Rolfe Kanefsky's newest horror movie, NIGHTMARE MAN, is one of his best. The story revolves around a woman (Blythe Metz of JACQUELINE HYDE) who is terrorized in her dreams by a masked assailant. When she pulls off the demon mask he's wearing-his real face turns out to be even more terrifying. She's convinced that this creature lives inside of her and is trying to get out. Her husband thinks she's crazy.
One night she and her husband run out of gas on a mountain road-and he tells her to stay with the car while he goes and finds a gas station. While she waits this "Nightmare Man" appears and attacks her. It's not just her imagination-this is a real creature out to get her. She fights it off and takes refuge at a nearby house, where a bunch of friends, led by Tiffany Shepis, is spending the weekend. One of the guys wears a "There's Nothing Out There" T-shirt, a nod to Kanefsky's first feature.
Is this woman really crazy? Or is there indeed a demonic force out to get her?
The twists in the script work well, particularly the ending, in no small part due to the performances of the two leading ladies, Metz and Shepis. The character that Blythe Metz portrays is the polar opposite of the one she portrayed in Kanefsky's HYDE movie and she pulls it off well. This also features one of Shepis' best performances to date.
NIGHTMARE MAN is everything a low-budget, independent horror movie should be-unique and entertaining.