CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Whitech It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

Roman Sampson One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Mr_Ectoplasma A quartet of backwoods vigilante buffoons chase a mentally disabled man, Bubba, through town after they believe him to have kidnapped a young girl. They find him disguised as a scarecrow in a field, and execute him, only to receive immediate news that the girl is alive and well, and that he actually saved her life. Oops. After being acquitted of the murder, all four men are plagued by a bullet-ridden scarecrow appearing on their property, and talk that Bubba is somehow stalking them beyond the grave.There is truly something special about the television horror films of the late 1970s and early 1980s— "Home for the Holidays," "Trilogy of Terror," "Race with the Devil," just to name a few— for whatever reasons, the horror films that made it to the small screen during this era were consistently well made and legitimately suspenseful. In fact, a lot of them have the production values and feel of a major studio picture, and "Dark Night of the Scarecrow" is no exception here. Directed by Frank De Felitta, who also brought us 1977's "Audrey Rose," the film boasts impressive cinematography and some playful and inventive terror sequences as the redneck geezers/wannabe vigilantes get their just desserts. Since it is a television film, the violence is obviously minimized, but the implications during each of these payback scenes are grim, and mostly revolve around farm machinery— ouch.Charles Durning's turn as the reprehensible small town postman and cold-blooded bigot is effective in that his character is truly reprehensible, and Jocelyn Brando (yep, Marlon's sister), is wonderful as the spiteful mother of Bubba. An understated and spooky synth score accentuates the eerier moments here, particularly the wide shots of the ominous scarecrow (or Bubba...?) hanging in the distant fields.While the overall premise may not be particularly original ("Les diaboliques" comes to mind), this is a remarkably well put-together thriller that is miles about standard television fare as we've come to know it. Sophisticated production values and De Felitta's attention to detail are impressive; in fact, had I not known it was a made-for-TV movie beforehand, I may have not guessed it at all. A truly worthy genre entry, and quite frankly much more elegant than half of what the eighties had to offer in terms of slasher films. 8/10.

Paul Andrews Dark Night of the Scarecrow starts as the mentally child like 36 year old man Bubba Ritter (Larry Drake) plays with his best friend, a young girl named Marylee Williams (Tonya Crowe) whom are inseparable. While out innocently playing together Marylee is attacked by a dog, Bubba manages to rescue her but thinks she is dead & takes her home to her mother. Four local men including mailman Otis P. Halzelrigg (Charles Durning) hear what has happened & assume that the mentally retarded Bubba killed Marylee, together they find Bubba & hunt him down into a corn field where Bubba hides in a scarecrow. The men shoot Bubba in cold blood thinking that he killed little Marylee but they hear on the radio that Marylee is still alive & that Bubbe actually saved her life, they quickly make up a story that they shot Bubba in self defence & are subsequently spared jail. However a mysterious scarecrow appears in a field, a scarecrow that wasn't there before & soon two of the men responsible for murdering Bubba have died in strange accidents...Directed by Frank De Felitta this was originally made for US network TV & first broadcast on 24th October 1981 before it was subsequently released on VHS around the world & more recently on DVD, it's fair to say that Dark Night of the Scarecrow has enjoyed classic status for a long time now & while I think it's a fine film I don't think I could quite call it a genuine classic. Sure, it's a classic in some other people's eyes but as far as I am concerned it's not much more than a good solid chiller. Dark Night of the Scarecrow tells a good story, it takes it's time to build up the situation & the character's & it's easy to become engrossed, I suppose some say how the script touches on subjects like mental illness, prejudice, the way the legal system can be manipulated, assumption & child molestation & while that's true to an extent I thought the script never went into huge amounts of detail which I think is good as it could have become really bogged down with wider issues. At just over 90 minutes Dark Night of the Scarecrow might seem slow to some viewers but none of the running time is wasted & a lot is crammed into that time, the main area that I found disappointing was that there's not much of a pay-off here. Sure, the script takes the time to set the story up, to bring the character's to life & build-up some creepy atmosphere but all of the death's are off screen & I was sitting there waiting for it to really come to life but it never does which is a pity as I don't really have anything else bad to say about it. Dark Night of the Scarecrow is a good solid horror thriller that is perfectly watchable & enjoyable but didn't stand out as the classic that many seem to claim so readily.Probably not having much money to work with director Felitta does a good job of creating atmosphere, sound effects, good nighttime photography & good use of the creepy Scarecrow image help. There's no great amount of blood or gore in it, someone is shot & there's a bit of blood but nothing excessive, in fact Dark Night of the Scarecrow is very restrained which is not a criticism just a statement. Sound is also used to good effect as well. Apparently had an eighteen day shooting schedule but was filmed in just seventeen.Filmed in Piru in California the production values are great, made for television films have certainly regressed a long way since Dark Night of the Scarecrow, can you imagine the SyFy Channel making such a good looking & carefully crafted film as this today? The acting is very strong, Charles Durning is great in a role that was originally intended for Strother Martin before he died while the rest of the cast are also excellent here.Dark Night of the Scarecrow is a really good, solid horror thriller that is is worth watching but I would stop just short of calling it an absolute classic. A good film to watch at Halloween.

phenlandia The "You-Don't-Need-Gore" crowd have made this movie out to be a lot more than it is. With so many reviewers citing this as one of the best horror movies made for TV, I was expecting something like John Carpenter's TV work or some of the BBC's classic ghost stories. Something genuinely atmospheric and creepy. This is one of those Specials that networks used to make around the holidays that are just vaguely seasonal and don't really commit to any particular genre. It's an "autumn story", not a horror story, and bland enough for grandma. Scarecrow was very competently made. It makes the most of a virtually non-existent budget. I was impressed with the pacing and tightness of the script. But it's a "scary" movie made by people who aren't horror fans, and those movies never work. The first act set-up is engagingly snappy, but once the story starts, it's a by-the-numbers formula piece that moves way too slowly. The story is one we've seen a million times. A small group of people think they've gotten away with murder until they start dying "accidentally" one by one. Once the first victim died, I immediately knew how the rest of the movie would progress right up to the end. The only mystery was whether the murderer would turn out to be the little girl or a ghost, and either/or mysteries aren't very mysterious. (And what are the chances that a family-friendly prime time special is going to reveal a revoltingly "sweet" little girl to be a serial killer in the final act?)To me, a horror/suspense movie that does not even attempt to surprise its audience is betraying that audience. It's bad-faith storytelling not to anticipate audience expectation and work to thwart it. And that's where I have to call out the anti-gore crowd. Special effects are the only thing that could have lent a story this bland an element of surprise. For kids under ten around Halloween, this movie will be scary. For anyone else, it will be mildly diverting in a I-wonder-what-else-is-on kind of way.

Avinash Shukla I never recall myself getting so wild with the 'Scarecrow' tales. 'Dark Night of the Scarecrow' is one such masterpiece that has no budget to boast but simply a great attitude that brings a win-win situation to both director and the audience. Frank de Felitta is a miraculous man and has proved that the scarecrows don't just scare the crap out of birds! The background music adds tension to the plot and is one of the most haunting soundtracks I can ever think of. The artistry lies in the way scarecrow has been pictured and this solely makes the story alive. J.D. Fiegelsen (The godfather of scarecrow sub-genre and also the author of 'Audrey Rose') has penned down the script with a meticulous and fervent mind that itself is a terrific combination. What impresses me most is that DNOTS was a TV movie! They don't make like this anymore nowadays. The plot revolves around few townsfolk who kill a mentally-challenged and nitwit Bubba for no apparent reason, but someone who lives in the sky and writes our fates decides to wreak havoc on the culprits and settles the scores in bizarre and supernatural ways.Buba Ritter (Larry Drake) is a retarded but fully-grown up man, who lives with his mother Mrs. Ritter (Jocelyn Brando) in a small town. He befriends a little girl Marylee (Tonya Crowe) and it seems that they both are on the same note and love each other's company. Marylee and Bubba spend their time playing near a windmill in the lemon-yellow fields. Their friendship is despised by the town's mean mailman Otis (Charles Durning), farmer-cousins Philby (Claude E Jones) and Harliss (Lane Smith) and gas station attendant Skeeter (Robert Lyons) and they are only looking for a good time to punish Bubba. One day while playing with Bubba, Marylee is mauled by a ferocious dog and falls unconscious. Bubba is attacked by the dog but he somehow manages to save a fainted Marylee and takes Mary to her mother. The news spreads like a fire and Otis quickly assumes that Bubba might have raped and murdered the girl. Otis, Skeeter, Philby and Harliss promptly form a lynch mob and go after Bubba with a pack of hunting dogs. Mrs. Ritter realizes that her son is in danger and she disguises Bubba as a scarecrow and plants him at a field. The lynch mob arrives and the dogs sniff Bubba out in no time. Otis and his friends empty their revolvers on poor Bubba. Minutes later, Otis is informed that Marylee had only fainted and is alright after medical care. In order to make the murder look like a self-defense assault, Otis puts a pitchfork in dead Bubba's hands to make appear as if he were about to attack them and was therefore killed in response.The murder is prosecuted in court where on the grounds of zero proof, the culprits are somehow able to save their necks. The district attorney Sam Willock (Tom Taylor) doesn't believe on Otis and his friends, and promises to send them to the death row, if he ever finds a clue. Otis and his friends want to keep their misdeed a secret but its not very long when Harliss mysteriously falls into a chipper and is shredded to pieces. Philby notices a scarecrow in his fields and is horrified. On Philby's tip, Otis decides to take the matter in his hands and burns Mrs. Ritter's house. A few days later Philby, under mysterious circumstances perishes inside a grain silo and Skeeter goes insane with fear and is ultimately killed by Otis. Otis appears to be a pedophile and is after Marylee. He also accuses Marylee of orchestrating the scarecrow murders, which she denies. A game of cat and mouse begins where Marylee is chased by Otis and they finally land on a pumpkin patch. A plowing machine in the patch animates all by itself and begins to follow a running Otis. Otis soon finds the Bubba scarecrow before him and realizes that he is impaled by the same pitchfork he ever put in Bubba's hands as alibi.DNOTS is one of the best Halloween films that follows a simple plot, has a weird atmosphere and crazy soundtrack. I never get satisfied watching it once and can watch it all day long. It has some magic that keeps you tied to your seat. Unlike splatter films, the film has very little gore and takes inspiration from evergreen horror milestones like Halloween and the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It is noteworthy that Halloween and TCM also have very little gore, but they boast on the effect they cast on the viewers. DNOTS certainly is a great combination of fear, anxiety, insanity and trauma all seasoned in the curry of devilish Halloween atmosphere. The portrayal of rural culture adds great taste to the movie, where empty fields, chippers, plowing machines, grain silos and pumpkin patches have been used as horror intensifiers. DNOTS simply rules!