MOVIE REVIEW : ‘Sleepwalkers’: Ultraviolent, Morbid, Silly

Morbid, silly and ultra-violent, “Stephen King’s Sleepwalkers” (citywide) is pure trash from the popular horrormeister. It is so bad that surely the only way that it could have been made was to have King’s name on it. It is appalling in its depiction of cruelty to cats--even if the film bears the usual American Humane Assn. disclaimer--and offensive in its crude, gratuitous gay stereotyping.

Brian Krause and Alice Krige play a mother and son who are “sleepwalkers” in an archaic sense of the term, reptilian, somewhat feline creatures who can change appearance (and even disappear) at will and who may be the very last of their ancient line. The only way they can live is for the male “sleepwalker,” while in the process of assuming his monstrous form, to breathe a deadly ray into the mouth of a human female virgin, extracting in return her “life force.” The male “sleepwalker” in turn supplies the female “sleepwalker” with this human life force via sexual intercourse. The only creatures who can detect sleepwalkers are cats, and they stand vigil in ever-increasing numbers around the pleasant house in an Indiana small town to which Krause and Krige have just moved, having left countless dead cats hanging from the trees of their previous residence in Malibu.

Director Mike Garris brings more style and pace to the film than it deserves, and Krause and his intended victim, Tanya Robertson, are sufficiently talented and attractive young actors to be able to move on to better opportunities. But what is Krige, a poised and beautiful actress whose distinguished credits include “Chariots of Fire,” doing in this film?

The first line of defense for bottom-of-the-barrel horror flicks like “Stephen King’s Sleepwalkers” (rated R for strong violence and sensuality, and for language) is always that you shouldn’t take them so seriously. But in order to do that a film has to be a truly amusing rather than a merely disgusting experience.

‘Stephen King’s Sleepwalkers’

Brian Krause: Charles Brady

Tanya Robertson: Madchen Amick

Alice Krige: Mary Brady

Jim Haynie: Ira

A Columbia Pictures presentation of an ION Pictures/Victor & Grais Production. Director Mick Garris. Producers Mark Victor, Michael Grais, Nabeel Zahid. Executive producers Dimitri Logothetis, Joseph Medawar. Screenplay by Stephen King. Cinematographer Rodney Charters. Editor O. Nicholas Brown. Costume supervisor Michael Hoffman. Music Nicholas Pike. Production design John DeCuir Jr. Art director Sig Tinglof. Set designer Peter J. Kelly. Set decorator Bruce A. Gibeson. Sound Don. H. Matthews. Running time: 1 hour, 32 minutes.

MPAA-rated R (for strong violence and sensuality, and for language).