Blu-Ray Review // Night School [1981] (Vinegar Syndrome)

https://vinegarsyndrome.com/collections/frontpage/products/night-school 

One of the biggest things about movies is that there have been a lot of them over the years and once we entered the age of streaming it feels like some of them that might not be easily found on streaming got left behind.   Seeing films like this on Blu-Ray from Vinegar Syndrome is like walking into a thrift store, finding some VHS of a movie I've never heard of before and just knowing that I have to see it.  This is also the closest it gets right nowt to that feeling of walking into your local movie rental place and picking up a VHS to take home and watch.

Right away this movie is being scanned and restored into 4K UHD via its original 35mm camera negative, so that also gives it a better look and audio than if I had found it at Goodwill on VHS.  I feel like, for true lovers of film, Vinegar Syndrome is doing this service to the extent that they wouldn't just take any old film from the past and put it onto Blu-Ray like this- it has to be something special.  If Vinegar Syndrome is willing to give a film this treatment, I am willing to watch it because I feel like they know what they're doing.

"Night School" is an interesting film because based on the title it seems like it should be a comedy where people take classes at night after work, kind of like the show "Community".   What this film is actually about though is a killer who is on the loose and the mystery of who it is and where they will strike next.  The fact that this person kills sort of around a school makes sense for the title, but it would've perhaps been a more descriptive title if it was "Night Killer" or something to that effect.

The killer is hidden by a motorcycle helmet and the way that they dress also makes it feel like it could be anyone.  The trademark of this killer is decapitating women and then leaving their heads in water which happens to be nearby.    The reasons why this all happens plays out rather nicely, and at the same time the ways in which these victims are killed and where their heads can end up makes it even more of a "How far will this go" type of feeling while watching the film.

During this film, even the detective who is trying to solve this case, mentions at one point that people don't just go around killing without reason.   That said, I believe the idea behind these murder mystery type movies is the why as much as the who.  Yes, you want the killer to make sense.  After about an hour into the movie, I knew we had already likely met the killer because they're not just going to pull some random character out of thing air.   But the reason behind the killing also needs to be solid and the way that this all comes together just fits so perfectly.

With two different commentary tracks and a number of different interviews as well, if you have never heard of the movie "Night School" before this might be not only your way of first seeing it, but your way of finding out all you've ever wanted to know about what is sure to become a cult classic as well.