Los Angeles is the serial capital of the world. It takes a special "twist" to capture headlines in a city where, by autumn 1983, 5 random slayers were at large and killing independently of one another. In the hot summer months of 1985, reporters found their twist and filled front pages with accounts of the sinister "Night Stalker,"a sadistic home invader with a preference for unlocked windows and a taste for savage mutilation.
Acquaintances described Ramirez as an ardent Satanist and long time drug abuser, obsessed with the mock-satanic rock group AC/DC. According to reports Ramirez had adopted one of the group's songs: "Night Prowler"-as his own personal anthem, playing it repeatedly, sometimes for hours on end. They have a scene in this film showing just that and the late great Alma Beltran has the unfortunate pleasure of being a neighbor that lives right next door in the apartment complex and goes over one night and knocks on the door and tells him to either lower the music or she's going to call the cops. He quickly just turns it off and Beltran runs back to her apartment completely scared and locks the door. Ramirez gets up and walks in the hallway and heads out into the night. Nice little scary scene.
The great Gregory Cruz plays Richard Ramirez (The Night Stalker) (as Gregory Norman Cruz). While he is one of my favorite actors. (he reminds me of a more intense & meaner version of Lou Diamond Phillips)I feel that there were 2 other actors they could have had in this role. Don't get me wrong, Cruz did a good job with his sinister and mean look that he has, but to me either the great Billy Drago or the great Jeff Kober could have done a just as great or even better portrayal of Ramirez. I'm thinking that neither Drago or Kober did not want to be type-cast or associated with such a despicable character and the fact that Ramirez is never truly seen till the last 1/2 hour of the film makes it like ,why bother?
I enjoyed the ending of this film because Cruz as Ramirez is finally seen and his is in every scene for the last half hour of what's left of the film. An all-points bulletin was issued and his mug shots were broadcast on TV and plastered on the front page of the newspaper and was seen by almost everyone right away. He was captured by civilians in East Los Angeles mobbed and beaten as he tried to steal a car. The Police arrived just in time to save his life. That's too bad. That was the end he truly deserved. Being punished by the very same people he caused such a terror to.
Acquaintances described Ramirez as an ardent Satanist and long time drug abuser, obsessed with the mock-satanic rock group AC/DC. According to reports Ramirez had adopted one of the group's songs: "Night Prowler"-as his own personal anthem, playing it repeatedly, sometimes for hours on end. They have a scene in this film showing just that and the late great Alma Beltran has the unfortunate pleasure of being a neighbor that lives right next door in the apartment complex and goes over one night and knocks on the door and tells him to either lower the music or she's going to call the cops. He quickly just turns it off and Beltran runs back to her apartment completely scared and locks the door. Ramirez gets up and walks in the hallway and heads out into the night. Nice little scary scene.
The great Gregory Cruz plays Richard Ramirez (The Night Stalker) (as Gregory Norman Cruz). While he is one of my favorite actors. (he reminds me of a more intense & meaner version of Lou Diamond Phillips)I feel that there were 2 other actors they could have had in this role. Don't get me wrong, Cruz did a good job with his sinister and mean look that he has, but to me either the great Billy Drago or the great Jeff Kober could have done a just as great or even better portrayal of Ramirez. I'm thinking that neither Drago or Kober did not want to be type-cast or associated with such a despicable character and the fact that Ramirez is never truly seen till the last 1/2 hour of the film makes it like ,why bother?
I enjoyed the ending of this film because Cruz as Ramirez is finally seen and his is in every scene for the last half hour of what's left of the film. An all-points bulletin was issued and his mug shots were broadcast on TV and plastered on the front page of the newspaper and was seen by almost everyone right away. He was captured by civilians in East Los Angeles mobbed and beaten as he tried to steal a car. The Police arrived just in time to save his life. That's too bad. That was the end he truly deserved. Being punished by the very same people he caused such a terror to.