Night of the Scarecrow
| Night of the Scarecrow | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Jeff Burr |
| Written by |
Reed Steiner Dan Mazur |
| Starring |
Elizabeth Barondes John Mese Stephen Root Bruce Glover Dirk Blocker |
| Music by | Jim Manzie |
| Cinematography | Thomas L. Callaway |
| Distributed by | Republic Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 85 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Night of the Scarecrow is a 1995 American horror film directed by Jeff Burr.
Plot
In order for a town to prosper and have a successful harvest, the citizens made a deal with a warlock. When the people found out that the warlock was sexually preying on the town's women, they murdered him and buried his bones, which resulted in his ghost being confined to a scarecrow.
Cast
- Elizabeth Barondes: Claire Goodman
- John Mese: Dillon
- Stephen Root: Uncle Frank/The Sherriff
- Bruce Glover: Uncle Thaddeus
- Dirk Blocker: Uncle George
- Howard Swain: The Scarecrow
- Gary Lockwood: Mayor Goodman
- John Hawkes: Danny Thompson
- William Joseph Barker: Kyle
- Martine Beswick: Barbara
- Cristi Harris: Stephanie
Reception
While Variety wrote that the director "has more luck with physical scenes than he does with coaxing inspired performances out of his actors", Blu-ray.com wrote that the director "stages things very effectively and gets some good performances out of a game cast."[1][2] A reviewer for DVD Talk did not like the "inept circa-1995 CGI".[3]
Jeffrey Kaufman of Blu-ray.com compared a violent scene in the film to a scene in another horror film with a murderous scarecrow, the television film Dark Night of the Scarecrow.[2] Eric Hansen of Variety wrote of the film and its original VHS release, "A moderately exciting, average monster movie with good production values and a few good ideas, “Night of the Scarecrow” looks to have its longest life on homevideo."[1] A review for TV Guide says, "A healthy dose of directorial style and energy makes this prosaic low-budget chiller a tense, entertaining diversion."[4]
Adam Tyner, writing for DVD Talk, said "It's kind of interesting seeing some of the familiar faces in the cast, and Night of the Scarecrow does trot out a few really nice looking setpieces, but none of that's enough to salvage this limp, lifeless, uninspired, instantly forgettable slasher flick. Skip It."[3]
Home media
The original video release was in 1995 on VHS, distributed by Republic Pictures.[5] The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray by Olive Films in 2013, with the same special features – an audio commentary with director Jeff Burr, a making of video, and a picture gallery.[6]
See also
References
- 1 2 Hansen, Eric (September 4, 1995). "Review: "Night of the Scarecrow"". Variety. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
- 1 2 Kauffman, Jeffrey (May 3, 2013). "Night of the Scarecrow Blu-ray Review". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
- 1 2 Tyner, Adam (April 30, 2013). "Night of the Scarecrow (Blu-ray)". DVD Talk. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
- ↑ "Night Of The Scarecrow: Review". TV Guide. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
- ↑ "Night of the Scarecrow [VHS] (1995)". Amazon. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
- ↑ "Night of the Scarecrow". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved July 28, 2013.