#24 - Deathdream (1974)
(dir. Bob Clark)
As the Brooks family sits down to dinner, a knock on the door brings the worst news they can imagine - their son Andy has been killed in action in Vietnam. They begin to grieve, but later that same night Andy suddenly returns home. At first they are convinced that the news of his death was simply some kind of clerical error, but soon realize that he has come back... changed.
This is a real classic that deserves to be better known than it is. Being a low budget film from the early 70's, it doesn't always look pretty (especially some of nighttime scenes) and the acting from some of the supporting cast isn't great, but despite being a little rough around the edges this is a really excellent film. Its anti-war themes are not subtle - the young men shipped off to Vietnam are either getting killed or are coming back as zombies.
I definitely highly recommend this one. I'd even go as far as to say that this is essential viewing for fans of classic horror films. It came out in the same year as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Black Christmas (also directed by Bob Clark!), and I think it deserves to be remembered just as fondly as those two.
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