Todd Martin

SYNOPSIS:

When recovering alcoholic Karen and her husband move into a new house she
starts seeing visions of the terrible unsolved murder that took place there
years earlier. Unfortunately the killer is still walking around free and has
decided that since she is close to solving the murder thanks to the visions
that Karen must be the next to die.

REVIEW:

Even though Dark Sanity (aka Straight Jacket ) is more of a murder mystery
film than a straight up horror flick I still liked it. Yes, it is cheesy as
hell at times, the acting is less than ideal, and it is just like any other
film of its kind that came out in the late 70�s early eighties but for some
reason I honestly can�t put my finger on I dug it (aside from what happens to
the cat toward the end which is stupid and totally unnecessary). It isn�t a
perfect film but it works and isn�t a bad way to kill 90 minutes if you don�t
have anything better to do with your time.

One of the things that work for the film is the fact that you don�t have any
idea what is happening to Karen is just in her mind or if it is really taking
place in reality. She keeps having these visions of this person dressed all
in black attacking her with an axe and for most of the movie we don�t know if
the visions are real or if she�s just nuts. Of course her husband (who is a
total and complete asshole, more on him later) doesn�t believe her and is
convinced that she�s either just making it up for attention or that she�s
lost her ever loving mind due to the fact that she �s suffering from alcohol
withdrawal. So what exactly are they? Are they actual visions of the past?
Warnings from the future? Do they only exist in Karen�s warped little mind?
I�m not saying because trying to figure it out is part of the fun of watching
the movie (if you�ve seen the horrible Charisma Carpenter film Psychosis or
the segment from the truly awesome 80�s flick Screamtime called �Dreamhouse�
you�ll figure it out pretty quick though).

I also liked the fact that you have to figure out the identity of the
mysterious person in black who keeps threatening Karen that is responsible
for killing the woman who used to live in the house. I always enjoy a little
mystery and I had a good time figuring this one out before everything was
said and done. I�ll admit that it is relatively easy to deduce the identity
of the killer (it is pretty obvious early on and doesn�t take a rocket
scientist to guess who the guilty party is) but that didn�t make things any
less enjoyable for me while I was watching it. If you like easy to solve
mysteries (like I do because they make me feel a little bit smarter) then
this movie is for you.

On the downside the movie had a few weaknesses as well. One of the biggest
problems it had was without a doubt the characters. Karen (Kory Clark) is
pretty damn annoying and her whining and constant mood swings got pretty old
pretty fast. I had trouble feeling any sympathy for her and she got on my
nerves for the most part. Her husband (played by Chuck Jamison, who really
phones in his performance) is without a doubt the most unlikable character in
the entire movie. Not only does he constantly yell at Karen and criticize her
for every single thing she does he also has an uncaring attitude when it
comes to her battles with alcoholism and blames her for everything that
happens to him (including losing his job at one point even though he is
entirely at fault). Hell, at one point he even brings several bottles of
whiskey into the house and gets drunk in front of her (which is a great idea
considering that she is a recovering alcoholic).

He is an asshole in every respect and I couldn�t wait to see him die in the
most painful way possible (you�ll have to watch the movie to see if I got my
wish). The rest of the cast is made up of a cookie cutter police detective
fired from the force who is obsessed with solving the murder that took place
in the house (mostly because he was banging the woman who died on the side),
your typical red herring creepy gardener, and the annoying nosy couple who
live next door (who are both in love with Karen it seems as they keep talking
about how hot she is almost every time they pop up on camera).

Dark Sanity isn�t for every taste. If you want to watch a full-blown horror
film full of blood, guts, and gruesome death scenes you are probably better
off skipping this one. On the other hand if you are in the mood for a light
suspense/thriller with a hint of light mystery to it then give it a shot.
Check it out if you haven�t seen it, it may be right up your alley.