VividSimon Simply Perfect

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Hayden Kane There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Aubrey Hackett While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

mollidew I saw this when it was originally on television and I found it to be a well acted, suspenseful movie. I finally got the DVD and I don't know if this is the whole TV release or if it has been cut to fit one DVD. I had remembered it being a mini series but it may have just been a two- part TV movie. It definitely wasn't the length of a normal TV movie as it had more than one part on different days when viewing.I think it is a good film and well worth viewing if you are interested in the subject matter. I think they left in parts that would seem stretched at the time length of an ordinary TV movie.It basically deals with Johanna's attempt to save her own life because of the length of time lapsed in her death experience and how she solves the issue of not being killed to bring her back to the light. Remember this was done in 1989 prior to a lot of movies that have since been released in theaters on this topic and it was for TV viewing audiences. They did an excellent job considering the time frame it was shown and the topic. I have never found it boring at any time and this is the reason I purchased it when I discovered it was on DVD. It was adapted from a 1980 novel called "Walkers" by Gary Brandner who also wrote "The Howling." Someone mentioned Flatliners which came out the next year but it doesn't remotely have anything in common with this movie other than the life after death theme which is explored differently and came from a screenplay. "Watchers" is much older than this. So there is no comparison whatsoever between these two movies. I liked them both but "From the Dead of Night" was a unique idea and I have never seen any movies quite like this one other than the subject of Near Death Experience. It is more suspenseful than scary in my opinion but individual viewers will vary on how it impacts them.

FieCrier A fashion designer trips over a cat and falls into a pool, hitting her head on something floating on the surface. With rather cheesy effects (this was a TV movie) she floats up out of her body. She floats through a tunnel of rings of swirling orange smoke, and black rigid figures tip into her view (they look like the mannequins in her apartment). I almost thought I was watching a Jess Franco movie.... As her friends revive her, a black arm grabs her by the wrist, and she has to struggle to get loose. When she is revived, she remembers everything, and has a nasty bruise on her forearm.Shortly thereafter, she nearly gets hit by an out-of-control car that comes up on the sidewalk behind her. On Halloween, she decides with her boyfriend to go to Mexico for a vacation. When she gets there, she's surprised to find it's the Day of the Dead. They're annoyed by another American tourist who keeps following them, and he almost drowns them.The designer is encouraged to join a group of people who've had near death experiences. They've all experienced the tunnel, but not the black figures or the repeated near escapes from death. One of them has, and he's very anxious. She's also encouraged to meet with a psychic.A Doctor tells her about people he calls "Walkers" (the name of the novel this was based on). They're people who supposedly died of one cause that, when examined, prove to have died of another cause. Thus it's like they continued walking around after dying until they died again, but he blames it on poor record-keeping.I watched this on the 102 minute video, and it felt awfully long. I can't imagine that there's actually a 192 minute version! Perhaps if it was meant to be watched over two or more nights on TV it would better be watched that way than in one sitting.I've only read one Gary Brandner novel, Floater, and if it is representative of his work, he's not the most original of writers. Floater had the common plot of: picked on kid kills people in revenge. Even the variation was pretty common: picked on kid dies and kills people years later in revenge from beyond the grave. And in fact it has a point in common with this movie, in that the kid practices astral projection, and when he is drowned he floats up out of his body as here. I don't know how closely From the Dead of Night follows his novel Walkers. I understand the Howling movies don't bear much resemblance to his novels.It's quite a slow movie, and the special effects and cinematography are really held down by the (presumably) low budget and made-for-TV shortcomings. There are a lot of easily recognizable character actors in it. It also feels very dated, more early to mid 1980s than 1989. I found it to be boring. A much better low-budget movie covering similar subject matter that I don't think has dated as badly is Sole Survivor (1983) (arguably the inspiration for the 2000s Final Destination movies). It blows From the Dead of Night away.

Claudio Carvalho Joanna (Lindsay Wagner) is a successful designer, who lost her mother a few months ago. Her former mate Peter Langford (Bruce Boxleitner) has left her, and she is recovering her sentimental life through Glen Eastman (Robin Thomas), a man who loves her. When her friend and owner of the "griffe" where she works decides to maker her partner with her own exclusive "griffe", Glen and Joanna decide to have a celebration party in Joanna's fancy house with their friends. While in the party, Joanna stumbles on a cat, falls in the swimming pool and drowns. She experiences seeing her soul leaving her dead body and traveling through a tunnel, where shadows try to hold her. However, Peter and Glen revive her. From this moment on, her life changes, and she feels threatened all the time, as if she were supposed to die again. Yesterday I saw this movie for the third time on VHS, after many years. It is a great stylistic horror movie, having a good and original story. This theme was later partially explored in "Final Destination (2000)", "Final Destination 2 (2003)" and "Flatliners (1990)". Although watching for the third time, I found it again a great film. Lindsay Wagner in the role of a designer is very elegant, wearing beautiful costumes, and has a great performance. The story holds the attention of the viewer until the last scene. I did not read the novel, but I really like this movie. I disagree with the opinion that it is recommended for fans of Lindsay Wagner only. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Nos Braços da Morte" ("In the Rams of the Death")

earthtracy The movie was in several parts on TV. It left off each night with enough scare to want you coming back each consecutive night. The movie was eerie, scary, and made me wonder about some things regarding death and things we might see. Lindsey Wagner gave a great performance. It is now 15 years later and I remember details from the movie and how the movie left me feeling. That speaks for itself in my voting. The plot was well designed in action, and yes, there were some funny lines too, but overall the movie gave me the jitters. The makeup for the dead and the ways of death were done well, meaning, not so far fetched as to be unbelievable. With all the blood and gore films that are on the market, it is nice to see one that will scare you because it makes you think about life, death, and the possibilities surrounding each in things we face on a day to day basis.