In the early 1980s slasher films were all the rage. But none were as controversial as Romano Scavolini’s Nightmare, the subject of this book by Nick Cato.
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“NIGHTMARE opens today at a number of theaters, which is perhaps the nicest thing that can be said for it…”
Institutionalised as a child for a gruesome double murder and having undergone experimental psychiatric treatment into adulthood, George Tatum is finally released into society … only to kill again.
Of all the slasher films to appear in the 1980s, none were as brutal or would elicit as much controversy as Romano Scavolini’s Nightmare. From round-the-clock screenings in New York City to becoming a popular VHS rental, the film was quickly championed by gorehounds thirsting for onscreen blood while alienating many others.
Onscreen carnage was only the beginning. Critics found the film offensive and its moral tone ambiguous. The gruesome special effects were subject to fierce debate. The UK distributor served a prison sentence for releasing the film uncut, provocatively retitled as Nightmares in a Damaged Brain. It became one of the most notorious of the so-called ‘video nasties’.
Author Nick Cato first experienced Nightmare as part of a double feature in 1983. He is not alone in considering it one of the most intense horror films of all time. He is alone in having spent over forty years amassing material on the film, sifting through countless reviews (mostly negative) and magazine articles, attending dozens of theatrical screenings, and conducting many interviews. This book is the result.
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