Rating: 
Summary: A welcome relief from the current spate of empty horror.
Review: A sublime and subtle movie that brings out the chills rather than the gore. AMERICAN NIGHTMARE is a welcome change of pace from the hack-and-slash (which I also enjoy) that usually dominate the horror genre. First time director Jon Keeyes did his homework and learned from the directors and artists who came before him, putting the emphasis on mood and character rather than gouts of Kayro blood. By now, the plot has been well established - killer with an unknowable motive is stalking seven friends on Halloween, their deaths set to the tune of an amoral shock disc jockey. All the reasons to love this movie are the same reasons others will hate it. Those raised on a steady diet of gore - and trendy psychos spouting Henny Youngman's greatest one-liners - will think the movie tedious and that, as a few have written... The acting is terrific across the board, particularly, and she's been singled out in countless reviews, lead actress Debbie Rochon, who turns in a powerhouse performance as the mentally and emotionally gone Jane Toppan. She is present in every scene in the film, whether physically or as only a key element of menace.
Keeyes and company have added multiple layers of dread onto the narrative, resulting in near-claustrophobia. Occassionally, AMERICAN NIGHTMARE's modest budget allows the viewer to glimpse some seams, but all in all, this is a terrific film and well worth a couple of viewings. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: 'NIghtmare' being the operative word...
Review: Although it's quite nicely done (even giving you the impression that it was shown at all, ever, anywhere...) they really need to change the trailer on this DVD package to something like -'This summer.... You will watch the most awful film in the entire universe....'. This dreadful beyond belief so-called horror film contains zero scares, zero special FX, and is crammed full of the worst acting imaginable. It's the tale of a a small group of paper thin characters, sitting around in a coffee house phoning a radio talk show about their greatest fears, who are gradually offed one by one by a female nutcase who's listened in and opts to make those fears a reality. To be honest I don't even know why she did it, nor did I even really care as I forwarded through the last 40 minutes hoping for something salvageable from American Nightmare. And no, I didn't find anything. But the film does at least raise a lot of questions. Questions like: Who on earth was the guy who wrote the two line recommendation of this film on the back cover that enticed me into renting it? Do they still have a job? I hope not...
Rating:
Summary: You better see this movie...
Review: American Nightmare is one of the best small budget movies I've ever seen. The look, and feel, of the movie is as good as any big budget film you're going to come across. The Director, Jon Keeyes, obviously takes a great deal of pride in his work, which comes shining through from beginning to end. And all of the cast do an equally fantastic job with their characters, and make you wish you could get to know them better before they are sent on their way by psycho nurse Jane Toppan. All the way around this is a movie that you need to check out. You'll be glad that you did.
Rating:
Summary: You better see this movie...
Review: American Nightmare is one of the best small budget movies I've ever seen. The look, and feel, of the movie is as good as any big budget film you're going to come across. The Director, Jon Keeyes, obviously takes a great deal of pride in his work, which comes shining through from beginning to end. And all of the cast do an equally fantastic job with their characters, and make you wish you could get to know them better before they are sent on their way by psycho nurse Jane Toppan. All the way around this is a movie that you need to check out. You'll be glad that you did.
Rating: 
Summary: Debbie Rochon vanishes into Jane Toppan
Review: I am a huge fan of actress Debbie Rochon and her work and I know I'm not the only one. She has being doing awesome acting in independent films for years and stands out in any role she is cast. Both American nightmare and her portrail of twisted killer Jane Toppan have won much praise and acclaim from audiences and rightfully so.
American Nightmare a well shot and all round well acted independant slasher film that is fresh and original and has clearly being crafted with love and care not seen in many indy films by the director. The film relies more on psycological horror rather than buckets of blood, which is terrible when it is done baddly but here it works brilliantly due to competant directing and Miss Rochon's amazing performance. Debbie Rochon seems to completely dissappeare into her character, she done plenty of prep work and research to get into character and that is completely visble on screen. Occasionally Jane Toppan goes into a kind of psychotic outburst, I especially like these scenes the raw energy and anger is so genuine that we truely believe that what we are seeing is a disturbed murder. The fact that we believe so much in the Jane Toppan character makes the film so very much more suspenseful to watch as she stalks and destroys her prey. The unfortunate victims are all nice looking completely innocent every day people, which makes as feel sorry for them as they are slain. So many slasher movies expect us to feel pity for the total jerk characters when they are mutliated by mask wearing indestructable killers, and thankfully American Nightmare is completely free of these common slasher cliches. All the actors are great and characters are fleshed out blelievably. After seeing the making of documentory I realise that this is due to a thorough casting process under taken by the director. I guess that anyone who doesn't like this very cool and well made film has a problem with the some what abstract type ending. I personally liked it as it also doesn't have a quick fix now we can live happily ever after ending and also the surviving victims at the end of this film are visibly distraught, unlike other slashers where they are like happy "we got away" as though they forget about all their friends who were just killed the last couple of days. Also we get a gilmpse into the killers own life and heartache. I must say that anyone who apperciates a well crafted and thought out horror film will enjoy american nightmare immensely. And words or at least my words, cannot completely praise the amazing performance of Debbie Rochon.
Rating:
Summary: Don't even consider watching this film!!!
Review: I cannot believe how bad this film was. Most of my time was spent hitting the fast forward button hoping there would be something, anything that made it all worth while. There wasn't. I generally love low budget horror flicks which is why I gave this one a try. There wasn't a single scary moment or even much blood? I even watched the making of the movie hoping there would be something that would give me a clue regarding a "plot" or what the movie was even about. We knew who the killer was immediately but never found out why? The making of the movie was actually more enjoyable to watch than the movie. I don't usually review films but if I could save just one person from seeing this, it's worth it. I actually purchased this movie based on a review that I had read. I've learned my lesson, always read all the reviews for a movie you've never heard of. Needless to say, my copy has been recycled.
Rating:
Summary: Give me a break.
Review: I rented this movie primarily because I'm a huge fan of horror movies, and I didn't expect much because I had never heard of it before. Fact is, I found this movie terribly boring and disappointing. It is probably due to the fact that its director never heard of the word "originality" in his life. In fact there are many obvious things which were literally copies from other far better horror films. The protagonist of the movie is a baby-sitter that is chased by an unknown murderer. Does that ring a bell? If it does not, watch "Halloween" and you'll know what I mean. And of course, the murders all take place on Halloween night. The girl whom the protagonist babysits is also shown watching "Halloween" during the movie. Wow, what a coincidence! Shame that this same thing was previously shown on "Scream" when a couple of teenagers are hanging around in a house also watching "Halloween" together. Oh, and by the way the girl killer in the movie is a mentally-ill woman who manages to escape from a mental institution. Again, an obvious "Halloween" copycat. Apart from all this, the movie does not even manage to catch your interest. Character development is practically non-existant, and you'll just don't care about all the victims slaughtered throughout. Not to mention the supposed climatic ending which this movie features. You'll just stare at the closing credits asking uselessly yourself "What is this supposed to mean?" I'll tried to be as helpful as possible to make you open your eyes and stay away from this trash. Buy this movie only if you like to waste your money.
Rating:
Summary: Give me a break.
Review: I rented this movie primarily because I'm a huge fan of horror movies, and I didn't expect much because I had never heard of it before. Fact is, I found this movie terribly boring and disappointing. It is probably due to the fact that its director never heard of the word "originality" in his life. In fact there are many obvious things which were literally copies from other far better horror films. The protagonist of the movie is a baby-sitter that is chased by an unknown murderer. Does that ring a bell? If it does not, watch "Halloween" and you'll know what I mean. And of course, the murders all take place on Halloween night. The girl whom the protagonist babysits is also shown watching "Halloween" during the movie. Wow, what a coincidence! Shame that this same thing was previously shown on "Scream" when a couple of teenagers are hanging around in a house also watching "Halloween" together. Oh, and by the way the girl killer in the movie is a mentally-ill woman who manages to escape from a mental institution. Again, an obvious "Halloween" copycat. Apart from all this, the movie does not even manage to catch your interest. Character development is practically non-existant, and you'll just don't care about all the victims slaughtered throughout. Not to mention the supposed climatic ending which this movie features. You'll just stare at the closing credits asking uselessly yourself "What is this supposed to mean?" I'll tried to be as helpful as possible to make you open your eyes and stay away from this trash. Buy this movie only if you like to waste your money.
Rating:
Summary: Truly Thrilling
Review: My friends and I rented American Nightmare expecting that it would be pretty cheesy. In fact, we have spent many weekends watching obscure films, many of which have been horror films. As a supporter/participant of independent film, I was also interested in seeing this movie. However, American Nightmare was probably the worst movie I have seen in a long, long time. Now, there are horror movies that are so bad they are good because they are funny. (Evil Dead is a great example) After a while, American Nightmare wasn't even funny anymore. The plot didn't make any sense AT ALL, and although most of the actors were fairly decent (and that might be a stretch), the dialogue was so poorly written we spent more time laughing at what they were saying than watching their performance.... At first I hoped that the bad script was just tongue in cheek due to the whole, predictable concept (used millions of times before)... but it's doubtful. The whole movie seemed to be taking itself very seriously, without a right to. The beginning of the film- the flashback to the original killing spree- starts a trend in the movie of just not making ANY sense. Although I fully believe that audiences should not have things spelled out for them, a little help would have been nice to make the movie watchable. The movie played on every cliche in the horror movie book (the characters, needless nudity, really typical scenes), which if used properly can make for a pretty decent(funny)film. But as the movie employed every bad horror film technique there is, it also tried desperately hard to be an "artsy" or "innovative" film, by not explaining the murderer's motives at all, and then giving a "twist" ending that didn't answer any questions. If we don't know anything about these people, why should we care? This movie lacked organization, A DECENT PLOT, characterization, creativity, and was really over the top and melodramatic. (and it didn't resolve anything) There also seemed to be a lot of extra, needless characters. It was very bad. I understand that this was a low budget film, and I do appreciate what it was trying to accomplish. However, a low budget is not an excuse for alienating an audience that truly wanted to see this film succeed. The pyschological quality of it could have made for a great film, despite its many faults. And on a techincal note, the most creative thing may have been the lighting, although I feel it made it look as if it was filmed in a Wal-Mart. (the sound effects were so predictable, and often drowned out dialogue) AVOID THIS FILM. It's not even good for a laugh.
Rating:
Summary: Really Bad (and not in a good way)
Review: My friends and I rented American Nightmare expecting that it would be pretty cheesy. In fact, we have spent many weekends watching obscure films, many of which have been horror films. As a supporter/participant of independent film, I was also interested in seeing this movie. However, American Nightmare was probably the worst movie I have seen in a long, long time. Now, there are horror movies that are so bad they are good because they are funny. (Evil Dead is a great example) After a while, American Nightmare wasn't even funny anymore. The plot didn't make any sense AT ALL, and although most of the actors were fairly decent (and that might be a stretch), the dialogue was so poorly written we spent more time laughing at what they were saying than watching their performance.... At first I hoped that the bad script was just tongue in cheek due to the whole, predictable concept (used millions of times before)... but it's doubtful. The whole movie seemed to be taking itself very seriously, without a right to. The beginning of the film- the flashback to the original killing spree- starts a trend in the movie of just not making ANY sense. Although I fully believe that audiences should not have things spelled out for them, a little help would have been nice to make the movie watchable. The movie played on every cliche in the horror movie book (the characters, needless nudity, really typical scenes), which if used properly can make for a pretty decent(funny)film. But as the movie employed every bad horror film technique there is, it also tried desperately hard to be an "artsy" or "innovative" film, by not explaining the murderer's motives at all, and then giving a "twist" ending that didn't answer any questions. If we don't know anything about these people, why should we care? This movie lacked organization, A DECENT PLOT, characterization, creativity, and was really over the top and melodramatic. (and it didn't resolve anything) There also seemed to be a lot of extra, needless characters. It was very bad. I understand that this was a low budget film, and I do appreciate what it was trying to accomplish. However, a low budget is not an excuse for alienating an audience that truly wanted to see this film succeed. The pyschological quality of it could have made for a great film, despite its many faults. And on a techincal note, the most creative thing may have been the lighting, although I feel it made it look as if it was filmed in a Wal-Mart. (the sound effects were so predictable, and often drowned out dialogue) AVOID THIS FILM. It's not even good for a laugh.
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