Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

I'm Dangerous Tonight Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 17, 2022

Tobe Hooper's "I'm Dangerous Tonight" (1990) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include new program with director of photography Levie Isaacks; new program with actress Dee Wallace; new audio commentary recorded by filmmaker/cult historian Michael Varrati; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Have you heard of Henri Desfontaines’ film Belphegor (1927)? If you are a horror aficionado and Belphegor has never appeared on your radar, you should track down a copy of it because it has spawned a lot of ‘original’ ideas for various horror films that you like. In 1965, Desfontaines’ film inspired a wonderful French TV series, while in 2001 Jean-Paul Salome produced a decent remake of it, and they are both worth seeing as well. Who or what is Belphegor? It is an ancient phantom that is transported and accidentally unleashed in the Louvre, where it possesses the bodies of unsuspecting visitors, usually beautiful women, and causes all kinds of serious problems.

I don’t know if Tobe Hooper had seen Belphegor, but his made-for-TV film I’m Dangerous Tonight very much feels like a distant North American relative of it. Interestingly, even though it was done with a vastly bigger budget, Salome’s remake also seems related to I’m Dangerous Tonight, particularly in its overlapping of horror and erotica. How does this even make any sense since Salome’s remake came out quite a few years after I’m Dangerous Tonight? Well, the original material for I’m Dangerous Tonight emerged from a story written by Cornell Woolrich and published in 1937. Belphegor was inspired by Arthur Bernede’s classic novel, which was published in 1927. Do you recall what other classic horror films have Bernede’s name attached to them? The two Judex films -- Louis Feuillade's original 1916 film, and George Franju’s 1963 remake. So, it would appear that right around the 1920s and 1930s writers were producing horror material that directors found very, very attractive.

But why?

The answer to this question reveals why so many horror films that were made between the 1920s and 1940s were eventually either remade or used as blueprints for other similar genre films. The material that inspired these original films was exotic but contemporary as well, which is why it became perfect for ambitious directors with great imagination. For example, Feuillade’s classic Les Vampires (1915) became a sensation precisely because it mixed exotic old and exciting new contemporary material. A conventional vampire film from the same era would have been content only with the exotic old material.

Even though Hooper directed I’m Dangerous Tonight many decades later, the blending of exotic and contemporary material in it is very similar to the one that occurs in Belphegor and Les Vampires. In I’m Dangerous Tonight, an ancient sacrificial casket is transported to a museum where a curious professor opens it and unleashes an evil ancient force. Much like Belphegor, this ancient force, which resides in a stunning piece of silky red garment, begins possessing the bodies of beautiful women, and soon after all hell breaks loose. (There are a couple of exceptions, but the force’s preference for the female body quickly becomes quite obvious).

Unfortunately, I’m Dangerous Tonight fails to produce any even remotely exciting thrills. Once the red garment is transformed into a beautiful and very sexy red dress, the screenplay moves it through a couple of banal situations where the possessed women go on a killing spree and the ancient force is once again contained. Considering that Hooper directed I’m Dangerous Tonight for TV, perhaps this isn’t too surprising, but its opening is quite promising and for a while it even looks like there is a decent buildup underway.

The cast was right for an exciting thriller, too. Madchen Amick, Corey Parker, Daisy Hall, Mary Frann, Dee Wallace, R. Lee Ermey, Jason Brooks, and Anthony Perkins spend quite a bit of time in front of Hooper’s camera. Sadly, their talents are completely wasted.

I'm Dangerous Tonight Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, I'm Dangerous Tonight arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from a very, very beautiful exclusive new 2K master. To be honest, excluding a few white nicks that pop up here and there, it met and often exceeded all expectations that I had. I thought that delineation, clarity, and depth were simply terrific. On my system, density levels and fluidity were great, too. What impressed me the most, however, was the excellent color grading because it gives the film exactly the type of attractive and authentic organic appearance you would expect an early '90s TV project to have. Image stability is excellent. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

I'm Dangerous Tonight Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

Nicholas Pike's soundtrack produces quite a few very effective contrasts, which surprised me a bit. The lossless track easily handles all of the soundtrack's unique strengths, so expect plenty of variety from your speakers. The dialog is always clean, clear, and very easy to follow. There are no encoding anomalies to report in our review.

I'm Dangerous Tonight Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Video Trailer - a vintage VHS trailer for I'm Dangerous Tonight. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• A Dress to Bring Out the Devil in You - presented here is an exclusive new video essay by filmmaker and programmer Chris O'Neil. In English, not subtitled. (19 min).

• Making I'm Dangerous Tonight - presented here is a collection of raw footage shot on the set of I'm Dangerous Tonight. It can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by the film's videographer Stan Giesea and filmmaker Michael Felsher. In English, not subtitled. (48 min).

• Seeing Red: Interview with Director of Photography Levie Isaacks - in this exclusive new program, director of photography Levie Isaacks discusses his professional relationship with Tobe Hooper and their collaboration on I'm Dangerous Tonight. In English, not subtitled. (12 min).

• Devil in a Red Dress: Interview with Actress Dee Wallace - in this exclusive new program, actress Dee Wallace discusses her working philosophy and recalls how she became involved with I'm Dangerous Tonight. Mrs. Wallace also discusses Tobe Hooper's working methods. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by filmmaker/cult historian Michael Varrati. There is plenty of information about the conception of the film and its horror identity, the characterizations, and the type of thrills it produces. I thought that it was a very good commentary, though I don't share Mr. Varrati's enthusiasm for the film.

• Commentary Two - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by Kristopher Woofter and Will Dodson, editors of American Twilight: The Cinema of Tobe Hooper. The commentary covers a wide range of topics, from the film's TV premiere to the individual contributions/characterization work of various actors to Tobe Hooper's body of work.

I'm Dangerous Tonight Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Tobe Hooper would have delivered much better thrills if I'm Dangerous Tonight was a conventional feature film, not a made-for-TV film. Initially, it reminded me of Belphegor, which blends precisely the type of exotic and contemporary material that Cornell Woolrich's story provided, but by the time the red dress switched owners I knew that it will simply rehash several overused cliches. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from a very beautiful new 2K master and has a surprisingly good selection of exclusive new bonus features.