Thanks for the memories!

best movie i've ever seen.

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

Between an unfaithful wife, children who will not leave him alone and a producer who keeps reminding him of impending deadlines, penning a new script proves challenging for an esteemed horror screenwriter in this Canadian oddity. The editing design takes a bit of getting to used to with the film every so often cutting away from the on-screen action to horror episodes ranging from a blood shower to a woman burned by her grandchildren to an evil goat. As the movie progresses though, it becomes clear that these cutaways are reflective of his thought process and how he is constantly haunted by the things that he has written about, especially at a university conference where students tell him off for "peddling degenerate stuff". This leads to some fascinating discussions as the writer claims that horror is "a way of identifying with things that we might otherwise never identify with". Intriguing as 'Deadline' might sound, it is not the easiest film to warm to, unusual editing aside. None of the characters are particularly sympathetic, especially not the arrogant lead actress in his most recent film and his selfish wife; he is not exactly a model parent either though, and it is at times hard to care what happens to him. The film is, however, quite encapsulating when focused on the horror ideas that haunt him, and what happens to his daughter late in the piece injects much food for thought.

Stephen Lesse is a man with dark troubles. A noted horror author and screenwriter, he finds himself hating his work, trying to come up with something more worthy whilst grappling with writers block, a grasping producer and shrill lush of a wife. Something's got to give, and give it does…Deadline sets its stall early on, strained family breakfast giving way to bloody fantasy, and the film sticks to this template, spiralling dysfunction shot through with grisly gore (we're talking some good gross blood and guts stuff here) from the imagination of our protagonist. Its oppressive, truly "feel-bad" stuff, mostly because almost every character is selfish and deeply flawed, but also in the dim view cast on the very genre and mindset of horror, something guaranteed to unsettle and even irritate fans. Sturdy performances keep a tight grip on the audience, there is something of the TV film about the acting, but in the best sort of way, dead serious and committed. Stephen Young essays convincing inner turmoil roiling inside a bitter and hard to like man, Sharon Masters excels at the edge of collapse as his wife, whilst Marvin Golhar brings bleakly amusing oily cynicism as Lesse's producer. Deadline isn't all about dark drama though, it's one of the few films of its time that unsettles by force of its nastiness rather than just atmosphere and anticipation. Few movies I have come across evoke so nicely at times the unhinged feel of the grimier end of pulp horror fiction, the slimy levels from which one can look up and consider the likes of Stephen King novels paragons of literary and moral virtue. Now clichéd ideas worked around nuns, children and at one point a goat are mined for maximum grim effect and the key notion of one of Lesse's novels that gets the film moving into its darkest realms is a concept both truly grotesque (disturbingly so) and somewhat pointless. Which I guess is sort of the point that the film appears to be making on the horror genre, that it's a breeding ground for mindlessly horrifying images that do nothing but corrupt. Its not a view I agree with in anyway and I may be overstating the films intentions (it is a bit muddled), but the abrasive nature of it gives it an uncommon kick. Apart from the moral dimension, the film is interesting just for its look at the breakdown of an artist and the assorted pressures and compromises faced, something that may well have been personal to writer/director Mario Azzopardi. A leading light of cinema and theatre in his native Malta, Deadline was his first English language production, made in Canada with the help of tax shelter for film-makers. It is therefore low budget, and the gorier scenes may well have been added at the behest of the producers (one of them really does jar, you'll see which one), making Deadline a film that appears to reference its own reality in fairly caustic fashion. Apart from his decent handling of the actors and darkly interesting writing Azzopardi has a sure handling of things throughout, suitably suspenseful or intense when needed. Particularly fine is a finale of inspired delirium, very impressive stuff. The film could have done with a shade more coherency and tighter development of its characters and themes, it also misses a trick in not connecting characters and themes closer to its gore sequences. Things are a tad messy then and depressing too, I perhaps could have done with more shading to the characters, perhaps even a little relief? Still, this is rather an ace work on the whole and richly recommended.

This is perhaps my favorite horror film of all time, the relentless gloom and the downward sparrow of all the characters lives within it. Leave you the viewer feeling exhausted , this strain on your emotions leave you feeling venerable. Through out this we are exposed to a fair amount of random violence. The main character Steven Lessey who is a successful writer that makes his living off writing horror novels , that have good fortune in Hollywood. One occasion shows him doing a questions and answer's at a university , upon showing a clip for his new film , after the audience witness the morbid acts of some of his art. They use it against him, pointing there fingers and asking him how dare he create this senseless violence. Steven tries to justify the metaphors that are the under layer of his work, but as the audience pounces more on him, we witness he has no solid answer's.It is soon after this, that his art starts to invade his daily life. Being frustrated and under pressure, he takes on a change . One that creates a big weight for all those around him. The children are caught in the middle of all this, and it is very interesting in there part of Steven's fall into the gutter.I feel that there is so much more I could say about this film, but at the same time , I would risk the chance of giving those who have not viewed it spoilers. So I would rather comment on your need to view this film, if you haven't because it truly is one of the best horror films that I have ever seen. It takes you for a ride and it grips hard the whole time.

This Canadian film is often sold as a horror film but it is actually a twisted drama. Stephen Young stars as Steven Lessey, a successful author and screenwriter who is having a bad case of writer's block. The works he has profited from don't satisfy him now and he is searching for "true horror" to write about. As the film progresses, his personal life begins to unravel alongside a series of hallucinations.DEADLINE is a mixed bag. Its biggest flaw is that there are no likable characters in the film. Young's character is a jerk and his wife is just as bad. I couldn't care less what happens to these self centered people. Director Mario Azzopardi also makes sure to distance mainstream audiences by filling the scenes from Lessey's head with extremely graphic gore. It is well done but probably sends the audiences looking for a drama running. However, the film does make some interesting statements on the influence of violence in cinema and some of the hallucination scenes are truly haunting. Cindy Hinds, the young girl from Cronenberg's THE BROOD, co-stars as Lessey's daughter.