[4]

Poor Janet. When she was just a little girl, she watched her mommy stab her daddy to death, and she’s been haunted by nightmares ever since. She’s also terrified of inheriting her mother’s insanity. To make matters worse, someone is taking advantage of this fact for their own nefarious purpose. Nightmare is beautifully photographed and directed, and the performances are pretty good overall, but the uneven script loses momentum after the midpoint. The first half builds well, with some genuine suspense and some haunting flashbacks — including a very nice, prolonged stabbing scene. But Janet’s story resolves at the mid-point and the story shifts focus to another character. The second half patterns itself after the first, and since the movie has already shown its hand, you end up well ahead of the plot and a little bit bored. Of all the psychological thrillers from Britain’s Hammer Films, Nightmare is perhaps the most disappointing. For a better film along the same lines, check out Scream of Fear, Paranoiac, or Stop Me Before I Kill.

Directed by Freddie Francis (Paranoiac, The Evil of Frankenstein). Screenplay by Jimmy Sangster (Scream of Fear, Maniac). With Jennie Linden, Moira Redmond, David Knight, Brenda Bruce, and Irene Richmond.