Sleepwalkers (1992)

Director:

Mick Garris

Writer (WGA):

Stephen King (written by)

Release Date:

10 April 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

They feast on your fear - and it's dinner time.

Plot:

A mother-and-son team of strange supernatural creatures come to town to seek out a virgin to feed on.

Plot Keywords:

Life Force | Spilled Popcorn | Thrown Through Window | Shape Shifter | Invisibility

Awards:

4 wins

Cast

Brian Krause	...	Charles Brady
Mädchen Amick	...	Tanya Robertson
Alice Krige	...	Mary Brady
Jim Haynie	...	Ira
Cindy Pickett	...	Mrs. Robertson
Ron Perlman	...	Captain Soames
Lyman Ward	...	Mr. Robertson
Dan Martin	...	Andy Simpson
Glenn Shadix	...	Mr. Fallows
Cynthia Garris	...	Laurie
Monty Bane	...	Horace
John Landis	...	Lab Technician
Joe Dante	...	Lab Assistant
Stephen King	...	Cemetery Caretaker
Clive Barker	...	Forensic Tech

Also Known As:

Sleepstalkers (Hong Kong: English title) (cable TV title)
Stephen King's Sleepwalkers (USA) (complete title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some terror/violence and language.

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1993) | Argentina:16 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Germany:18 | South Korea:15 (cut) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Norway:18 (video premiere) | Norway:(Banned) (1992-2003) (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Cameo: [John Landis]Lab technician.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the Sherriff and Soames go upstairs to look around, Soames takes the 45 of the song "Sleepwalk" off the turntable and throws it on the bed. Later, when Charles's mother makes Tanya dance with him, she makes the record start to play even though it shouldn't be there.

Quotes:

Policeman: [They get into a yard full of cats] There's a lot of cats.
Policewoman: Well, I can see that, dickhead.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Married with Children: Movie Show (#7.21)" (1993)

Soundtrack:

SLEEPWALK

As Much as I Want to Hate This Film, I Love It

A shape shifting young man (Charles Brady) and his mother (known as "sleepwalkers" for some reason) arrive in a new town. But the mother needs to feed, so her son Charles must find him a pure young woman. But who will he love more, his mother or the beautiful Tanya? Right off the bat, I want to call to everyone's attention two things: first, that Stephen King movie adaptations are cursed. Some work wonderfully, while others are just utter crap. We know it's not King's writing, or we wouldn't have such classics as "The Green Mile" or "Shawshank Redemption". Yet, we still get horse apples like "The Langoliers". This film takes somewhat of a middle ground. Not a great film, but worse has been done.

Who can we blame for this lack of greatness? Subpar director Mick Garris, that's who. The man who not only created the "Masters of Horror" series but is also running it into the ground in his own little way. This might be the only thing Mick Garris will be remembered for (at least in my mind) and that is a sad thing.

This film also has the distinction of some great cameos: Cindy Pickett and Lyman Ward, the parents from "Ferris Bueller" -- also the parents in this movie, and married in real life. Mysterious. Who else is in here? Mark Hamill ("Star Wars", "Silver Bullet") and many horror notables and directors: John Landis, Stephen King, Joe Dante, Tobe Hooper, Clive Barker.

Ron Perlman ("Hellboy", "Pro-Life") plays a cop and doesn't get nearly enough screen time. In fact, the most time goes to the female lead, who has a mysterious beauty (the kind that is both alluring yet retracting). She is quite good and I wish she was in more horror films. Her little dance in the movie theater really makes the whole movie for me, and traps the film in a timelessness. While filmed in the early 1990s, this could take place any time and anywhere.

This review is all over the place. But here's the point: this film is not good, and most people will tell you to avoid it. As for me, I love it. It's one of my guilty pleasures, a film like "Head of the Family" I know to be awful but yet worth watching again and again. Maybe it's all the cats or maybe just the way the film melts in my mind like cotton candy. I can't explain it.