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Just Before Dawn (1981)

   
Directed by: Jeff Lieberman

Written by: Mark Arywitz & Jeff Lieberman

Story by: Joseph Middleton

Starring:


Gregg Henry .... Warren
Deborah Benson .... Constance
Chris Lemmon ....
Jonathan
Ralph Seymour .... Daniel
Jamie Rose .... Megan
George Kennedy .... Roy McLean
Mike Kellin .... Ty
Katie Powell .... Merry Cat Logan
John Hunsaker .... Mountain Twins

Release Date: Theatrical: November 25, 1981 (France); March, 1982 (U.S.A.)

  
Rating:

 

 

A drunken man named Ty (Mike Kellin) and his nephew and his nephew Vachel (Charles Bartlett) are hiking in the woods on a mountain exploring a chapel. Suddenly Vachel is killed by a hulking maniac mountain killer (John Hunsaker) and then wears his uniform.
This causes Ty to think that there are demons in the m,ountains and tries to warn a group of 5 young campers as one of them by the name of Warren (Gregg Henry), owns a property up in the mountains about it as they were once warned by a forest ranger named Roy McLean (George Kennedy) not to go up in the mountains but of course, they don't listen.
They of course go hiking, swimming and party at night.
An estranged backwoods family who lives in the woods called the Logans threatens them to get off the land or they'll raise the devil.
They think nothing of it and carry on to what they're doing. But suddenly the mountain killer does away with one of Warren's friends and then Warren and his girlfriend Constance (Deborah Benson) discover his corpse in the river and tries to survive as their other friends have disappeared.
They try to gety help from the Logans but they don't help out and soon they are terrorised by two hulking mountain twins.

 

I loved this movie as it is dark, creepy and an awesome look at the great out doors in the mountains.
They had lots of talented people invovled with this film and I loved it's low budget look to it giving it a total dark feel to it.
It was like a cross between Friday the 13th and the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre with good freak out killers.

For a low budgeter, the actors perform superbly for a flick it's time.
Gregg Henry and Deborah Benson were terrific and full of energy and character.
Chris Lemmon is believeable and really stood out as an outgoing jokester in the film showing plenty of pizzaz.
Jamie Rose was also wonderful as the flirtatious teen in the film as she knew how to make you smile by watching her performance.
We have a supporting role by George Kennedy who was wonderful as a forest ranger.
There's another supporting actor performed by the late Mike Kellin who played a terrific crazed drunk and performed in another camp slasher film before his death titled Sleepaway Camp.
Katie Powell was very convincing as a backwoods girl.
Just looking at John Hunsaker as the inbred twins just convinces you enough that there is nothing pleasant about him.

Jamie Rose's character is skinny dipping in a lake and her breasts are exposed.

Not really bloody but the mountain twins brutally stab a couple guys in the chest. Hey, the original Halloween got away with no blood so why not this one too.

Jeff Lieberman brings his chemistry to life with this film as the actors were well coached.
He shows great shots of the mountains and the sun rising especially in the opening credits. 
There's a nice and drunken dialogue sequence between Mike Kellin and supporting part actor Charles Bartlett in a deserted chapel.
There's a good shot on a hole in the roof of the chapel with John Hunsaker looking in and a scared expression on Kellin's face which looks classy for a start on a horror film. 
A good shot on a truck rolling down a hill and hitting a tree and catching on fire.
A nice stiff expression on Bartlett's face with a knife next to him about to be killed.
George Kennedy
looked natural talking to his horse asking why it's upset as well as a good moment with Gregg Henry in his mobile telling him and the cast who play his friends that camping in the mountains isn't a good idea.
A good shot on Deborah Benson trying to see what is out there in the woods and Kellin creeps up from behind her and acts all crazy.
A good shot on Hunsaker jumping on the back of the mobile driving away along with a great crazy laughter on Kellin falling to the ground.
Perfect shots on the main cast walking along the rope bridge and trying to be safe.
There's a good distance shot on supporting actress Katie Powell at the bottom of a waterfall running away with the main cast on top of the cliff watching her.
There's also a perfect distant shot on a cliff with a waterfall and the main cast rolling down the hill.
We spot a perfect camera shot on both Chris Lemmon and Jamie Rose making out in a lake and Hunsaker walking behind a waterfall and going underneath the water towards them. Rose does well by freaking out after that she discovers that someone else is touching her in the lake underwater.
Rose does well looking out at night during a bonfire and calling out who's out there after she hears a noise which seems creepy.
A great setting of the main cast at night dancing to some music at a bonfire and suddenly their ghetto is shot which causes them to be silent as they do well with that too acting shocked.
A good and dark shot on supporting actors Hap Oslund, Barbara Spencer and Powell as a backwoods family approaching them.
A good dark shot on both Kennedy and Kellin having a dialogue and Kellin talking to him about demons in the mountains.
Great angle shots with Lemmon on a rope bridge and Hunsaker standing on the other side staring coldly at him as well as good shot on Hunsaker cutting off the ropes. Lemmon does well trying to struggle by climbing up the rope.
A great shot on both Henry and Benson kissing in a lake near a stream and Lemmon's lifeless body starts to flow off the stream surprising them.
Both Rose and Ralph Seymour do a great job pretending to make out thinking it's someone else watching them along with a good blurry shot on Hunsaker slowly walking towards them. A good shot on Rose running away after she discovers what is happening along with a good shot on Hunsaker slowly walking towards her inside the chapel with an evil grin being cornered and does well by screaming. Another good shot on Hunsaker taking pictures with a camera through a broken window.
Also, the scenes with the mountain twins attacking the surivivors looked very scary and a scene that will bear in my mind is when Deborah Benson's character hears a whistle blowing and its one of the mountain killers and a good shot on Hunsaker coming right up at her and blowing the whistle.
A perfect moment with Benson climbing up a tree to escape and Hunsaker trying to chop it down with her screaming.
A real scary direction between Henry and Benson is when they think the terror is over the crickets stop chirping and they get nervous with good shots on them staring around and cringing.
Lieberman
directed the killing scenes better than any director in a slasher film of that genre.
A great shot on both Henry and Benson kissing in a lake near a stream and Lemmon's lifeless body starts to flow off the stream surprising them.
Also the scenes with the mountain twins attacking the surivivors looked very scary and a scene that will bear in my mind is when Deborah Benson's character hears a whistle blowing and its one of the mountain killers and a good shot on Hunsaker coming right up at her and blowing the whistle.
A perfect moment with Benson climbing up a tree to escape and Hunsaker trying to chop it down with her screaming.
Lieberman directed the killing scenes better than any director in a slasher film of that genre.

Brad Fiedel's composition is a classic with the whistling sounds and the deep keyboard playing. Thumbs up for him along with some low creepy keyboard playing, drum thumping and the odd metal crunching sounds.
Of course he composed for many classic motion pictures like Blue Steel and the Terminator movies.

We have a songtrack by Blondie with the classic "Heart of Glass" while the 5 young campers are driving up to the mountains.
There's also a neat cheesy sounding disco type song that the campers are dancing to at night before the backwoods family shoots their ghetto blaster which I also loved that was of course composed directly for the film by Fiedel.

Jonathan: Last one down is a.... (Rolls down the hill) rotten egg.

Megan (Tossing her lipstick in the air): Alright, I found my carmel cream!

Megan: This place smells funny
Daniel (Sniffs): It's not funny

Warren: Hey! There are no demons. You hear me??? No Demons.

Warren (Nervously): Ok... No more devils... no more demons... No more... no more nothing out there... Just God's little creatures... More scared of you than you are of them.