Final exam (1981) Poster
Title: Final Exam
Release Date: June 5th, 1981
Rated: R
Tagline: "Some may pass the Test, God Help the Rest."
Budget: $60,000
Genre: Slasher, Thriller, Comedy
Final Exam (1981) a school campus setting slasher film... The film has little to no gore or special effects and a thin plot, its regarded as a 'Cash-Grab' Slasher attempt during the golden age craze of Slashers in the early 80s. It features a Serial Killer with no motive, preying upon the only students on campus preparing for Mid-Term exams.
Plot[]
Late at night, two college students (Carol Capka and Shannon Norfleet) are busy making out in a parked convertible. Ignoring the girl's frequent objections, her boyfriend pushes on. Outside, a shadowy madman jumps on top of the car, slicing his way through the fabric roof. Reaching inside, the lunatic grabs the young man and pulls him up and out onto the car's hood. Brandishing a blade, the killer stabs the poor man to death.
Sleepy Lanier College is nearing the end of Final Exam week, a frenzied semester cap time of grades, goodbyes and pranks. As the students prepare for their tests as well as the coming vacation break, little do they suspect a psycho in a black van is stalking them one by one. Plain but amiable Courtney (Cecile Bagdadi) is completing her exams and studying hard. Averse to hitting the books, her roommate Lisa (DeAnna Robbins) is busy packing and getting back to the city.
Meanwhile, Gamma Delta fraternity pledge Gary (Terry W. Farren) has pinned his girlfriend Janet (Sherry Willis-Burch)...and paid for it by being treed by his brothers, stripped to his briefs, awash in shaving cream and ice cubes shoved down his underwear. As night falls on Lanier, a freezing Gary hopes his beloved Janet will free him from his humiliation. Untied from the tree by an unknown figure, Gary breathes a sigh of relief...and is then stabbed to death on quadrangle lawn.
Better late than never, a playful Janet comes to rescue her man, but discovers no Gary. Seeing a dark figure nearby, Janet mistakes the killer for Gary and runs to meet him. The murderer grabs the girl into the shadows. Energetic but dim witted Gamma brother Wildman (Ralph Brown) is on the prowl for pain pills his frat can sell on the open market, a search that's led him to the darkened campus gymnasium. Having scored the booty, Wildman heads home. But before he can leave, the hulking killer confronts the defenseless chap and corners him in the school weight room. There, Wildman meets his grisly end via 'strangulation by weights.'
Soon enough, Mark (John Fallon) finds his buddy Wildman dead in the locker room, El Wildo's body stuffed inside a locker compartment. But the killer isn't far behind and chases Mark to the school's electrical building. Surprising Mark from inside an empty barrel, the slasher stabs the studen repeatedly. Radish (Joel S. Rice) is Lanier's uncontested nerd, a book smart twerp fascinated by serial killers, mass murderers...and Courtney. This night, as he sets about on a thorough inventory of the campus gym equipment, he discovers Mark's bloodied body and immediately calls the police. But due to ongoing pranks from the Gamma house, the authorities are disbelieving and unamused.
Deciding to warn his secret love about the menacing stalker, Radish runs back to Courtney's dorm and straight to the girl's room, where the killer is waiting for the hapless geek. Returning to her studies after a Pepsi break, Courtney is surprised to find Radish's head sticking through her splintered door...and even more shocked to discover it isn't a joke. Frightened, Courtney tries to rouse help from a now abandoned dorm...indeed, the campus is desolate.
Except for Lisa. Waiting for her lover Charlie in the conservatory, Lisa plays the piano and then decides to strip down and wait for beau au natural. The killer enters the room and stabs lovely Lisa to death. Courtney has now made her way to the conservatory and hears music from the piano room. But opening the door reveals the killer; Courtney runs for her life straight to the cafeteria.
There, she grabs a knife and tries to call the police. No luck. Using the automatic food chute, the killer locates Courtney in the kitchen. The poor girl briefly manages to lock the psycho in the kitchen storage room, but forgets to lock a second door. The chase then continues throughout the school.
Outside in the quad, Courtney wanders frantically before finally seeking refuge in the campus tower. But the killer isn't far behind. Inside, the two climb story after story. Lanier's sports coach (Jerry Rushing) has arrived for a hunting date with campus security guard Mitch (R.C Nanney). Courtney screams for help from the tower window.
The coach arrives and (armed with a bow) shoots the killer with an arrow. Brazenly, the psycho grabs the arrow and returns it to the coach's chest, flooring the would be samaritan. Now alone, Courtney and the killer must battle for survival.The killer returns to kill Courtney but she stabs him to death , she goes outside and sits on the steps and begins to cry over the loss of her friends. - from wiki
Credits[]
| Directed by | Jimmy Huston |
|---|---|
| Produced by | James McNamara Perry Katz |
| Written by | Jimmy Huston |
| Music by | Gary S. Scott |
| Cinematography | Darrell Catchart |
| Editing by | John A. O'Connor |
| Distributed by | AVCO Embassy Pictures
Motion Picture Marketing |
| Release date(s) | June 5, 1981 |
| Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
- Cecile Bagdadi as Courtney
- Joel S. Rice as Radish
- Ralph Brown as Wildman Chambers
- DeAnna Robbins as Lisa
- Sherry Willis-Burch as Janet McArdle
- John Fallon as Mark
- Terry W. Farren as Gary
- Timothy L. Raynor as Killer
- Sam Kilman as Sheriff Quentin
- Don Hepner as Dr. Charlie Reynolds
- Mary Ellen Withers as Elizabeth
- Jerry Rushing as Coach
- Shannon Norfleet as Boy In Car
- Carol Capka as Girl In Car
- R.C. Nanney as Mitch
- ==Notes==
- Mentioned by Randy Meeks in Scream 2 (1997) right before his death scene.
- BCI released this film on DVD in September 2008. It is now out of print.
- Ranked in some 80s slasher fanboys 'Top 10'
- Little to no gore, and the comedy isnt that funny.
- Even though its well criticized among slasher fans, it still has a semi-cult Fanbase.
- The Villain is just a random dirfting Serial Killer with No Motives, has no dialogue, No mask, No Identitdy.
- ==Reviews==
Final Exam (1981) review
Slasher Fan giving favorable review.
Final Exam (1981) 80s slasher Review RANT
Negative Review on Final exam