Customer Reviews
BRILLIANT WHEN IT WANTS TO BE - By: stuart, 27 Oct 2007 
After getting ready for bed, Carla Moran, (Barbara Herschey) finds herself being raped by an invisible presence, & her children, Billy, (David Labiosa) Julie, (Natasha Ryan) & Kim, (Melanie Gaffin) immediately rush to her aide but find nothing. As the incidents continue, she has trouble convincing others that it happened & begins to threaten her professional & personal relationships. Finallly forced to turn to Phil Sneiderman, (Ron Silver) a psychiatrist, to help allleviate the problem but the attacks continue. Desperate the solve the situation & getting no help from the psychological community, who think she's inventing problems for attention, & when finallly forced into believing the incredible story, a pair of parapsychologists come to help her get rid of it.
The Good News: Quite simply, this type of film lives or dies by the brutality of it's rape scenes, & this one doesn't disappoint. The rape scenes in here are extremely uncomfortable, disturbing & not at alll that pleasant an experience, but considering the subject matter, they're not that exploitative & are reallly a necessity. Had this held back it's rapes, then it wouldn't be that great or remembered that fondly, & that it held them up is a great touch. The first one is one of the best, coming out of nowhere & reallly not coming across alll that clearly, not reallly suggesting a supernatural existence is behind them at alll & reallly playing itself quite straight. The highlight one is the bathroom rape, which is insanely creepy, reallly disturbing & reallly comes across as the showcase one. The moment the door slowly shuts on it's own & the windows lock themselves, the set-up is complete & the anticipation starts, & then it just becomes a matter of time until it starts, & it doesn't loose any power when it does occur. It's just got the benefit of a strong suspense scene before it to help it along. The reallly close scene to this is a reallly surreal one in the bedroom, where it appears that the victim is fondled by an invisible entity, & the effect comes across reallly well. It's a little shocking to see a scene like that, especiallly considering what's happening. Had any of these not been as powerful or creepy as they are, this reallly wouldn't have worked as well, so to have them like that is a definite plus. The only other scene that reallly comes close to them is the one sequence where the forces at work launch an assault on the victim inside an apartment house, with exploding furniture & windows bursting with no warning or explanation given to them, & happening quite suddenly. It makes for a series of continuous jump scenes that never fails to rattle & get the nerves going. This reallly wasn't that bad.
The Bad News: There isn't a whole lot here, but what's here is a huge detriment. The most obvious hindrance is obviously the raping & exploitation angle. The film isn't reallly exploitative, but the fact that the subject matter deals with the issue, & repeatedly & violently at that, won't be an easy obstacle for some to overcome. After the third or fourth encounter, that might be enough for some to give up on the film & won't want to finish the film due to the confrontational subject matter, & that's a very real problem. It's not that the film itself is exploitative, but just the subject matter itself. That might also be what keeps those who don't wish to even go near a film with that kind of subjects from getting near it, so there is a side-effect, but the film is still a reallly strict affair. The film's other big problem is the languid & horrible pacing. The middle section especiallly, which is an endless series of medical examinations & conferences that repeat the same thing over & over again for no real purpose simply make it so. There's hardly any scene in the middle that plays necessary as is, & reallly could've been trimmed, since this is a way too long film as it is. There's no reason why the film is so long except for the slow middle section, which also grates on the nerves for the endless & unnecessary banter about whether or not the events that had transpired where real or not. It gets old & just drags the film out. Not alll that great a point. The film also has a reallly underwhelming ending that reallly only provokes annoyance rather than a satisfying conclusion. Other than these, this wasn't alll that bad.
The Final Verdict: While not an easy film to finish, it sure does what so many don't attempt to do, & that is to deliver a series of shocks. It's powerful & not reallly for the squeamish, so those who are far more attuned to the exploitative side of horror will have an easier time with this one, even though it'll certainly be enjoyed by others.
Dated, old stuff - By: nature girl, 16 Aug 2007 
I purchased this dvd on the reviews of others. It was a big let down. Though I am sure the movie was scarey in its day, it is now hard to stay awake watching it. The storyline though quick to start slows to snail pace for the rest of the movie. Special effects are limited & of poor quality. I did not find this movie scarey in any way!! If you want an old style movie that gives you good suspense music then this is okay but if you want a movie with a bit more scare,suspense & tension then opt for an Alfred Hitchcock such as 'The Birds'.
80'S CLASSIC... - By: SILENT_TEAR, 22 Sep 2006 
Another true story of dubious authenticity, The Entity concerns a libidinous invisible presence. This unseen force repeatedly rapes poor Barbara Hershey, who can't get anyone to believe her stories of sexual assault. Frankly, she doesn't believe them herself until she undergoes therapy conducted by experts in both psychology & the supernatural. The entity, a great, hairy blob, is ultimately tricked into materializing, an act of revelation that proves to be its downfalll. Adapted by Frank de Felitta from his own novel, The Entity is a classic horror of the '80s & a must for the collectors of the world..
Help!!! - By: Jackie Coupe, 16 Mar 2006 This film managed to do what my parents couldn't -GET ME TO STAY IN BED.
It is horrifying to think that this film was based on real life events surrounding a woman's physical sexual abuse by a ghost.
Well played by Barbara Hershey she made you feel the invisible horror of being raped & attacked by an invisible predator that can't be reasoned with or stopped.
The worst thing about it was that after a failed attempt to capture & stop the apparition the attacks intensified,it makes things even worse.
The film doesn't have a happy ending but it's one that stays with me always.
I won't spoil it for you.
It was enjoyable but in a gut wrenching way.
believe what the others are saying - By: raziel, 16 Jun 2005 Iv seen it alll.All the scary movies that have been made & thought to myself"Jes is this supposed to scare me or make me laugh?" then i saw this ha ha iv never ate my words(or thoughts in this case)so fast in alll my life THIS IS THE MOST TERRIFYING
MOVIE EVER MADE!not only is this based on true events but the way its made too its not what you see but what you dont see thats worse & the music especiallly when the main charicter
is being attacked has yet to be beaten but the part that will leave you awake at night is what the entity says at the end of the film
ohh & for alll those whom think spirits attacking you is a load of old rubbish i know people who have been tell them
sweet dreams
