Prom Night

Remakes are an unpredictable investment. While some seem to propel to greater heights, most seem to tatter away as an insult to its original eminence. Prom Night was first screened in 1980, garnering a then emerging Jamie Lee Curtis with a later rewarding reputation as a notable scream queen. Cut back to 2008, director Nelson McCormick tries to base, though not replicate the slashing sleeper hit. The word is 'tries'.

Donna (Brittany Snow) gets ready to go to her prom with her boyfriend, Bobby (Scott Potter). Happy trails are subsequently interrupted by Detective Winn, who discovers the psycho besotted teacher who killed her parents three years ago escaped his psychiatric ward three days ago. Winn sports a hunch of Fenton turning up at the prom, but doesn't tell Donna, who goes anyway. Then the killings ensue, surprisingly though, with little gore and even less blood.

Prom Night is strangely a timid thriller, without much emphasis on violence, only of high-pitched screams. Perhaps American horror flicks can’t compare to that of our continental shores, and we’re just trained to watch the better, more gruesome films. Whatever the reason, Prom Night, remains a real snooze fest, with too much action and too little gore, dialogue and explanation.

Cast Brittany Snow, Johnathon Schaech, Dana Davis, Jessica Stroup Director Nelson McCormick Runtime 90 mins Opens 5 June

Text Claudia Low