Midnight Blue (1979)

Midnight Blue (1979) * 1/2 (out of 4) Yet another Italian rip-off of Wes Craven's THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT. This one here has three girls heading off to a private beach to spend the weekend relaxing. Three men end up showing up so they're added to the weekend party that includes sex and alcohol. Soon the women learn that the men are escaped prisoners and they then turn violent.You know, if you're going to rip-off a notorious violent movie it might be a good idea not to tame the subject down. MIDNIGHT BLUE is perhaps one of the least known rips and that's probably due to the fact that there's really not too much that happens here. Horror fans love the countless rip-offs that Italy has to offer but I think it speaks volumes that this film isn't known.The biggest problem is that the first forty minutes or so are nothing more than softcore sex scenes between the girls and the bad guys. They laugh. They talk. They have a good time and this stuff just drags on. Once the secret of who the guys are finally gets out there's still not much that happens. Once the "revenge" aspect starts its rather tame and there's not a single shocking thing that happens. The screenplay really doesn't offer up anything interesting except for the two dumb cops, another thing that was ripped from the Craven movie.

Three young Italian girls go to spend a weekend at an isolated beach house and end up getting humiliated and raped by trio of young criminals.They will soon get bloody revenge..."Midnight Blue" is perhaps the most obscure and overlooked Italian rape and revenge flick.It's pretty slow-moving,but it should appeal to fans of films such "Late Night Trains","Terror Express","Last House on the Beach" or "House on the Edge of the Park".There is plenty of sleaze and full-frontal nudity and few nasty set-pieces,but the score by Stelvio Cipriani is too cheesy and melodramatic.There is also not enough intense terror for my liking.Three girls don't get treated that badly or at least it doesn't feel like they do because of the overwhelming lack of enthusiasm from most of the actors.A generous 7 out of 10.

This is a cheap looking Italian drama about three girls who are taken hostage by three criminals. It really isn't that interesting, although there are a couple of enjoyable moments. The girls take revenge and kill the dudes cold, but that isn't where it ends. The final sequence is one of the only parts that leave an impression.I stumbled on this movie by accident and watched it once. There were some lengthy sequences that did not keep my attention. It was gritty and poorly lit, and not very scenic.It starts out kind of carefree, as the three girls are on a vacation bus with a group, but stay behind from the rest to hang out at a beach house. They meet three men and it's kind of cozy for a while. The movie changes tone midway when the girls find out the men are wanted.

I'm a big fan of these films about people being held captive by a group of sadistic criminals and have been known to give out higher ratings than necessary at times. The likes of The Last House on the Left, House on the Edge of the Park, Death Weekend and Fight for Your Life are the best of the 'genre', with films such as The Last House on the Beach somewhere behind. Midnight Blue is a completely obscure entry, and that's hardly surprising since it's also not a very good one, in spite of some decent ideas. The plot is really quite routine, and focuses on three female athletes who are spending their summer holiday at a beach house. They are hit on by three men, who the girls begin spending time with. The six engage in sexual relations etc and everything seems well until one of the girls goes into town with one of the men and buys a newspaper; the front page of which reports three prison escapees, and features three pictures of the same men! The men hold the girls captive in the house, but being athletes, they have a few tricks up their sleeves...You can't expect too much deviation from the norm with films like this, but Midnight Blue is perhaps just a bit too routine for its own good. The final third does provide some entertainment as the girls turn the tables; but obviously this happened previously in superior films such as The Last House on the Left, so the film doesn't get many points for originality. Midnight Blue is rather gritty and director Raimondo Del Balzo is successful in creating a grim and foreboding atmosphere, which excellently compliments the plot. The locations used are rather bland, which isn't too surprising considering that this film was clearly a cheap production. The acting is not up too much, and the film really does lack a David Hess type figure - the guy with the moustache isn't quite up to standard. The best idea in the film features a javelin throwing lass who spearheads the revenge on the escaped convicts. This works fairly well, although again the film could have done with a bit more variety. I will say that this film is just about worth a look; but considering its obscurity, it's not really worth tracking down.