**Potential Spoilers**
Too long has passed since my last horror movie review so without further ado here is my review of The Beast Within (1982). Having not previously known of this movie I was intrigued by it's setting, the "deep south" of America, and by the plot summary. I have a favourable bias for films set in the Southern states, I think it's partly because of the Southern females accent. My curiosity piqued I had to watch it, it was not what I had expected at all, not neccessarily a bad thing, yet all I was left feeling was ambivalence.
The opening scene of the movie takes place in 1964, a just married couple are driving through Mississippi when their car gets stuck off road. The male, Eli, goes to get a tow truck from a nearby garage leaving his wife, Caroline, in the car. She is soon attacked by some sort of creature that rapes her. Seventeen years later Michael, the son born as a result of the attack, is dying in hospital but the doctors are at a loss as to what is wrong with him. They must travel back to the town where all those years ago Caroline was attacked in the hope of finding the medical records of the attacker. As they try to untangle the web of deceit within the town, back in the hospital Michael has something within him that has awakened, calling him to also go the town, possessing him, changing him. The rest of the plot revolves around the dynamic of the parents attempt to understand what is happening to Michael, unravel the towns secrets and why people are getting murdered in such gruesome fashion.
On a technical level the movie is generally quite good. The acting is generally of a good standard, with the parents of Michael putting in a good performance. The dialogue is good, natural, without ever being anything memorable. The cinematography was good also, again without giving us any stand out moments, with the possible exception of the ending, Perhaps the strength of the movie is, however, to be found in the special effects, particularly with regard to the kills and Michael's changes towards the latter part of the movie. My major problem with the movie was the plot seemed too muddled, whilst the pacing of the movie was to slow leading to the middle of the movie seeming to drag, at least for me that was my impression. I can't help but feel the movie was revisiting the social themes of the 1960s, that is, the issue of race within America and the conflicts that arose but like most movies, it is up to you to interpret it as you will.
(5 out of 10)
Summary: by no means a bad movie but certainly not that memorable.