Main Cast: Roz Kelly, Kip Niven, Chris Wallace, Grant Cramer, Louisa Moritz
Release Year: 1980
Country: US
Run Time: 90 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
In this horrific slasher outing, a punk rock disc jockey has a really bad night when a nutcase begins calling her every hour on New Year's Eve to inform her of his latest murder victim. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Review
Slasher movie fans pining for the days when the exploits of their masked killers came free of the postmodern self-awareness that plagued the Scream series and its ilk may derive some nostalgic thrills from this ham-fisted and derivative effort from Cannon Films. Happy Days alum Roz Kelly stars as the host of a live coast-to-coast New Year's Eve telecast who is plagued by phone calls from a man claiming that he will kill a person as each time zone rings in the New Year, concluding with her in Los Angeles. Director Emmett Alston brings nothing to the proceedings by way of suspense or excitement, so viewers are essentially left with the unintentional laughs provided by the numerous "new wave" band performances, and the over-the-top turn by Grant Cramer as Kelly's son. Exploitation aficionados will appreciate a clip from a trailer plugging a double bill of 1972's Blood Feast and 1976's Blood Bath, which is heard over a scene at the now-defunct Van Nuys Drive-In, as well as a cameo by softcore superstar John Alderman as a police shrink. ~ Paul Gaita, All Movie Guide
Jed Mills - Ernie; John Alderman - Dr. Reed; Teri Copley - Teenage Girl; Jon Greene - Sgt. Greene; Richard Kalk - Policeman; Taaffe O'Connell - Jane; Julie Kaye Towery - Space Girl; Mark L. Rosen - Drunk; Tim Cutt - Ambulance Attendant; Richard Brown - Swamper
Credit
Emmett Alston - Director, Billy Fine - Executive Producer, W. Michael Lewis - Composer (Music Score), Laurin Rinder - Composer (Music Score), Thomas E. Ackerman - Cinematographer, Yoram Globus - Producer, Menahem Golan - Producer, Leonard Neubauer - Screenwriter
New Year's Evil is a 1980Americanhorror film starring Roz Kelly and Kip Niven, directed by Emmett Alston. The original music score is composed by W. Michael Lewis and Laurin Rinder. The film's tagline is "This New Year's, you're invited to a killer party..."[1]
As the film begins New Year's Eve is on its way and television's most famous punk rock lady icon, Diane Sullivan is holding a late night countdown celebration of music and partying. All is going well until Diane receives a phone call from an odd sounding stranger who announces on live television that when the clock strikes twelve in each time zone, a 'Naughty Girl' will be punished (murdered), then the killer signs off with a threat claiming that Diane will be the last one to die.[2]
The studio crew takes safety measures and heightens security, but on the other side of America, a nurse is found viciously slaughtered. There are many suspects as to who the mysterious killer/caller is; a crazed fan, a religious psychotic, or maybe it's someone much closer to Diane than anyone could have ever expected.[3]
