Deadline (1980)

Why so much hype?

Did you people see the same film I saw?

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Stephen Lesse is a man with dark troubles. A noted horror author and screenwriter, he finds himself hating his work, trying to come up with something more worthy whilst grappling with writers block, a grasping producer and shrill lush of a wife. Something's got to give, and give it does…Deadline sets its stall early on, strained family breakfast giving way to bloody fantasy, and the film sticks to this template, spiralling dysfunction shot through with grisly gore (we're talking some good gross blood and guts stuff here) from the imagination of our protagonist. Its oppressive, truly "feel-bad" stuff, mostly because almost every character is selfish and deeply flawed, but also in the dim view cast on the very genre and mindset of horror, something guaranteed to unsettle and even irritate fans. Sturdy performances keep a tight grip on the audience, there is something of the TV film about the acting, but in the best sort of way, dead serious and committed. Stephen Young essays convincing inner turmoil roiling inside a bitter and hard to like man, Sharon Masters excels at the edge of collapse as his wife, whilst Marvin Golhar brings bleakly amusing oily cynicism as Lesse's producer. Deadline isn't all about dark drama though, it's one of the few films of its time that unsettles by force of its nastiness rather than just atmosphere and anticipation. Few movies I have come across evoke so nicely at times the unhinged feel of the grimier end of pulp horror fiction, the slimy levels from which one can look up and consider the likes of Stephen King novels paragons of literary and moral virtue. Now clichéd ideas worked around nuns, children and at one point a goat are mined for maximum grim effect and the key notion of one of Lesse's novels that gets the film moving into its darkest realms is a concept both truly grotesque (disturbingly so) and somewhat pointless. Which I guess is sort of the point that the film appears to be making on the horror genre, that it's a breeding ground for mindlessly horrifying images that do nothing but corrupt. Its not a view I agree with in anyway and I may be overstating the films intentions (it is a bit muddled), but the abrasive nature of it gives it an uncommon kick. Apart from the moral dimension, the film is interesting just for its look at the breakdown of an artist and the assorted pressures and compromises faced, something that may well have been personal to writer/director Mario Azzopardi. A leading light of cinema and theatre in his native Malta, Deadline was his first English language production, made in Canada with the help of tax shelter for film-makers. It is therefore low budget, and the gorier scenes may well have been added at the behest of the producers (one of them really does jar, you'll see which one), making Deadline a film that appears to reference its own reality in fairly caustic fashion. Apart from his decent handling of the actors and darkly interesting writing Azzopardi has a sure handling of things throughout, suitably suspenseful or intense when needed. Particularly fine is a finale of inspired delirium, very impressive stuff. The film could have done with a shade more coherency and tighter development of its characters and themes, it also misses a trick in not connecting characters and themes closer to its gore sequences. Things are a tad messy then and depressing too, I perhaps could have done with more shading to the characters, perhaps even a little relief? Still, this is rather an ace work on the whole and richly recommended.

Long overlooked examination of a family man's spiraling madness is surprisingly brainy, and skillfully realized on meager financial rations. A horror novelist's dark fantasy world collides with his personal reality, causing a landslide of hallucinogenic dementia within both his family life and his his professional endeavors. A very ominous and disorienting Canadian-made nightmare oozing with abstract, disturbing imagery, DEADLINE is also spurred by able performers and imaginative directorial edginess. These refinements, together with a conceptually unique premise, catapult this film above and beyond most low-budget horror menu side-orders. 7/10...definitely worthy of a rental, if not a purchase.

Make no mistake this is a good horror film. It has some nice chills, good amount of gore and some disturbing moments that will be with you after the film has ended. But Azzopardi has attempted not just the usual horror flick here; he has fashioned an allegorical gem based on the debate over violence in the media using a horror writer and his family as the focus. Azzopardi has also crafted a post modern film which is self-commenting, non-linear, and offers no definitive resolution for all of his characters which can tend to instill an unsatisfying or muddled ending. However, this film should be viewed as ahead of its time in its treatment of the subject matter and original way of presenting it. The style of the film owes much more to the Italian horror masters (Argento, Fulci, etc.) than it does to North American cinema as Azzopardi, made his mark in Canadian cinema. It should also be noted that while the film is allegory, it was apparent to me that Stephen King was the basis for the main character (even his name is Stephen) and pre-dates any self-referential treatment (The Dark Half) from King by almost a decade. In this regard, the film remains highly original in theme and still well worth watching. Bottom Line: good horror film that will evoke Italian cinema but you must be willing to put the pieces together on your own...a thinking person's horror film.

Horror movies that reference their own genre have been more prevalent lately, but it seems they come attached with a certain degree of mordant comedy, signifying that the directors probably aren't completely convinced of their own convictions. But that's not really a problem with this film. DEADLINE is a horror picture that begins like any typical slasher film would, but later becomes more laid back in an effort to reflect on itself from an idealistic point of view. The film chiefly appears to be another examination of the effects of graphic violence in cinema on its viewers, particularly child viewers. The narrative framework for all this is built upon the story of a horror movie screenwriter whose life begins to disintegrate when he begins writing for more violent and more lowbrow productions than he'd prefer. As to be expected, it eventually leads to a collapse of his sanity.I liked the film for its first two-thirds because director Azzapardi was trying to do something different and even attempting a resonant observation or two along the way. But like so many of these self-referential type films, it paints itself into a corner in the end to where it doesn't really have an ending. It rather just trails off in the final minutes, not knowing how to tie its various story threads. Nonetheless, its worth a look since much of it does hold some promise, at least before the third act.