Eyes of a Stranger (1981 film)


Eyes of a Stranger is a 1981 American slasher film directed by Ken Wiederhorn. It features makeup effects by Tom Savini and marked the film debut of Jennifer Jason Leigh.

Plot

The film centers around a rapist and murderer in Miami who stalks his victims and then calls them repeatedly before raping and killing them. The movie opens with a body being discovered under water. After the introduction of the dead body, the film begins to follow the murderer stalking a blonde woman on her way home. The murderer begins calling the woman which leads to her calling the police. Before the police could get there, both she and her boyfriend were murdered. While the murders continue, Jane, the television reporter, figures out who the killer is and decides to capture him herself. Jane finds herself in the killer's apartment searching for evidence to share with the police.

Cast

Eyes of a Stranger was released in 180 theaters in the United States by Warner Bros. on March 27, 1981, earning $546,724 during its opening weekend. It eventually grossed an estimated $1.1 million.

Edited versions

The film was originally cut for an R rating, removing many instances of violence including a decapitation from the film, leaving only the final head shot uncut. As a result, many of Tom Savini's gore effects were cut out or edited. The uncut version was released on DVD as part of Warner's Twisted Terror Collection with an R-rating on the packaging.

Critical reception

of The New York Times called it "a cheap, sleazy horror movie," but praised Jennifer Jason Leigh as "the only thing worth seeing." Allmovie wrote, "this tired, unimaginative slasher-thriller plays like a sleazy TV movie-of-the-week punctuated with gory murder scenes". Siskel & Ebert gave the film "No" votes on their TV show but both critics said the film was unusually well-made and technically sound for a slasher film, with Siskel mentioning the director's past work on PBS shows by way of stating that he probably had better material for future movies.