With its frequent showings of classic and cult movies of every genre in 35mm, New York City’s 92YTribeca (200 Hudson Street) has become one of Fango’s favorite places to hang out. Next month, yours truly turns guest curator to host a largely lost but can’t-miss horror gem.

On Saturday, October 13 at 9 p.m., I’ll be presenting a 92YTribeca showing of a 35mm print of 1982’s NIGHT WARNING (a.k.a. BUTCHER, BAKER, NIGHTMARE MAKER), a film that rises far above the slasher conventions of its era. Its centerpiece is an amazing performance by Susan Tyrrell as Aunt Cheryl, who’s been looking after her orphaned nephew Billy (Jimmy McNichol) and harbors incestuous feelings for the boy. After he announces he’s leaving for college to be with his girlfriend (future NEWHART star Julia Duffy, who doffs her top), Cheryl tries vainly to seduce a TV repairman and then hacks up the poor guy with a butcher knife when he rebuffs her. That’s just the beginning of a twisty and twisted scenario that encompasses revelations of a secret gay relationship, a homophobic police detective played by erstwhile Buford Pusser Bo Svenson, a high-school bully played by a young Bill Paxton (billed as “William”) and, most importantly, more murders.

NIGHT WARNING received scant theatrical release back in ’82, came out on a now hard-to-find VHS with a thoroughly misleading cover and has never been on DVD. This screening is not only a rare chance to catch one of the horror genre’s buried treasures on the big screen, but a belated memorial for both Tyrrell and director William Asher, both of whom died earlier this year. For more info about the screening, click here. 

---

News - Latest