Synopsis
When tragedy strikes his remarkable robot and the beautiful girl next door, lonely teenage genius Paul tries to save them by pushing technology beyond its known limits into a terrifying new realm.
Your Movie Library
Cast
- Matthew LabyorteauxPaul
- Kristy SwansonSamantha
- Michael SharrettTom
- Anne TwomeyJeannie
- Anne RamseyElvira
- Richard MarcusHarry
- Russ MarinDr. Johanson
- Lee PaulSgt. Volchek
- Andrew RopertoCarl
- Charles FleischerBB (voice)
- 75
The A.V. Club
Remains a mesmerizing time-capsule portrait of ’80s-era hopes and fears about computers. - 70
The New York Times
Deadly Friend is stylish and sardonic enough to offer horror fans some knowing laughs and a pleasant relief from shrieking. - 70
Variety
Pic has enough gore, suspense and requisite number of shocks to keep most hearts pounding through to the closing credits. - 60
Time Out
Although the prevailing tone is comic, there is plenty of grue and gore; the heart stops several times. This may be Craven at his crummiest, but the resulting sick still ranks higher than anything his imitators can come up with. - 60
We Got This Covered
The movie also deserves a watch because of the incoherent style. It’s like getting to see two films for one. If you’re in the mood to see a lighthearted movie about childhood and becoming an adult, it’s got you covered. And if you want a gory slasher film with plenty of dark humor, it has you covered there as well. - 50
Los Angeles Times
Craven remains a savvy storyteller -- and he still jolts us with a couple of hideous frights -- but this new film lacks the skin-crawling intensity of past Craven efforts. [14 Oct 1986] - 40
Washington Post
On the whole, Deadly Friend is a routine horror movie, poorly photographed (by old-time cinematographer Philip Lathrop) and poorly performed (with the exception of New York stage actress Anne Twomey, as Paul's mother). - 30
Film Threat
Deadly Friend hasn’t aged well. In fact, it’s quite crappy.