Starring Faye Dunawaye, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Dourif, Raúl Juliá, René Auberjonois

(6-Good Film)

Stylish. Absurd. Lush.

Stylish, sordid thriller about a controversial fashion photographer who’s having horrific visions of murders before they take place. Although initially skeptical, a cop, Lieutenant John Neville (Jones), teams up with her to track the serial killer down. Written by John Carpenter, there’s a lot here that entertains. I love schlock, and Laura Mars is highly polished schlock. The mystery aspect is disappointing though, and I think the movie would have benefited from being played for scares more so than its rushed romance between Laura and the cop. The director would move on to colossal heights in his next movie, The Empire Strikes Back (1980).

-Walter Tyrone Howard-

(200)