Let's Scare Jessica to Death [Blu-ray]

This movie isn’t for everyone, but for those of us it is for, it’s quite a treat.(As usual only reviewing presentation, not the movie…of course we all like it or we wouldn’t buy it).A really stunning transfer especially for a blu (vs. 4k). The cinematography is really put on show here, the stunning exteriors as well as creepy shadowy interior sets. The production I read lucked out the first night of shooting and a thick fog rolled in, which they short scenes with to enhance transitions- what an amazing bit of providence, as it makes the creepy story even more spooky. Special care seems to have been taken to the soundtrack, and it’s so worth it, it’s one of the best parts of this cult gem. Some worthy extras too: commentary, interviews, a “now and then” featurette of the locations.Definitely worth it.Just be careful if you’re going to say the “V” word! It’s not that kind of movie!Or is it?Jessica…

My mother took us to see this when we were adolescents, it was one of the very few movies we ever went to during my entire childhood. It would take a novel to explain how, but the events of this bizarre intelligence creation via Hollywood have come to fruition in my very ordinary life.

According to a great many of the reviews I've read a whole lot of people who saw Let's Scare Jessica to Death (1971) caught it off the television rather than in the theaters. Personally, last night was my first time watching the film, and after doing so I can't help feel I missed out on something in terms of not seeing this movie at a more impressionable age as I believe it would have truly scared the hell out of me...that's not to say I didn't find it frightening at my present age, but I have reached a point in my life where certain daily mundane activities (like paying bills) scare me more than cinematic ones...co-written and directed by John D. Hancock (Bang the Drum Slowly, California Dreaming), the film features Zohra Lampert (Splendor in the Grass), Barton Heyman (Dead Man Walking), Kevin O'Connor (The Brink's Job), Alan Manson (Bang the Drum Slowly), and Mariclare Costello (Ordinary People).After a bit of clever misdirection, which I won't go into as not to spoil the fun, we meet a trio of hippies types traveling from New York to an farm on a cove in Connecticut. There's Duncan (Heyman), a balding man with enormous mutton chop sideburns, his girlfriend/common law wife Jessica (Lampert), and their friend Woody (O'Connor). Apparently, not too long ago, while living in New York, Jessica suffered some sort of mental breakdown and went away for a period of time, and after being released Duncan blew his savings on an apple farm in Connecticut to not only get `back to the Earth', but also to allow for him to provide a healthier atmosphere for Jessica's recovery (Woody's just along for the ride). Upon arriving at the house, the trio discovers someone's already in residence in the form of a spooky, redheaded hippie chick/drifter named Emily (Costello) whom they quickly befriend and invite to stay (Woody's taken a shine to Emily, but Emily seems to have a thing for Duncan). Anyway, various strange events, many of them witnessed mainly by Jessica, occur causing a strain on Jessica's fragile psyche and her relationship with Duncan, making the others wonder if Jessica's having some sort of relapse, none of which is helped by a strange, mute girl in white lurking about the orchard, creepy Emily's head games, and the fact that the townspeople, who are all old men for some reason or another, are just really weird (and they hate hippies to boot, but this wasn't an uncommon sentiment within the conservative population at the time). Things take a turn for the worse (as they're apt to do) and Jessica takes the express train to Nuttyville, leaving the rest of us wondering if the oddness permeating the story is a part of some concerted, indeterminate effort to drive Jessica looney tunes, or if it's all a product of her fractured mind...There are three things potential viewers should be aware of prior to going into this film...1. The feature is soaked with a rich, spooky, atmospheric quality, driven by a number of aspects, which causes the entire story to appear slightly askew.2. The story moves along at a very deliberate pace (i.e. it's slow).3. The story is entirely ambiguous, open to a whole lot of interpretation, which will certainly appeal to those who don't enjoy every aspect of a plot spoon fed to them, but will certainly annoy and frustrate those who prefer their celluloid experiences to be more straightforward.As far as the last point I consider myself to be somewhere in the middle as I believe I can appreciate a certain amount of vagueness within a film dependant on the material, but I absolutely despise vagarious elements either due to the filmmakers trying to be overly cerebral or due to a sloppy and/or weak production. One element I really liked was the intimate nature of the story as there really weren't a lot of characters running around, most likely a result of the low budget, independent nature of the film. I had some difficulty relating to the character of Jessica mainly because she was a bit on the nutty side, and details of her previous breakdown were never disclosed, so I had little idea where she was coming from...I'm not a violent person, but there were times when I just wanted to whack her upside the head given her gradual growing histrionics. Since it's never really made clear, to me at least, whether her issues were the result of external or internal stimuli (or a combination of both), it was difficult to determine if she was a victim of her own mind, or if there was truly outside forces at work she may have been more sensitive to over the others. One thing's for sure, the character of Emily gave me a bad case of the heebee jeebees. She seemed a harmless hippie at first, but her later actions, along with her unsettling eyes, seemed to indicate something different. As far as the two men, they were pretty much along for the ride, drawn in by irresistible forces difficult to explain. All in all I thought this a very entertaining, hard to pin down, but worthwhile film if you're interested in ookie, offbeat, somewhat supernatural thrillers slathered in cryptic sauce.The picture, presented in widescreen (1.85:1), enhanced for 16X9 TVs, looks clean and comes across well, and the Dolby Digital mono audio comes across solid with no complaints. There aren't any extra features, but the disc does include English subtitles. I suppose an audio commentary by someone involved in the film would have been a nice touch, but, in a way, I'm sort of glad there isn't one as I think it's better to not have someone explaining (exposing) various details of the story, but rather leave the viewer to work out their own conclusions.Cookieman108If you enjoyed this feature, I'd recommend checking out a couple of other films titled Carnival of Souls (1962) and The Haunting (1963), as while the material is certainly different in the three, they all possess a spooky, ethereal quality that tends to get under the skin, especially when viewed at night with the lights out, preferably during a thunderstorm.

Being over 35 years old and having almost no recognition among horror fans around my age group, "Let's Scare Jessica To Death" is the definition of a classic sleeper movie. However, don't let the fact that this movie is buried under generations of more popular and well-known movies stop you from checking it out. "Let's Scare Jessica To Death" is criminally underrated, and will grab your interest with its amazing location, haunting atmosphere, enticing characters and ever-thickening plot.Taking place in the beautiful Connecticut countryside, Jessica and friends take some free time after Jessica has been released from a mental hospital. Coming across a mysterious, albeit quite attractive lady, they all share the house on the lakeside before the ever chilling and eerie series of events sets in. Being a psychological horror film that pre-dates "The Shining", "Let's Scare Jessica To Death" is original in every sense of the word, and a film far beyond its time, having been made in 1971. The dark and mysterious atmosphere is captivating and at times, almost quite surreal, which makes for a fantastic tone to the movie. The setting of the house and the lake, and all the surrounding scenery adds to the optical beauty, making for some great landscapes for such chilling, psychological events to take place.Overall, this is a great and extremely underrated psychological horror movie that's almost perfect. The only thing I wish would have been changed is the ending; it feels as though the ending was almost rushed and never given a proper conclusion. The other thing that bugs me is not about the movie itself, but about the DVD. The only thing the disc contains is the movie, the scene selection, and the language selection. It's really a loss that there's no special features included on this disc, because I love looking at the special features after a movie. Also, it's a loss because "Let's Scare Jessica To Death" is a movie where the bonus material may have been really interesting, especially regarding the nature of the film, how unknown the actors are and how the movie seemed to disappear under years of other horror films.Be that as it may, "Let's Scare Jessica To Death" is an awesome horror movie that should be viewed by anybody interested in surreal, atmospheric horror or psychological horror films. Enjoy this classic in time for Halloween, too! Thanks for the time, and peace.

This film was made for $180,000, directed by a recent graduate from film school. It ended up making millions in the box office. The main actors in "Let's Scare Jessica To Death" are Zohra Lampert(who was also in Exorcist III as KInderman's wife), Barton Heyman, and Kevin O'Connor. It became a cult hit. I have it on DVD but I wanted it on demand and the price was right. Does Amazon have free movies other than prime?

I love this movie. And since I have it already on DVD for years, when I saw it available on Bluray here on Amazon, I thought why not upgrade. This is such an underrated 70s gem. Creepy atmosphere and all out just plain great!! I wish the soundtrack was obtainable. Thats a must for my horror soundtrack collection as well. And a little fun-fact, Jessica's husband Duncan was the Doctor in The Exorcist.😉

AKA : Lets Scare Jessica To Death. Surprisingly well done psychological horror. While it's very much a period piece, it doesn't feel too dated. Visually it's quite arresting with some wonderful set pieces and a rather spectacular soundtrack. Going from dreamy acoustic guitars to brutal jarring proto electronica. Wonderful.

Buona la qualità video e l'audio originale. Meno la traccia audio italiana, un po' intubata e con molti fruscii di sottofondo.Non ci sono sottotitoli.

This movie was just as scary as I remember it at 14 in 1971! Genuinely creepy and frightening without all the gore. A classic that has shot once again to the top of my all time favourite horror movies. Zohra Lampert is brilliant and Mariclare Costello is sensual as the ghost/vampire. Highly recommend.

I watched this a few months ago alone in the middle of the darkest night and was surprised how spooky this little unknown movie was. The last time I felt the same was years ago when I first watched another older gem, The Changeling (1980). Recommended!