Pluskylang Great Film overall

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

Tymon Sutton The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

Mandeep Tyson The acting in this movie is really good.

rooee As Gabriel Black's and Lance Ong's atmospheric synth pads growl over the opening credits, expectations are pretty high. Unfortunately this 1984 slasher is bungled in conception and execution. Kelly (Daphne Zuniga) is haunted by a vision – possibly a memory – of her father attacking his wife's lover and setting him on fire. Or is it the other way around? Along with her sorority sisters, Kelly is in the midst of an initiation, and now it's "Hell Week". The big plan is to break into a shopping mall and steal the uniform of the security guard – the "Fright Night" toward which the story progresses. Along the way we are introduced, via the standard POV shot, to a fork-wielding killer, who's working his way through the kids, apparently to get to Kelly. Could it be the burnt man from her vision? (Spoiler: Yes, yes it could.)Kelly goes to Peter (James Read), a psychology graduate with a penchant for blandly name-dropping Freud and Jung, and who's the kind of bore who goes to a college party and grumbles, "I, too, arrested my development for four years." She falls for him and he helps to unlock her madness. It is psychology as detective work, and this whole subplot drags an already quite ordinary film down in the most clunky and unconvincing way. As Kelly, it's an early role for Zuniga (she was Princess Vespa in Spaceballs, remember?), and her wit and charisma carries the film while its other elements fail her. The Initiation simply isn't very well made. It's not the budget, or the workmanlike makeup effects, or the clearly moving corpses. It's not the typically leering camera-work, or the bland and sometimes unfocused framing. It's the lack of interesting ideas. And any deviations from the slasher formula – i.e. the aforementioned pseudo psychology – feel like dull digressions rather than adding depth. Tonally it's all over the shop, with the tension too frequently punctuated by sub-Animal House frat pratting (all the boys are mindless jesters, by the way). At one point a dramatic crescendo is completely undone when one of the characters looks at the camera for a winking reaction. Sound like fun? Not when the film had shown zero signs of wilfully breaking the fourth wall up to that point. The story culminates in an extended setpiece inside a deserted shopping mall, where there are at least some flashes of inspiration. There's some okay tension here – I like the scene where one character enters a lighting shop, and the lamps begin illuminating around her – but almost always the pay-off doesn't warrant the build-up. And that goes for the film in general, as it careens toward its lame twist: a revelation requiring so much exposition that it's more tiring than clever. The Initiation doesn't excite as a slasher; doesn't titillate as an exploitation flick; and it definitely doesn't convince as a psychological horror. As a midnight movie, sadly, the only thing to fear is falling asleep.

gavin6942 While trying to understand a frightening reoccurring nightmare, a pledge (Daphne Zuniga) is coaxed into breaking into her father (Clu Gulager)'s department store by her sorority sisters, where a deranged killer targets the girls and their boyfriends.This film's genesis seems pretty standard. Fresh out of school, Charles Pratt (who has gone on to make a name for himself in soap operas) pitched a script to New World. They accepted it, and brought on actress Daphne Zuniga, who had recently had a smaller part in "Dorm That Dripped Blood". Peter Crane started as director, but was apparently replaced by Larry Stewart when the film could not stay on its brisk schedule. Because the movie was shot in order, this creates a bit of a style shift after the first 20 minutes or so (in my opinion, a shift towards the better).By slasher standards, this one is pretty decent, though nothing special. The actual slashing does not even start until the third act, and none of the deaths are terribly inventive. The slow buildup does offer plenty of time to build up the characters and the mystery around some of them. There is also plenty of subplot concerning Kelly's nightmares and her forgotten childhood. Even without the slasher elements, it makes for a good horror mystery film. We know early on that her dreams are more than dreams, but they may not mean exactly what we expect.Horror icon Clu Gulager does not get enough screen time, and Vera Miles (easily the biggest star attached) is not used to her fullest. It is a shame, as she deserves better. On the bright side, the movie really lets Zuniga shine, and she appears in almost every scene. From here, everything was coming up in her favor, from "The Sure Thing" (alongside John Cusack) to Mel Brooks' "Spaceballs" (where children of the 80s probably remember her best). The Blu-ray from Arrow Video features an upgrade on the sound and picture, though given the original source, it is not mind-blowing. We also get a brand new audio commentary by the Hysteria Continues (a slasher-themed podcast), and new interviews with actors Christopher Bradley (who went on to "Waxwork" among many others) and Joy Jones (who has Heidi, the sleep study assistant, as her only credit). Screenwriter Charles Pratt has an interview that lasts over 20 minutes, telling tales of his scribbling. There is an extended scene, but amounts to little more than 3 or 4 seconds from a party and adds nothing to the plot. It could have been added back in and no one would have noticed.

Dagon It's a hit or miss moment when you're about to experience a viewing of another '80s Slasher. Will it be but a mere rip-off of its predecessors or offer a new take on the formula? Sometimes, the film's conclusion will leave you stranded between both schools of thought.Kelly Fairchild is a bright college student and new initiate of Delta Ro Kai sorority. She has a troubled past and due to a traumatic incident in her youth she suffered from amnesia and cannot remember anything before the age of 9. She's also plagued by a reoccurring nightmare of a burning man and a few other hazy details that are interpreted by her professor, Peter Adams, who is working on a doctoral thesis in parapsychology. The plot also focuses on the escape of several mental patients of a psychiatric clinic hundreds of miles away – in particular, a man on the loose who spends his free time dispatching his victims with a garden rake. Is there a connection? And what's in store for prank night when the Delta Kai girls are trapped inside of a mall complex?With a few years separating this title from the well-known classics, it's a shame that Initiation wasn't released earlier. It did, however, mark the film debut of Hunter Tylo, a young and attractive model; Daphne Zuniga also plays a memorable role featured as the female lead with 1982's The Dorm That Dripped Blood securely stashed away in her horror repertoire. These two girls, along with a young cast of characters, offer the viewing audience a fun little performance. The mall complex that sets the stage for murder later on in the film was an excellent choice; constructed with vast ceilings and an intimately laden store configuration. The death scenes won't shock or disgust – instead, opting to epitomize the Slasher medium that features ill- advised decisions that lead to treachery. As a result, we're treated to characters that follow the guidelines of your standard horror movie. You won't find something "new" to talk about – just more of the same, but outputted more crispy and coherently than usual. The pacing is slow during the first half of the story but remarkably enough, I wasn't bothered by it. A film of this caliber would not be complete without your typical twist- ending; a trademark of Slasher films throughout the '80s and Initiation receives equal treatment. This big secret that patiently waits in the wings isn't too common of a device so you may be somewhat surprised by the conclusion. With a bit of cheese and that 80s flair, Initiation should be placed into the upper echelon of the Hack-'n-Slashers of days gone by – and while I can't necessarily deem it as a "classic" it's far better than the mop and schlop low-budgeters that overwhelmed audiences 3 decades ago.

Cujo108 A group of sorority pledges sneak into a mall overnight to pull off a prank that will get them initiated. Tasked with stealing the security guard's uniform, it shouldn't be too hard since Kelly Fairchild's father owns the mall, and she's one of the pledges. She has keys to get in and knows where the spare uniforms are kept, so no problem. Someone else is in there with them though, and it isn't long before bloodshed ensues.This is actually one of my favorite slashers, a large reason for that being the creepy atmosphere of the mall at night. It has multiple levels and is unlike any mall I've ever been to. We also get a few instances of characters catching a glimpse of the killer lurking about, something that I'm a sucker for. Getting that eerie look at something out of the corner of your eye, not sure if you really saw anything at all. The killer's POV shots were extremely well-done, especially the very creepy bit of the killer observing Dwight Fairchild as he's loading his car. The score certainly helps the mood, as does some of the dreary photography in certain scenes.Daphne Zuniga plays the lead, and I've always found her appealing even if she's not the greatest actress. Vera Miles and Clu Gulager are also on hand to add some class to the proceedings. As for the kills, they're not the bloodiest, but they get the job done just fine. The most notable death sees one of the pledges stabbed repeatedly as she holds the PA systems microphone, her screams echoing throughout the mall. On my initial viewing, I didn't see the ending coming, though there are some blatant clues when re-watching.