When I was younger, I thoroughly enjoyed movies dealing with America’s favorite pastime, the good ol’ sport of baseball. Angels in the Outfield, Rookie of the Year, and The Sandlot were among my favorites, but little did I know, there were some darker baseball themed flicks out there. The most recent that I’ve learned about is Peter Masterson’s little slasher mystery, Night Game.
Night Game follows detective Mike Seaver (Roy Schneider) as he tracks down a serial killer. The victims seem to be randomly chosen with no clear motive, until Seaver begins to put the clues together — the killer strikes only on nights when the hometown baseball team wins and only when a certain pitcher scores the W.
In terms of slasher flicks, Night Game is a rather tame one. The tone of the film is not as eerie or dark as your typical slasher fare, but a killer who goes around slicing necks with a hooked hand is certainly a perfect fit for the genre.
Night Game features some familiar faces. Roy Schneider (Jaws), Paul Gleason (The Breakfast Club), and Lane Smith (My Cousin Vinny) all have roles in the film, making this feel like pure 80’s gold! Everyone does rather well and there are no problems at all in the acting department. Even the supporting cast was great with nobody bringing the quality down one bit.
Halfway through the film, I still had no idea how they were going to tie this killer’s motives in with baseball. Sure, the character of Mike Seaver was a former ball player and he loved to follow his hometown team, the Astros, but I just didn’t see where Masterson and his writers were taking this. Once Night Game reached the third act and everything was pieced together, however, it all made perfect sense and become a rather clever idea. I don’t want to get too much into it, but I think you will all enjoy it, once you give it a watch yourself.
Night Game is a mystery thriller with the heart of a slasher. The killer is unique and his motives, while strange, make perfect sense for the sub-genre so many horror fans have grown to love. Olive Films has re-mastered the film and released it for the first time ever on Blu-ray, so be sure to pick up your copy today!
I give this film 3.5 rookie cop vomit covered shirts out of 5.
