Delusion (1981)

You know, despite my general low ratings of them, there's something strangely addictive about early 80's slasher flicks. You know... people potter around aimlessly for ages, before the soundtrack stops and you just KNOW they're about to be incapacitated with a knife/hook/chair leg (Delete where applicable). Even here, where it seems to take FOREVER till the first death (And that's a dog), most of the victims are taken care of by a simple WHACK to the temple (Not very scary, that) and there's an implausible TWIST at the end (Which gets more stupid the more you think about it) it's all rather endearing.It was made with love and affection, by a director who shoots far too many scenes in the dark and doesn't have a clue about building suspense, and a writer who, apart from the pretty leading lady, writes dull characters and sets out the most boring set-pieces for murder imaginable, before that incomprehensible conclusion. If this movie was a child, I would give him a pat on the back for effort, then stick a D cap on his head before sending him to the back of the class. AND make him stay for extra homework... 3/10

An attractive nurse named Meredith moves to the Langrock estate to take care of her patient:a crippled old man.She falls in love with sixteen year old grandson of Langrock named Gabriel,who returned from some kind of desert commune.A series of brutal murders in the gloom of the night is set in motion...Slow-moving but well-made and competent psycho slasher that often drags.The death scenes mostly involve head bashings and are pretty bloodless.I liked the main performance of Patricia Pearcy as I remembered her from Jeff Lieberman's "Squirm"."Delusion" is worth checking out for completists of 80's US independent horror.6 out of 10.

I'm glad some local and old video stores still own VHS titles such as "Delusion". I remember watching it on a cheap video store located on a horrible social security living area. That was in the early 90's. Now, years later, to my surprise, I found the VHS of this tape.I regret I didn't watch it before. This is the typical slasher flick with the "whodunit?" premise. The plot is very simple and easy to follow. A young cute nurse arrives to a creepy mansion to take care of an invalid and creepy old man. But it's the family of the old man who gives really the creeps to our heroine; including the mysterious butler. Why? Because each of them has weird activities and personalities. Then, "strange" killings start to happen and it's only Meredith who can discover who is behind them.Well this is a standard slasher with a few decent death scenes and some bizarre sequences including nightmares and suspense.Watch it only if you are hungry of slasher flicks. I could've enjoyed it more back when the slasher craziness was at it's peek. To these days, it looks dated and cheap. Oh and the VHS copy I found was horrible in all the sense of the word.

Meredith moves to the Langrock estate to take care of Langrock himself, an ailing man whose legs no longer work. Langrock has a son who is disturbed in some way, as well as his orphaned teenage grandson Gabriel who returns from a desert commune (or something) to live with the family. Langrock's butler has been working his way through the wine cellar for years, and the cook is proud of her granola...mmm.Gabriel is a strange young man who likes lurking in shadows, saying or reacting in peculiar ways and generally making people uneasy. Meredith is fascinated by him, but also fears he's behind the brutal death of the guard dog and the other deaths that follow.A fair amount of the movie also has voice-over by Meredith.The Embassy Home Entertainment VHS is not the best print; nighttime scenes or those in the cellar are dark and lack definition. The end credits are fairly unreadable.