not horrible nor great

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

A group of teenagers find themselves trapped in an enormous castle on prom night. The teens discover that there is no way out and try to figure out exactly why they are stuck in the place. Director Brenton Spencer relates the fascinatingly quirky premise at a hypnotically gradual pace, does a masterful job of creating a supremely creepy and surreal anything-can-happen nightmarish atmosphere, makes excellent use of the opulent location, and maintains an intriguing aura of mystery throughout. Robert C. Cooper's offbeat and inventive script keeps the viewer guessing for the most part about what's really going on and comes complete with a strong central moral message. Joel Wyner brings an inspired and energetic element of lip-smacking warped lunacy as sarcastic smartaleck demonic minion John Rutman. Kim Coates likewise hits it out of the ballpark with his extremely intense and scary portrayal of mean and menacing high school guidance counselor Mr. Carver. Moreover, there are solid contributions from Andrea Roth as the sweet and vulnerable Amy, Rino Romano as nice guy Evan, Zack Ward as impotent brute Kyle, Kelli Taylor as Kyle's fed-up girlfriend Laura, and Paul Popwich as the nerdy Greg. The brooding score by Paul Zaza and Peter Breiner further enhances the ominous and enigmatic mood. Curtis Petersen's slick cinematography makes nifty occasional use of stylized slow motion and offers a wealth of startling grotesque images. Recommended viewing for fans of bizarre fright fare.

I guess it must be me again as I can't understand why people do not like this film. Granted the budget is not very big but the premise is good and the acting is okay and the story is alright and I love the Goth location and even some of the camera work. So why don't people like it, not enough actors, not gory enough? not 'big' enough? I found 'John' to be a great demon, goading people and putting doubts into their mind. Feeding them on feelings of inadequacy. I loved his style a mix of Jack Nicholson, Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice and a touch of Christian Slater. Making his comedic demon both attractive and grotesque in the same breath. It's a pity that the 'geek' didn't get a chance be brave and overcome his desire to suicide, as I think that would have been a nice touch. Some may have been a little confused about the lack of continuity but that was part of the time out of time idea. And even though this was set in 1993 I feel that it does stand the test of time. It may not be everyones taste in horror viewing and so you may not agree. You can probably pick it up as a weekly now and so watch it. You can always throw the popcorn and boo at me instead. Cheers Furdion

I had the pleasure of working on this dog of a movie. I was one of the talent(?) drivers (really just drove around Toronto in the middle of the night buying cigarettes for the grips). Kim Cotes was a nice guy as was Joel Wyner. He actually replaced the legendary Corey Haim who was fired because the producers thought he was a screw-up and on drugs. He seemed okay to me. I think he was pretty sober at that point. We shot a few days with Haim before they booted him.I remember the producers during the shoot talking about all these fantastic morphing effects they were going to add in post that would really make the movie stand out. I think they spent about $1.98 on effects.Robbie Cooper (as he was known at York University) went on to write other stuff and created the Stargate TV franchise.

I have no idea why this film and me get along but it's one of my favorites. I love the storyline. It's unique and has a powerful underlying moral factor. Basic storyline is focused around 2 couples and a completely physco school counselor. At senior prom the clock stops entrapping them in an alternate reality. They have to learn to face their fears or they will never get out. This movie deals with peer pressure sex and rape. This is the movie I had to stop and rewind the credits. I couldn't believe that little "Moody" grew up so gorgeous. I have a thing for red heads and Zach Ward is one of those that I would watch in anything. Great movie Great cast!