The ratings on this movie are perhaps a little unfair. If you look at the movie in the context of a fairly low budget 80's horror and ignore all else it is actually pretty good. I remember seeing it for the first time shortly after release and actually liking the film quite a lot.
That was most noticably, before I even knew it was based on a book. It was also in the late 80's and when I was in my early teens (my video store was never too worried about certificates). Now many years later and after being introduced to the very fine novel on which it was based, the film is very dissapointing. But still I would not call it a bad film and have to take into account that I did once think it was really good (although a lot of that may have been down to the story concept rather then the film itself).
The bottom line is that it is an average 80's movie. If you're a fan of the book, you will hate it. If you saw the film like me when it came out and haven't read the book, you will probably enjoy the film still. If you've never seen the film or read the book you'll probably be totally indifferent, so not really one to go out of your way to watch.
That was most noticably, before I even knew it was based on a book. It was also in the late 80's and when I was in my early teens (my video store was never too worried about certificates). Now many years later and after being introduced to the very fine novel on which it was based, the film is very dissapointing. But still I would not call it a bad film and have to take into account that I did once think it was really good (although a lot of that may have been down to the story concept rather then the film itself).
The bottom line is that it is an average 80's movie. If you're a fan of the book, you will hate it. If you saw the film like me when it came out and haven't read the book, you will probably enjoy the film still. If you've never seen the film or read the book you'll probably be totally indifferent, so not really one to go out of your way to watch.