785 Raising Cain ( 1992 )

 Brian De Palma returned to the pyschological  horror/thriller after eight years away with this  enjoyably  silly romp which  often lurches into self-parody without becoming too arch.  You're  thrown into it  mid-plot with no preamble, having to piece things together through flashbacks with a shedload of red herrings to distract you. John Lithgow plays Carter/Cain , an apparently sensitive husband and father with an adulterous wife  who is nevertheless  on a murderous mission to collect children and dispose of their mothers for some nefarious purpose  because he has multiple personalities. Lithgow holds it together with a tour de force performance as five "separate characters" although the climax  is surprisingly clumsy.

Lola Davidovich ( as Jenny)

Sex : Jenny has alfresco sex with an old boyfriend though it could be an illusion

Death :  Survives

Lolita  is a Canadian actress of Serbian descent who began acting on US TV. After a few bit parts in films in the eighties she broke throuh as the title characterin director Ron Shelton's Blaze . She appeared in four more of Shelton's films and has been married to him since 1997. From the noughties on. she dropped down to supporting roles but she is still active.

Mel Harris ( as Sarah)

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Mel  was born in Pennsylvania  and made her film debut in 1986 in the Rutger Hauer vehicle Wanted: Dead Or Alive. The following year, she started in the role that made her famous, that of Hope in the series Thirtysomehing. After that she worked more in TV than film up to 2020. She ha been married six times.

Teri Austin ( as Karen )

Sex : No

Death : Killed by  Cain offscreen after being chloroformed

Teri is from Toronto and came to prominence in the mid-eighties as Jill Bennett in the TV series Knots Landing .Her career after that was mainly on TV. In 2001 she  retired to become a full time animal activist, setting up the Amanda Foundation.

Gabrielle Carteris ( as Nan )

Sex : No

Death : Stabbed in the chest by Cain

Gabrielle was born in Arizona and first appeared on TV in 1987. She achieved fame in Beverley Hills 90210 though  she lied to get the part, being much older than her character. This was her second film and she has been much more active on TV than in films. From 2016 to 2021, she was President of oe of the major acting unions.

Kathleen Callan ( as Emma )

Sex : No

Death : Dies of heart failure in hospital

This was Kathleen's only screen role.

784 Split Second (1992)

 This  Anglo-American co-production mashes up the science fiction, monster movie and  buddy  cop genres with unconvincing  results. Set in the near future/recent  past -2008 - in a mildly-flooded and rat-infested London  Rutger Hauer  is Harley Stone, a half-insane cop chasing a serial killer who killed his partner. He is assigned  Dick Durkin ( Neil Duncan) an inexperienced academic as his new partner  by his barely-acknowledged superior (Alun Armstrong)  and they eventually  realise their  quarry is not exactly human. Nothing really hangs together. Despite the odd flash of wit in their exchanges , the  development of the two men's relationship is no more  believable than the rubber suited monster who can tie knots despitte having huge claws for hands. The plot is illogical and the world-setting half-hearted at best.

Kim Cattrall ( as Michelle )

Sex : Michelle has been having an affair with Harley 

Death : Survives

Kim  was  born in Liverpool but the family emigrated to Canada when she was still a baby. She studied  drama in both London and New York and made her film debut in the action thriller Rosebud in 1978. For the next few years she alternated bewtween Canadian films and frequent guest star roles in popular US TV series (Logan's Run, Starsky and Hutch, The Incredible Hulk, Charlie's Angels). She made more impact in US films in the eighties with the lead female role in Mannequin probably the pinnacle of her film career. Her star was fading in the nineties until Sex  And  The  City in 1998 spectacularly  reignited her  career. She  is  still very active.

Tina Shaw  (as nightclub stripper)

Sex : She reveals her breasts during her routine

Death : Survives

Tina  was a bit part actress active  since 1986 who often played strippers. This was her final screen appearance. 

783 The Lawnmower Man (1992)

 This sci-fi horror film was very loosely ( so loose he sued to dissociate himself from it ) based on a Stephen King short story. Pierce Brosnan plays Dr Angelo, a driven scientist working in  Virtual Reality for a shady corporation. When he loses his subject chimp, he enlists Jobe ( Jeff Fahey ) a retarded gardener for his experiments. Jobe soon  attains normalcy but then develops much further than intended. The plot  has more in common with the Oscar-winning Charly from 1968 than the source material and  though the effects  inevitably look dated it's still an absorbing story, the last  half  hour being an edge of the seat thrill ride.

Jenny Wright (as Margie )

Sex : Margie has sex with Jobe

Death : Survives but brain-damaged 

Jenny was a former model from New York who first appeared on TV  in 1981. She made her film debut the following year in Pink Floyd :The Wall. A  small  part in St Elmo's Fire put her on the fringe of the Brat Pack and she dated Nicolas Cage for a time. This was her  final film role and she dropped out of the public eye after a couple more TV appearances

Colleen Coffey ( as Caroline Angelo)

Sex : Caroline comes onto her husband but he's not interested

Death : Survives

This  was Colleen's first film role after a smattering of TV appearances. She remained a bit  part actress before retiring into family life after 1997.

782 The Gate II ; Trespassers (1992)

 Louis Tripp returns as  Terry , the nerdy one in this  silly sequel to the 1987 film. Despite the events of the first film, Terry somehow works out that the demons he summoned could  also perform as genies and  banish his father's  alcoholism. His ritual is gatecrashed by three intruders, two oafs and a nice girl who takes a shine to him. Although parts of the film work quite well ( the make-up artist deserves a  mention )   the plot has a certain making it up as we go along quality which prevents you from really engaging with it.

Pamela Segull ( as Liz )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Pamela was born in New York. Her father was a screenwriter. She emerged in the early eighties making her film debut in Grease 2 and starring in The Facts Of Life on TV. She  struggled to get out  of  supporting roles  and  diversified into  voiceover work both as women and young boys scoring big with King Of The Hill  by which time she was  known by her married name of Pamela Adlon. She started to get good TV roles such  as Marcy in Californication and  was showered with awards for her work on the comedy series Louie both as a performer and writer. She  remains in high demand.

781 Scanners II : The New Order (1991 )

 This  sequel arrived ten years after its predecessor. without David Cronenberg or any of the original cast and  went  straight to video. Despite these unpromising portents, it's actually a half-decent film.  David Hewlett stars as David Kellum, a young veterinary student who discovers his powerful telepathic abilities when he and his girlfriend are caught up in a store robbery. This brings him to the attention of  corrupt cop Forrester ( Yvan Ponton ) who is collecting scanners for his own nefarious purposes. There is some loose plotting  particularly around introducing a link to the first film halfway through the movie but  the maintenance of a human element to the story and satisfactory special effects compensate.

Deborah Raffin ( as Julie)

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  was  Deborah's penultimate film and a farewll to horror.

Isabelle Mejias ( as Alice )

Sex : Alice sleeps with David

Death : Survives

Isabelle is  a  French-Canadian actress  who started acting at the start of the eighties. She  was  touted for Hollywood stardom after her leading role in the 1984 film Unfinished Business. It never really materialised though she worked steadily up until 1996 when she  apparently  retired. She has dropped out of the public eye completely.

780 Howling VI ; The Freaks

 After the  atrocity that was Howling  V. this one  raises  the  franchise slightly by  being merely poor. Brendan Hughes plays Ian, a young British man who turns up in a small American town for  no apparent reason. He's swiftly followed by a travelling  canival run by suave  Mr Harker (Bruce Payne)  who specialises in displaying freaks (including Antonio "Huggy Bear" Fargas ). It turns out Harker and Ian have some history It's uneven  in tone, has some dodgy acting  and  low-flying boom mikes  but there is the odd  impactful scene that lifts it above its predecessor.

Michelle Matheson (as Liz)

Sex : Liz has sex with Ian (largely offscreen)

Death : Survives

Michelle's  parents met while acting in the TV series Land of The Giants. She made her acting  debut  on TV in the 80s comedy series Mr Belvedere in which she had a recurring role. This was her first film. Although she had parts in poular ilms such as Threesome and Kingpin, her acting career fizzled out . She has also dablled in music and has had an autobiographical novel Saving Angelfish published. 

 

798 Afraid Of The Dark ( 1991 )

 This  British  psychological  thriller about  a  disturbed  boy losing his sight  has a strong cast ( not all giving their best performance unfortunately )  and  an  unreliable  narrator  twist  that  makes it  ahead of its time  It's  a  bit  slow at  times   but  an  interesting effort with an unexpectedly hopeful ending after the  unpleasant  tone  of much  that has preceded it.

Fanny  Ardant  ( as  Miriam )

Sex : Miriam is heavily pregnant

Death : Survives

Fanny is a highly respected actress in French cinema with two Cesar Awards and nominations for six more. Her film career blossomed after catching the eye of Francois Truffaut with ehom she had a daughter. This is one of the few films she has made outside France. She courted controversy by expressing her admiration for the REd Brigade terrorist group in 2007. Since 2009  she has branched out into directing and screenwriting.

Clare Holman ( as Rose )

Sex : Rose poses  topless for a photographer but it's actually a delusion

Death : Survives

Clare  is  from  London  and  has ben a much in demand actress, mainly in British TV since 1988. She is best known  for  playing pathologist Laura Hobson in Inspector Morse and Lewis  and the adulterous teacher's wife in The Lakes . She  was married to theatre director Howard Davies from 2005 to his death in 2016.

Susan Wooldridge ( as Lucy )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Susan  is another British actress who is still active. She was born in Hammersmith.In an up and down career  she had small parts in British films of the 1970s then rose to fame as Daphne Manners in The Jewel In The Crown. She also starred in John Boorman's Hope And Glory in 1987. Her fortunes dipped until  All Quiet On The Preston Front in the mid-nineties.  Since then her career has continued as a low profile character actress.