Bad Dreams (1988) "I Had Too Much Too Dream Last Night"

On the subject of the riot I wrote about in the last post, people are still sounding off about it across the web. One kid has a plan to raise money for the businesses destroyed by punk rioters. He cares about the public perception of punk and wants to right the wrongs. I'd say that's a lost cause, but I think it's great that someone would want to help out some of the small businesses that took hard hits. Driving out of there I saw one bridal shop that got it bad and I felt that they did not deserve the wrath of the mob, but does this mean that punks will be raising money to restore Jack in the Box and Carl's Jr? That would be bizarre, but how can one say, we raised this money for this business and not that one. I really don't think punks should be donating to Jack in the Box or any meat-serving restaurant, but who cares what I think? I'm not giving my money to anyone.

news: Vegan horror filmmaker Scott Goldberg had a $3000 camera stolen on location during the filming of All I Want for Christmas. He is looking for donations and it looks like he's received quite a few. In semi-related news, a friend of mine had $2500 camera stolen from his car in Parking Lot E at OCC. I guess you could donate to him too.

the review:

Well, it's been a few weeks since I saw Bad Dreams, but I think I can remember the basics. Bad Dreams stars the unique looking, strangely attractive, Jennifer Rubin, who also played a role in A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors a year before. The experience must have been deja vu for her as both movies take place in hospitals and both involve a burnt killer coming back from the dead to kill. I don't remember Rubin in Nightmare 3, but I'll take other reviewers' words for it, that Bad Dreams is a major rip-off of The Nightmare series in many entertaining ways and everybody ought to see it. There is no DVD yet.

scrambled thoughts:

I'm sorry, so many of the details of the novel deaths already have escaped me, but I do remember there being a great deal of gore.

The chubby short chick from Valley Girl, Elizabeth Daily, plays one of the unlucky hospital residents.

Bad Dreams opens with a well done sixties or seventies flashback - one montage was probably watched by Jim Van Bebber before he made his Manson Family.

Rubin's character was a young member a religious cult where everyone committed suicide by fire. She survived and remained in a coma until the eighties. Harris, the burned leader, is coming back for her and kills off everyone in her therapy group. That's the setup.

There is a lot of horror comedy in here, but most of my laughing was unintentional. The movie looks great, despite the awful fashion of the time period. The script sucks. Still, this one is nonstop entertainment.

I'm not going to win any writing jobs with this review, so sorry, Cub Speaks will be better...


Cub, how come you did not recognize the screaming-into-a-pillow group therapy technique? Are you sure you are qualified to help people in need as a therapist?

The scream into pillow technique did seem effective. See you learn something each day, even while watching disturbing films. I will incorporate the technique with my clients.

Everyone called this the Nightmare on Elm Street rip-off of the century. What do you think?

It was a rip off of Nightmare on Elm street, but not as good. Nothing can beat Freddy (I love Robert!)

When Guns n' Roses' 'Sweet Child O' Mine' played over the end credits, you did a little dance in the bed, should we record your dances on video and put them in Cub Speaks?

You should certainly record those dances for safe keeping cub. I can never do them exactly the same when you ask me to repeat them.