Midnight

A runaway converges with perverse cultists in western PA

A 17 year-old girl from Pennsylvania runs away to live with her sister in another state. She’s picked up by two guys in a van, but they run afoul of a weirdo cult in the sticks.

Shot in 1980 but not released until 1982, “Midnight” was written & directed by the screenwriter of the hallowed “Night of the Living Dead” (1968) and likewise shot in western Pennsylvania. Costing only $75,000, it had half the budget of “Night” and way less if you factor in 13 years of inflation. As such, this is basically a meshing of “Night” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974), just no where near as effective due to the limited resources. For instance, there’s a lot of wooden acting.

Still, if you don’t mind micro-budget deficiencies and enjoy cult flicks like “Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural” (1973) there’s a lot to appreciate here (although it’s not quite on the level of “Lemora”). Melanie Verlin is okay as Nancy, but the production needed a more captivating lead actress to keep the viewer’s attention. The flick starts well and ends decently but is marred by a tedious mid-section.

Underneath the creepy, sometimes goofy adventure there’s an interesting theme: We live in a fallen world full of broken families, addictions, abuse, lecherous males, racists, unjust hostilities, crime, religionists and deviant groups. Both the cultists and the protagonist find succor in questionable religious beliefs, but the goat-suckers choose a destructive belief system whereas Nancy opts for a flawed-but-generally-healthy theology that enables her to face the serious challenges of life and overcome.

Ginny Griedel stands out on in the feminine department as Sharon (the woman in the blue dress), as does Michelle Bowser as the adult Cynthia.

Lawrence Tierney plays Nancy’s stepfather. You might remember Tierney from the 1991 Seinfeld episode “The Jacket” in which he played Elaine’s intimidating father.

Russo wrote & produced a more modern version of “Midnight,” released in 2020. It was directed by someone else and still very low-budget. I haven’t seen it, but the trailer makes it look like an improvement over the original.

For a superior horror flick written by Russo, check out the slasher “The Majorettes” (1986), which is still very low-budget but all-around entertaining if you give it a chance.

The movie runs 1 hour, 34 minutes, and was shot in the region of Butler, Pennsylvania, which is a half-hour drive north of Pittsburgh. More specifically, the areas of Kaylor, White Oak Cemetery and Bradys Bend, which are located 7-12 northeast of Butler.

GRADE: C