Customer Reviews

Deadly Friend [VHS]

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

contrary to what wes craven says about it in interviews, DEADLY FRIEND is not his worst film and is not that bad a film, period. i have always enjoyed it and am surprised at how disturbing the story actually is. and the tacked-on ending is no dumber than the tacked-on ending of craven's original NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. bottom line, DEADLY FRIEND contains one of the coolest and most original kills i can remember from any 80s horror film: a character's head gets obliterated by a flying basketball! fans of this underrated gem will no doubt rejoice in being able to view that scene frame-by-frame now that it's on DVD.

In discussions about Wes Craven's career, Deadly Friend isn't usually brought up(then again neither is Chiller or Deadly Blessing). In fact, most folks probably don't remember that he even made the movie(like Swamp Thing). While it doesn't quite achieve classic status like some of his other films, it's rather fun. Until recently, I haven't seen this film since about 1988 or so(on HBO of course). The plot concerns a teenage genius, Paul, who has created a robot with artificial intelligence. He also teaches at the local college. He falls for his next door neighbor, Sam(Kristy Swanson), who ends up severely brain damaged and ultimately killed by her abusive father. Earlier in the film, Paul's robot, BB, was blown to smithereens by the neighborhood's lunatic old lady(Anne Ramsey from The Goonies and Throw Momma From The Train), so Paul has a handy dandy robot brain lying around. In true mad scientist fasion he brings back Sam with BB's brain. Of course we all know that when this stuff happens in movies nothing goes as smooth as planned. The merged brains of BB and Sam go on a killing spree of everyone that ever wronged them(there was some BB bullying early in the film). Paul tries to hide Sam from his mother and keep her in line with a remote control, but it all becomes to big for him to handle. Plus, his buddy is about to squeal to the fuzz. Interestingly the movie actually plays out better than the silly concept would have you believe. Make no mistake, some of it is quite funny, but in Craven's hands it's handled about as well as this Weird Science/Re-Animator hybrid could be handled. Swanson has never been one of my favorite actresses, but she does a good job with the blank stares and robotic movements(the credits state she had a mime coach). Matthew Laborteaux has nerdy charm, but it is a bit hard to buy that he'd have the drive and determination to do what he does. This movie is most well known for it's "basketball decapitation" scene, which is certainly worth the price of admission alone. The shock ending scene is completely absurd and defies any kind of logic, but is very typical of horror movies from this time period. It still managed to bring a smile to my face nonetheless. The song played over the closing credits is a hoot with it's constant whisperings of "BB!", "BB!" Deadly Friend was worth seeing again for sure(unlike that putrid Cursed movie Craven did). Maybe it'll be worth it to you too.

Watching Kristy Swanson on 'Skating with Celebrities' on Fox got me trying to remember 'What was the hoakey movie that Kristy starred in back in the 80's?' Sure enough, I managed to remember Deadly Friend.

I don't think that this movie should be taken as a serious horror movie. There are definitely some intense scenes that earned the R rating. This is a classic movie of the 80's. Made in the same age of robot movies that spawned Short Circuit, Runaway, etc. It was an interesting idea for a movie. Not quite a 5 star, but one for those who collect movies of the 1980 decade.

What do you get when you cross a teenage computer nerd, a big yellow robot and the nerd's zombie girlfriend? You get the old lady across the street's head blown clear the fark off with a basketball!

All teenage genius, Paul, can think about is artificial intelligence. He even received a college scholarship thanks to the robot he build called BeeBee. Once in college though the blond next door distracts his attention.

Then the blond and BeeBee are both killed and Paul secretly uses a chip from BeeBee's brain to bring the blond back to life. Bad idea.

For a 80's "horror" flick this was pretty enjoyable, kinda like an after school special about the evils of reanimation. I would have enjoyed it even more if there had been more violence, gore and the girl next-door part would have been sexier with nudity and a different actress. Phoebe Cates maybe?

A teenage genius named Paul (Matthew Laborteaux) moves into a new town with his single mother and typical '80's robot of his own design, BB. He makes a friend right away in a paperboy named Tom, and also discovers he's one of those lucky movie characters who has moved in next door to a teen angel, this one named Samantha Pringle (Kristy Swanson). Paul soon finds he has his hands full, between his increasingly intelligent and aggressive robot and constantly abused by her father love interest. Robot BB doesn't last long, thanks to some less than friendly neighbors, so the focus soon shifts more towards the beautiful and sweet Samantha, who is probably one of the most sympathetic characters ever put on film, and if you have trouble watching extreme adorableness suffer continuously, you may have trouble watching "Deadly Friend". This is the tragic story of teenage love ended all too soon and brought back in the style of Mary Shelly, with a modern twist!

Now, if you've seen "Deadly Friend" already, you may scoff at my awarding it 5 stars. But, as I often have to remind people, 5 stars means "I Love It", according to Amazon.com, not "It's a masterpiece of filmmaking", and I do love "Deadly Friend". Why? Well, first, it IS just an updated Frankenstein story, but that's a great story. This is an '80's take, but it's not overwhelmingly '80's like your typical teen '80's film. It manages to not be all that dated, aside from the look of the robot that is so reminiscent of so many movies from the time. But I think the main reason this movie endears itself to so many is that Kristy Swanson is such a sweetheart in it. It's so successful as a tragedy because Samantha is a character you really fall in love with and wish you could save. Frankly, I'm not hugely into Kristy Swanson, but in this film and her tiny part in "Ferris Bueller" she is extra cute and always gets to me. It also has some very unforgettable scenes, like the famous basketball-meets-head explosion. The characters and the acting are all first rate in general, and this is just fantastic Wes Craven stuff. The only thing I could complain about in this film, aside from how sad it is (but it's supposed to be), is the final scene, which is dreamlike but never confirmed to be a dream. I really wish they had either left that little tid bit out, cut the final aspect of it, or thrown in the "waking from a dream" shot to have it make more sense. It shouldn't ruin your enjoyment of the film overall, it's just too bad that they went that route with the final minute or two, in my opinion. Easily ignored though, so don't let it prevent you from checking out this extremely enjoyable flick!

The DVD is practically barebones, but we do get the cool theatrical trailer and it has some scenes restored over the VHS release. The DVD cover is lame though, and they should have used the original poster art. Definitely a great addition to any collection though, especially if you get it for a great price, like I recently did.

I love this film, though unfortunately I don't own it. It was the first Wes Craven film I saw when I was ten, and it stuck in my mind! It's funny, witty, and a little gross, but it's a good movie, an original in the horror genre! I suggest if you haven't seen it, then go see it, because, quite simply....IT ROX!

I have to say that this isn't, of course, Craven's best horror film (it should be Scream 1), it had a modest production, but Deadly Friend is good and very easy to follow. I like it, specially Kristy Swanson, who did a great work, except for the part where she walks when she's a robot, I think she does it very badly. This isn't one of Swanson's best performances (I have to say that her best role has been Cathy in Flowers In The Attic), but she does it OK, as well as the rest of the cast.

Loved the "exploding head", when I first saw it I couldn't stop laughing, it's so hilarious. I have to say that I didn't expect it.

Wes Craven is definatly at his best with this film. I have not only seen the film, but I have read the novel by Diana Henstell. I have to say that Wes Craven spiced it up alot. The film is actually better than the novel. Kristy Swanson did a fantastic job playing Samantha! This is more than the usual horror flick, it has to do with love, obsession, and revenge. Fantastic film. A must see for all, not only the horror fans!!

By entertaining I don't necessarily mean good. Its a horrid piece of trash from a cinematic point of view, shallow characters, terrible dialogue, and a plot so far-fetched I was wondering what Wes Craven was sniffing and where I could get some. But what a great movie to watch with your friends! Every character deserves to be derided for both their words and actions. Each situation begs to be picked apart and mocked mercilessly. Every minute of this movie is pure comic gold, made even more enjoyable by the movie's aspirations to be both scary and touching. BUY IT NOW!!!

I saw this movie about 4 years ago for the very first time and i sepnt everyday thereafter trying to find a place where i could buy it on video. until today, i was out of luck. i do intend to order it from this website as soon as i get the money! now, on to my review. its an awesome movie, and not just because Kristy Swanson was in in it. it had great special effects, the basketball took me totally off guard(did not see that coming!), and the ending just blew my mind. if you havent seen it yet, do so as soon as possible! if you have seen it, you gotta see it again..