Movie

Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker

1981 · 96 min

A sweaty, claustrophobic descent into possessive madness, with a lurid 80s sheen and a surprisingly sympathetic teen at its center.

Directed by: William Asher
Genres: Thriller, Horror
Starring: Jimmy McNichol, Susan Tyrrell, Bo Svenson

Tagline: She was lonely. He was all she had. No one would take him from her…and live.
Overview: Rejected by her lover, the only man left in Cheryl's life is the orphaned nephew she has raised as her own son. She'll stop at nothing to keep Billy with her. When her plans misfire, she is swept up into an insane frenzy that means death to anyone who comes between her and her obsession. But the investigating detective is convinced that Billy is the real killer - and determined to prove it. Madness and fanaticism work together to drag all concerned into a terrifying vortex of blood-letting that adds a nightmarish twist to the classic Oedipus story.

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Directed by: William Asher
Genres: Thriller, Horror
Starring: Jimmy McNichol, Susan Tyrrell, Bo Svenson

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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone: darkstrength 3 of 3
tensestrength 3 of 3
eeriestrength 2 of 3
campystrength 2 of 3
Pacing: measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention: engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes: obsession
madness
family
identity
trauma
Places: small town
home
school
Era: contemporary
Audience: adult
Form: twist ending
Content intensity: Gore strong
Language mild
Violence strong
Sex mild

All scales, 0 to 10

Scales, 0 to 10
Scale	Value	0 to 10
Action	4
Horror	7
Humour	2
Realism	6
Romance	2
Tension	7
Darkness	8
Complexity	5
Emotional weight	7

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Details

Genres: thriller, horror
Directed by: William Asher
Written by: Alan Jay Glueckman, Boon Collins, Steve Briemer
Starring: Jimmy McNichol, Susan Tyrrell, Bo Svenson, Julia Duffy, Marcia Lewis, Steve Eastin, Britt Leach, Caskey Swaim
Music: Bruce Langhorne
Cinematography: Jan de Bont, Robbie Greenberg
Runtime: 96 min
Country: United States of America
Languages: English

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Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker

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