Country of Origin: USA
Year of Production: 1981
Running Times: 86 mins 50 sec (UK - video (PAL))      90 mins 23 sec (UK - theatrical)
Format: colour
Ratio:
Sound:

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Company: Oakland Productions
Executive in Charge of Production: Don Stillman
Executive Producers: Doro Vlado Hreljanovic, V. Paul Hreljanovic
Producers: David Sheldon, Doro Vlado Hreljanovic
Associate Producer: Joseph Middleton
Unit Production Manager: Bob Manning
Production Coordinators: Carroll Rue, Eudie Charnes

SCRIPT
Script: Mark Arywitz, Gregg Irving
Story: Joseph Middleton

DIRECTION
Director: Jeff Lieberman
Assistant Directors: Fred Berner, Bruce A. Simon

PHOTOGRAPHY
Directors of Photography: Joel King, Dean King
Camera Operators: Stephen St. John, Thomas Vanghele
2nd Unit Camera Operator: Kevin Johnson
Colour: Movielab

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Editor: Robert Q. Lovett
Assistant Editor: Leslie Troy Gaulin
Post-Production Supervisor: Victor Kanefsky

MUSIC
Music: Brad Fiedel
Singer: Arlene Martel

SOUND
Sound: Anthony Santa Croce, Greg Valtierra
Sound Re-Recordist: Emil Neroda
Sound Effects Editor: Al Nahmias
Assistant Sound Effects Editor: Bitty O'Sullivan-Smith

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up Artist: Kathy Shorkey
Costume Designers: Michele Logan, Ellen Shanahan

SPECIAL MAKE UP EFFECTS
Special Make Up Effects: Matthew W. Mungle

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: John Morello
Special Effects Assistant: Danny Lester
Special Effects Consultant: Richard E. Johnson

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Art Director: Craig Stearns
Assistant Production Designer: Randy Moore

MISCELLANEOUS
Oregon Crew: Michael Seay, Beth Dixon, David Conklin, Denise Meyers, Devin Boitz, Glen Hayden, Jack Heenan, Jeanne Marie Schmidt, Joe Giegerich, John Allen, Ken McCortney, Linn Hayden, Lisa De Alva, Richard Matthys, Terry Swarthout
Production Assistants: Lisa C. Cook, Nancy McCauley

LOCATIONS
Locations: Silver Falls State Park, Silverton, Oregon, USA

STUNTS
Stunt Coordinator: Steve Boyum
Stunts: Tony Epper, Joe Finnegan, Jack Gill, Dawn Grant, Marcia Holley

CAST
George Kennedy (Roy McLean)
Mike Kellin (Ty)
Chris Lemmon (Jonathan)
Gregg Henry (Warren)
Deborah Benson-Wald (Constance)
Ralph Seymour (Daniel)
Katie Powell (Merry Cat Logan)
John Hunsaker (mountain twins)
Charles Bartlett (Vachel)
Jamie Rose (Megan)
Hap Oslund (Pa Logan)
Barbara Spencer (Ma Logan)

PLOT SUMMARY

Five young campers set out on a trip into the mountains to look at a remote cabin they've bought. They ignore the warnings of forest ranger Roy McLean and soon fall fould of a hulking, machete-wielding madman. As their number is whittled away, the survivors come to a horrifying realisation - they may be facing more than one killer...

CAPSULE REVIEW

Like much of Lieberman's work, this is an under-rated film, a tense and disturbing addition to the backwoods horror cycle so popular in the 70s and early 80s. It shares some of the same faults as many slashers of the period (particularly some obscure character motivation) but Lieberman's direction is atmospheric and chilling and the soundtrack is excellent. Beautifully shot, it deserves a better reputation than it currently enjoys and will, no doubt, be reappraised when someone gets round to giving it a DVD release.

AVAILABILITY

Canada
Theatrical Distributors: Citadel Films
Video Distributors: Pan-Canadian Video Presentations; Vogue Video

UK
Theatrical Distributors: Rank Film Distributors
Video Distributor: Rank Video Library

USA
Theatrical Distributors: Picturmedia
Video Distributors: Interglobal Video; Paragon Video

CENSORSHIP HISTORY

Finland
Rating: K-18

France
Rating: -12

Norway
Rating: 16

Sweden
Rating: 15

UK
Rating: X (1981 - uncut); 18 (1987 - cut by 7 seconds)

USA
Rating: R

TIMELINE

1981
September
21: UK - rated X by the BBFC (for theatrical release with no cuts)

November
25: France - theatrical release

1982
May
14: Norway - theatrical release

July
30: Finland - theatrical release

1986
October
17: UK - rated 18 by the BBFC (for video release, with 7 seconds of cuts)

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Blutige Dämmerung - West German title
Liian myöhään - Finnish title
Survivance - French title
Vor Morgengrauen - West German title

LINKS

SEE ALSO
Wrong Turn (2003)

REFERENCES

MAGAZINES

Is It Uncut? no.5 p.35 (UK)
illustrated review

BOOKS

Horror and Science Fiction Films Volume III pp.150-151
credits

KEYWORDS

camping, forests, in-breeding, mountains, mutants, slasher, stalk and slash, teenagers, twins

Last Updated: 1 January, 2009