Skullduggery (1983)

- written April 2006

Summary: Adam and his girlfriend, Barbara, enjoy a nice role-playing game as much as the next person. So with 2 friends and a moderator, they play their game and enjoy the intricacies of it. The problem is, Adam’s bloodline has been cursed by a evil sorcerer 600 years earlier…and now the curse is gonna take effect as Adam decides to start act his fantasies out. So where the board game calls for a murder of a lady in white, Adam decides to start killing real people. Now can anyone stop him?           Overall: For the very few people who have seen this film, the almost unanimous reaction is “confusion.” And not really a surprise because the script is less than coherent. I can buy the ideas that the guy is cursed and he’s basically possessed as he kills people. However he has no motives to kill total strangers while leaving his friends alive. In addition, the 2 friends that play the game never get explained as to who they are or what they do, or why they don’t take anyone seriously, even after it’s clear Adam is killing people. But the real problem...is the finale as the SWAT team engages in a gun-fight in the costume factory. Just doesn’t make much sense given the previous 80 minutes and it’s so over the top…turns a horror movie into a “shoot ‘em up action film.” It’s out of place and just doesn’t work.           Comparison: Hangman meets Dungeons & Dragons

Links to other sites at The Sinning Room

Horror Films L-Z Review Page

Horror Films Review Page