Dead Silence

Director - Hugh Gallagher (Gorotica, Gore Whore)

Starring - Brad Foltz, Kevin Patterson (Gorgasm), and Cindy Weichbrodt 

Release Date - 1987

Genre - Horror

Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     S.O.V. horror has it's own fan base.  Most horror fans shy away from these films because want a horror film that is more polished with the best effects they can find with the best cast possible.  S.O.V. is the furthest from this.  These films have virtually no budgets with amateur casts and cheap special effects.  I've seen some fun S.O.V. films over the years and I've seen some pretty rotten ones.  After I watched the last film I needed in the Hugh Gallagher Gore Trilogy I decided to follow that up with another Gallagher S.O.V. horror flick, Dead Silence.  Now, this is one that I've actually seen before many, many years ago.  I can't remember the how or the when but I have seen it before.  I believe that I may have rented it a time or two from the local Ma and Pop video store.  I want to thank SRS Cinema and MVD for sending this my way.
     The film begins with mass murder Sam Mason being executed for the atrocities he committed but his story doesn't end there.  One of his victims, Terri, doesn't believe she is given a second chance to live but a chance to respect death for what it is.  She soon finds herself toe to toe with Sam Mason one more time and this time he wants to settle the score with his one time would be victim.





   
I can remember watching this one at my home with my brother one weekend after renting this and White Men Can't Jump.  I remember I had to rent White Men Can't Jump because it was my brother's favorite movie and I thought Dead Silence looked fun.  Sadly, I can't remember if I liked it then but I did not enjoy myself with it now.  The acting in this one is rough.  All of the characters are generic with the exception of Sam Mason (Brad Foltz) who plays an exceptional slasher.  The rest of the cast just goes through their lines with no attempt at creating a memorable performance.  I chalk it up to no experience and lack of direction.  The story for this one is actually pretty fucking clever.  I really enjoyed the white noise on the graves of those that died a violent death.  This was something a little different.  Sadly, the story doesn't really have enough to push it to feature length running time.  We have a lot of filler scenes that are painfully boring.  At best, the film should have been about 30 minutes.  Finally, this one is not as violent as the other Gallagher films.  The kills we get are very mild in comparison and the effects are just as cheap as any other S.O.V. film.  Overall, Dead Silence is one of the weaker Gallagher S.O.V. horror films.  It is easily forgettable.  For collectors it is a must have but for the standard horror fan it is easy to pass up.