Night School

Night School (1981)

Runtime: 90 minutes

Directed by: Ken Hughes

Starring: Rachel Ward, Leonard Mann, Drew Snyder, Joseph R. Sicari, Karen MacDonald

From: Lorimar

So, this was a DVR recording made from a recent Turner Classic Movies showing! I recall them also showing it late at night long ago; this latest screening was during a late night of horror, after The Haunting and the blaxploitation film Sugar Hill-both seen by me & reviewed years ago. Night School I’d heard of but never partaken in until last night. Of interest to me was not just it being the film debut of Rachel Ward, a lovely lady… the film is also a giallo-style slasher set & filmed in Boston complete w/ killer adorned in black (including motorcycle helmet) who rides a dirt bike.

The killings happen via a kukri blade; for those that haven’t seen something like Forged in Fire, it’s a curved knife used for centuries in South Asia. Is that a hint or was it chosen for aesthetic reasons? The targets are those that go to the titular night school, a women’s college. Ward is an exchange student so she speaks w/ her native accent.

The film is largely what I expected… red herrings included. There’s someone who is best described as “Temu Willem Dafoe.” Is that pervert more than a red herring? The film is not for those who want to see those decapitations in graphic detail; only the severed heads are shown. There’s also an anthropology professor who of course is sleazy and has affairs. Speaking of sleaze, this film has it-including nudity and a shower scene.

Leonard Mann portrays a police officer investigating these slayings; some will think he’s an ACAB due to some unethical behavior. The only other name of note in the cast is Drew Snyder; he’s a “that guy” sort of actor who I best known (at least to me) for being gunned down in the opening of Commando while taking out the trash. 

The film is not a true giallo; the denouement is not a convoluted affair that the viewer likely doesn't fully comprehend. The film isn’t the most thrilling nor the most exciting horror effort. Then again, it wasn’t the point to be a dopey teen slasher-rather, it tries to be a more serious thriller, complete with several quality suspense scenes. 

Be that as it may, I was always interested in this tale due to the solid filmmaking, the electronic moments from the soundtrack by Brad Fiedel, and the amusing detail that this was the final movie from the guy that gave us Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, one of the many that set in the director’s chair for the ’67 Casino Royale, and other serious British films (Ken Hughes). The Boston setting was nice, as was the short vehicle chase in the final act. The film’s a good curio that does stand out especially when compared to the cheap slashers of the time.