thing, so emotionally destroyed by it," says Frank DeFelitta, who interviewed the real Carla Moran extensively for both the novel and the screenplay. "She was experiencing something that was both unexplainable and terrifying; she didn't know what to do, where to go, or who to turn to."

Inspired by this startling true incident, The Entity's chilling account chronicles Carla's continuing attacks, her frustration with a psychiatrist's useless explanations and the terror of living with a mysterious, unseen assailant. It is only when parapsychologists witness the shocking phenomena that a plan is devised to capture and destroy whatever that has turned Carla's life into a living hell.

This is the first time I've watched this film and I thoroughly enjoyed it. There's great acting from all concerned, particularly Barbara Hershey as the haunted woman, not to mention the fact that she's a babe - and yes she does strip down to the altogether; and Ron Silver as the sceptical doctor who tries to provide realistic explanations for what she's going through, despite the fact that 'realism' doesn't come into her experiences.

He's not the only one who sees things in black and white. When Carla is babysitting at a friend's house, just after they get into their car to leave, the invisible man does his business destroying the front room. Her friend runs back in and tries to console Carla, while her friend's husband comes out with a classic, "Christ, she tore the fucking place apart!"

Like Encore's other release this month, Omen III: The Final Conflict, the picture quality is almost spot-on, the only non-perfect element being a few flecks dropouts on the original print, but this is to be expected on a film which is 16 years old.

The sound quality excellent too. It's in Dolby Surround, which is well used for the moments when Carla is threatened by the unseen force - cue a few well-chosen directional sound effects - and is also very clear for the dialogue.

There are 28 chapters spread throughout the 119 minutes of the film and it also contains the original theatrical trailer afterwards.

Overall, this film is an engaging drama punctuated with loud, spectacular sci-fi moments, making for one of the best films I've seen all year. Even though this is not the newest of films released on laserdisc this month, the top-notch picture and sound quality make this one of the best reasons to part with a twenty-pound note this summer.

FILM	 		: *****
PICTURE QUALITY		: ****½
SOUND QUALITY		: *****
EXTRAS			: *
-------------------------------
OVERALL			: ****

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 1998.