Back in 1968 a small, low budget film made in Pittsburgh was released that became one of the most famous movies of all time. That film was NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. And while director George Romero would go on to make some hugely successful movies, his co-writer John Russo would also carry on with the horror film tradition. Russo was the main drive behind the script for NOTLD and he would go on to write several horror novels he would then turn into film. Among those was MIDNIGHT.
The film opens with a sequence from the past. A woman screams for help but is caught in a bear trap. A trio of children find her and take her to their home. It turns out she had escaped from them. She is to be a sacrifice in their mother’s satanic ritual and we last see her stabbed by the young daughter.
Flash forward years later. Troubled teen Nancy Johnson (Melanie Verlin) runs away from home when her stepfather Bert (Lawrence Tierney) attempts to molest her. Hitchhiking to her sister’s in California, she’s given a ride by two young drifters Hank (Charles Jackson) and Tom (John Hall). Along the way they pick up another pair of hitchhikers, a preacher and his daughter on their way home. After dropping them off the pair become the first victims of the films murderer.
Stopping in a store they encounter a racist owner who refuses to sell anything to the group since the Hank is black. The trio steal the groceries they intended to buy and head out, pursued by the police. They ditch them and drive off into the countryside to camp out and spend the night.
Unfortunately the next morning as Nancy takes a walk, Tom and Hank are roused by two policemen. Taunted by the two of them Hank runs and is shot in the back and killed. They then kill Tom as well after revealing they aren’t police at all but have killed the officers chasing the trio yesterday and taking their clothes. Nancy tries to run away but the duo hear her and track her down, taking her to their secluded home and locking her in a dog cage. It turns out these are the now grown children we saw at the beginning of the film and we know what’s in store for Nancy.
As all of this is taking place Nancy’s mother is concerned about what happened to her. Bert, who is a police officer, tells her not to worry and that she’ll come home. At the same time he feels guilty about what he did when drunk and sets out to find Nancy. But will he do so in time?
Made for only $200,000 the film wasn’t a huge success financially and critics were not please with it. Tom Savini did the special effects for the film. I remember seeing the film when it was first released and not being all that impressed. Watching it now I realize I was wrong. The film may have a few minor plot holes but what movie doesn’t?
One critic noted that this film lacked a sense of humor. I would take him to task on that line. The addition of humor to horror films is not a necessity and at times is a hindrance to horror. We’ve become a group of viewers that laugh at Freddy Kreuger ignoring the fact that he was a child molester. The horror in this film comes not from a contrived notion but in reality. One can believe that there are people out there willing to have human sacrifices based on their misguided beliefs. To think they exist is to imagine the horror that invokes.
Russo continued to make more movies apart from this one. They never received the marketing push or major studio backing that Romero’s films did. A quiet unassuming man he went on to write a definitive guide on how to make a low budget film that is still available to this day. He appears regularly at various horror conventions and is easily approachable. It’s nice to see that his work is receiving some recognition finally and that Severin has brought this title out to be seen once more.
Severin has made the film look incredible and I actually thought it looked better than when I saw it on the big screen when it was released. This version is a new 4k scan from the negative of the long rumored uncut version. In addition to that they’ve includes several extras. Those include “Making Midnight” an interview with writer/director John Russo, “Producing Midnight” an interview with producer Samuel M. Sherman, “The Midnight Killer” an interview with actor John Amplas, “Small Favors” an interview with special make-up effects artist Tom Savini, an isolated score selected featuring an audio interview with composer Mike Mazzei, the alternate title cared for BACKWOODS MASSACRE, the original trailer and radio spot.
As I said it’s nice to see Russo’s work get this sort of
treatment. If you’ve never seen this film it’s worth watching and seeing an
effective piece of horror that stems more from reality than one would expect
from someone who created flesh eating zombies. It works and that’s saying
something. This one is worth a spot on the shelf of any horror fan.
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