The Burning(1981 film)

The Burningis a 1981 Americanteenslasher filmdirected byTony Maylam,and starringBrian Matthews,Leah Ayres,Brian Backer,Larry Joshua, and Lou David. Its plot follows asummer campcaretaker who is horribly burnt from a prank gone wrong, where he seeks vengeance at a nearby summer camp years later. The film marks the debuts of actorsJason Alexander,Fisher Stevens,andHolly Hunter.

The Burning
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Tony Maylam
Screenplay by	Bob Weinstein Peter Lawrence
Story by	Brad Grey Tony Maylam Harvey Weinstein
Produced by	Harvey Weinstein
Starring	Brian Matthews Leah Ayres Brian Backer Jason Alexander Larry Joshua Lou David
Cinematography	Harvey Harrison
Edited by	Jack Sholder
Music by	Rick Wakeman
Production companies	Cropsy Venture Miramax Films
Distributed by	Filmways Pictures
Release date	May 8, 1981(1981-05-08)
Running time	91 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1.5 million
Box office	$707,770 (United States/Canada)

Based on theNew Yorkurban legendof the Cropsey maniac, the screenplay was written byBob Weinsteinand Peter Lawrence, from a story conceived by producerHarvey Weinstein,Tony Maylam, andBrad Grey.Rick Wakeman,of theprogressive rockbandYes,composed the score.

The Burningwas theatrically released on May 8, 1981, byFilmways.Its critical reception was largely unfavorable, with many film critics deriding its similarities toFriday the 13thandFriday the 13th Part 2and its graphic violence. However, it has since become acult classicand received positive reappraisal from film critics.

Plot

One night at Camp Blackfoot, several campers pull a prank on Cropsy, the camp's alcoholic and abusive caretaker, by setting a worm-riddled skull with candles in the eye sockets next to his bed. When the caretaker is awakened by the campers banging on his window, he gets frightened by the skull and accidentally knocks it onto his bed, starting a fire. The flames reach a gas tank, which ignites Cropsy and his cabin. He runs outside, engulfed in flames, and stumbles down into a river as the boys flee. Despite his horrific injuries, Cropsy survives.

Five years later, Cropsy is released from the hospital despite dealing with failedskin graftsand wears a coat and hat to hide his disfigurement. A prostitute lures him to her apartment, where he stabs her with scissors in a fit of rage when she sees his burned face and rejects him. He then arms himself with a pair ofpruning shearsand sets out for another summer camp, Stonewater. The counselors and campers play softball there when a camper searching for a lost ball in the woods narrowly avoids Cropsy.

The following day, a camper named Alfred scares Sally as she steps out of the shower. Her screams bring the attention of counselors Michelle, Todd, Karen, and Eddy. Michelle is furious at Alfred and demands that he leave, but Todd talks to him. He learns that Alfred has no friends, is constantly bullied, and was merely pulling a prank on Sally to get back at her boyfriend, Glazer. Glazer confronts Alfred, but Todd gets him to back off, and the latter apologizes to Sally. Later that night, Alfred spots Cropsy outside the window of the boys cabin, but nobody believes him.

Todd and Michelle bring the campers on a canoe trip down Devil's Creek the following day. That night as they're all gathered around a campfire, Todd tells them the story about the legend of Cropsy; Eddy, wearing a mask and wielding a machete, sneaks up on the group to scare them and they all share a laugh after discovering it was just a prank. Afterwards, Karen and Eddy go to a lake toskinny dip.He becomes upset when she reconsiders having sex with him, and Karen leaves the lake to find her clothes have been scattered throughout the woods. As she collects her last item of clothing, Cropsy suddenly slashes her throat with his shears. The following day, Michelle finds both Karen and the canoes to be missing. Eddy, Fish, Woodstock, Diane, and Barbara search for the canoes on a makeshift raft. They spot one of the canoes and paddle to it, but Cropsy ambushes them by jumping out from the canoe once they've reached it and savagely murders them all with his shears.

That night, Glazer has sex with Sally in the woods but sufferspremature ejaculation.When he leaves to get matches for a campfire, Cropsy shoves his shears into Sally's chest. Glazer returns only for Cropsy to stab him through the throat and pin him to a tree. Alfred witnesses his death and wakes up Todd. He brings Todd to the site where it happened, but Todd is suddenly rendered unconscious by Cropsy, who then chases after Alfred. Meanwhile, Michelle finds the mutilated bodies on the makeshift raft and brings the remaining campers back to Camp Stonewater in order to ensure their safety and to contact the authorities.

Todd regains consciousness and chases after the killer with an axe. Cropsy grabs Alfred inside an abandoned mine shaft and pins him to a wall with his shears. Todd discovers Karen's body when Cropsy, who is now armed with a flamethrower, shows himself; as this happens, Todd begins to remember being involved with the prank that put Cropsy in the hospital five years earlier. He is attacked by Cropsy, who reveals his disfigurements, but Alfred frees himself to stab him with his own shears. Before they can leave, Cropsy reappears and Todd ultimately slams an axe into his face, killing him. Alfred then ignites his body with the flamethrower, and they make their way outside to Michelle, who brought the police with her, as Cropsy's body burns away.

At a campfire, a different group of campers is seen retelling the legend of Cropsy.

Cast

• Brian Matthewsas Todd
  • Keith Mandell as Young Todd
• Leah Ayresas Michelle
• Brian Backeras Alfred
• Lou David as Cropsy
• Larry Joshua as Glazer
• Jason Alexanderas Dave
• Ned Eisenbergas Eddy
• Carrick Glenn as Sally
• Carolyn Houlihanas Karen
• Fisher Stevensas Woodstock
• Shelley Bruce as Tiger
• Sarah Chodoff as Barbara
• Bonnie Deroski as Marnie
• Holly Hunteras Sophie
• Kevi Kendall as Diane
• J.R. McKechnie as Fish
• George Parry as Alan
• Ame Segull as Rhoda
• Jeff De Hart as Supervisor
• Bruce Kluger as Rod
• Jerry McGee as Intern
• Mansoor Najeeullah as Orderly
• Willie Realeas Paul
• John Roach as Snoop
• K.C. Townsend as Hooker
• John Tripp as Camp Counselor
• James Van Verth as Jamie
• Therese Morreale as Girl Playing Softball

Production

Conception

In 1980,Harvey Weinsteinwas desperate to break into the movie business. Weinstein and producing partnerMichael Cohlrecognized the success oflow-budgethorror films such asThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre(1974) andHalloween(1978), and began swapping horror stories. Having heard stories about theCropsylegend when he was a young camper in upstateNew York,Weinstein brought the idea to Cohl, who loved it.

The project was initiated before the popularity ofSean S. Cunningham'ssleeper hitFriday the 13th(1980), with Harvey Weinstein creating a five-page treatment in 1979 under the title "The Cropsy Maniac" and registering it in April 1980, a full month before Cunningham's film was released. Coincidentally, at the same time, director Joseph Ellison also had a film in pre-production under the title "The Burning", but changed the name toDon't Go in the House(1980) to avoid confusion with Weinstein's film. The production also bore similarities to another slasher movie in pre-production, a film that would become known asMadman(1982). In summer 1980, during a casting call forMadman,one of the actresses commented that her boyfriend was acting inThe Burning.This promptedMadmanto change its entire premise, which was built around the Cropsy legend. This led to a delay in its filming until October 1980, which proved costly as it didn't receive a theatrical release until January 1982. The over-saturation of genre films competing with each other was one of the side-effects of the early 1980s slasher boom.

Cohl toldVarietythat he, Weinstein and producer Corky Burger took an early version of the script to the 1980Cannes Film Festival,where it was well received, although they rejected initial six-figure offers, hoping to land more money once the film had been shot. This was a similar approach to howFriday the 13thhad earned distribution withParamount Pictures.

British directorTony Maylam,known forrock musicdocumentariesin the 1970s, was hired asThe Burning's director in summer 1980. Maylam had met Weinstein and Burger while the producers worked as rock promoters.

During his discussion withfilm criticAlan Jones on theaudio commentaryofMGM'sDVD,Maylam said that once he came on board things moved very quickly. The screenplay was written in just six weeks and was sculpted to conform to the emerging genre conventions of the time. As the film takes place mostly outside and is set in summer, the production had a small window of opportunity in which to make the film or it risked having to wait until the following year. Knowing that the slasher craze would not last forever, and wanting to get their film released before it fizzled out, the producers rushed into production. The screenplay was written by Peter Lawrence and Harvey's brotherBob Weinstein.Again, reflecting an understanding of slasher movie conventions of the time, the script featured a murder every ten minutes in the script. It was Maylam's idea to make gardening shears Cropsy's weapon of choice.

The film originally had a different ending. A script dated July 6, 1980 shifted the location to one much more in keeping with a summer camp slasher. Originally, the showdown was to take place in a boathouse. Another big change is that Todd ends up as the "final boy"rather than as the heroic adult, and Alfred is killed by Cropsy. Other changes included an excised character named Alan, who was to be the love interest for Tiger. This version also ends with a campfire scene, but the last line is different:"...And every year he seeks revenge for the terrible things those kids did to him... every year he kills!"

The production company becameMiramax,named after Harvey and Bob Weinstein's parents, Miriam and Max, who helped fund the picture. The budget is reported to have been between $500,000 and $1.5 million, although the latter is more often cited. Cohl admitted that the relatively inexperienced filmmakers underestimated production costs, which caused the movie to go over budget.

Casting

Casting took place in New York in the spring of 1980, and Maylam met most of the cast in person. There was a remarkably quick turnaround, as the start date for filming was August 18, 1980 (although some shooting may have taken place prior to this date).Brian MatthewsandLeah Ayreswere cast first. Ayres already had a successful small screen career. Maylam reportedly insisted that Matthews dye his hair brown, as he did not think he would look macho enough with blonde hair.Larry Joshuawas cast as one of the kids at the camp, even though he was older in real life than either Matthews or Ayres. Like most of the cast, it was his first role, but led to a long and successful career, mostly on the small screen. The rest of the cast was hired during a series of auditions. For some of the soon-to-be-stars, such asHolly Hunter,Jason Alexander,andFisher Stevens,The Burningwas their first big screen appearance.

The Weinsteins and Maylam also secured the services of make-up supremoTom Savini,who they flew toPittsburghto meet. Savini had worked on films such asDawn of the Dead(1978),Friday the 13th(1980),Maniac(1980), andEyes of a Stranger(1981). Savini turned down the chance to work onFriday the 13th Part 2(1981), ostensibly because he could not understand the logic thatJasonwas fully grown and was now the killer, as well as what he described as "miscommunications" with the film's backers. He also said that he liked the script forThe Burningmore.

Filming

The Burningwas shot in the late summer of 1980 aroundBuffaloandNorth Tonawanda, New York.Much of the filming took place in and around existing summer camps to give it an authentic look while keeping costs down. The cast wore their own clothes throughout the production. Many of the cast were local to the New York area and were aware of the Cropsy legend.

In the interview on the MGM DVD, Savini recalls that the cast were literally queuing up to find out how they would die, making him feel like an assassin. He was very hands-on with the production, though he did not have much time to put together the special effects. He only had three or four days to make the Cropsy make-up – the mask was created in his dressing room in-between special effects duties elsewhere on the film. InGrande Illusions,his first book on his life as a special effects guru, Savini says he based the look of Cropsy on a burnt beggar he had seen as a kid in Pittsburgh, as well as textbooks on burn victims. Due to time constraints, the resulting mask was more of a melt than a burn. Savini was pleased enough with what he had done that he subsequently agreed to go on a publicity tour for the film.

Savini expanded on hisFriday the 13thexperience for his work onThe Burning.The scene where a victim has her throat cut by Cropsy with the shears was similar in execution to the demise of the hitchhiker in the earlier film. Cropsy's demise, when the axe smashes into his face, is an almost identical effect to a scene inFriday the 13th.

The mine system was chosen for the climactic battle between Cropsy and Todd. As an earlier script showed, it was originally meant to be a boat house at the camp, but this was switched to a cave system. Indeed, another subsequent version of the script has a scene in Cropsy's lair, where he looks over old newspaper clippings. Maylam says it was changed again to the copper mine because they found bats roosting in the boat house and considered it unsafe.

Maylam has recalled that Carolyn Houlihan, who wasMiss Ohio USAin 1979, found her nude scenes extremely difficult to do. Carrick Glenn, who also had a nude scene, was relaxed in front of the camera, according to the director.

Maylam maintains that he was Cropsy for about 90% of the movie, as he could not get anyone else to hold the shears the way he wanted (to perfect the gleam bouncing off the metal).

Post-production

The film was edited byJack Sholder,who went on shortly to direct the first film forNew Line Cinema,the slasherAlone in the Dark(1982), starringJack Palance,Martin Landau,andDonald Pleasence.He also directedA Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge(1985), a sequel to the1984 classic.

Maylam has said that there was talk of a sequel at the timeThe Burningwas wrapping; however, Maylam was leery of being type-cast as a horror director and the disappointing box office performance of the original stalled the sequel's production.

Promotion and release

According to Maylam, the film received a very good response at test screenings. In February 1981,Filmways Picturespicked up the rights to distribute the film from Miramax for an undisclosed sum after viewing it inLos Angeles.According toVariety,Filmways was in financial difficulties and saw an opportunity to make quick money during the slasher boom. The company had already producedBrian De Palma'sDressed to Kill(1980), which had made serious money the previous year. Filmways also released horror thrillers such asThe Town That Dreaded Sundown(1976),Without Warning(1980), andThe Last House on the Left(1972). Filmways originally was intent on renaming the filmTales Around the Campfiredue to its now-iconic campfire scenes, but its original title remained. The film was subsequently sold to foreign territories including Britain, Germany, France, Spain and Japan at the 1981 Cannes Film Festival.

Box office

The film opened on May 8, 1981, in Florida on 110 screens, with a regional rollout following on May 22.

According toVariety,the film did especially well in Buffalo, near where it had lensed, playing in three theaters and two drive-ins, bringing in $33,000. Interest soon fizzled, and the film suffered a more than 50% drop-off in box office receipts the following week.Despite this brief bright spot, overall box office forThe Burningwas initially pretty dismal. It lasted in the top 50 for only four weeks, with a take of just $270,508.Varietyreported it received a "chilly reception" inSan FranciscoandChicago.Unlike in Buffalo, it opened elsewhere to stiff competition: it debuted at number 23 behind slasher filmsHappy Birthday to Me,which was at number one, andFriday the 13th Part 2at number two; however,The Burningalso opened on far fewer screens than those wider releases.

The oversaturation of the slasher film market did not help draw in audiences toThe Burning.Aside from having the very similar-plottedFriday the 13th Part 2also playing, the film suffered from competition withHappy Birthday to Me,Final Exam,The Fan,Graduation Day,Eyes of a Stranger,and a successfulre-releaseofTobe Hooper'sThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre.The success ofFriday the 13th Part 2hamperedThe Burning's attendance, as the audience flocked to the known property.

The Burningopened in New York with new poster artwork (showing a face with a fire reflected in an eye) on November 5, 1982, distributed byOrion Pictures,who had recently merged with Filmways.The New York Timesfilm criticJanet Maslin's gave a scathing review.An ad inVarietyfrom November 17 noted that the film had grossed $401,258 in just 7 days.Its last week onVarietysample chart was December 8, where it had slipped from 78 screens the previous week to just 8 that week, with a final gross of $707,770.

Promotional press artwork also exists under the titleCropsy,but it is unclear when it played theaters under that title, as it was a common practice to give films multiple names in an effort to trick audiences into seeing it multiple times. According to the MPAA site, it may have also played under the titleCampfire Tales.These releases and re-releases make it difficult to find a definitive box office tally for the film.

According to Tony Maylam, the film sold well around the world, making back its $1.5 million budget. The film performed well inJapanwhen it was released there in September 1981.Varietyreported it making a total of $283,477 in a week at just four cinemas inTokyo.In its first 16 days, it had grossed $1.2 million from 11 theatres in Japan.

The film was released to British screens on November 5, 1981, byHandMade Films,where it was met with modest success. Within a couple of weeks it was on adouble featurewithWhen a Stranger Calls(1979), which did not boost its fortunes, asVarietysaid it soon "hit the skids" with "pathetic" results.

Censorship

Despite the graphic gore effects of slasher films being the driving force behind their box office success, the MPAA gave in to the critical reception and reaction of pressure groups who were protesting the films in the wake of violent acts, such as theassassination of John Lennon,and the growing debate about violence in the media.The Burningwas heavily trimmed to receive its R rating. The film remained cut in the United States until its 2007 DVD release that restored the scenes of gore.

The British cinema release ofThe Burningwas severely cut as well by theBBFC,receiving an X certificate on September 23, 1981, with cuts to the scissor murder of the prostitute and some gore during the raft attack. When the film was accidentally released uncut on video in the United Kingdom byThorn EMI,the tape was liable for seizure and prosecution under theObscene Publications Acts.Thorn-EMI had unwittingly released a "video nasty",a term used to describe films judged as obscene and too violent for home rental. They tried to rectify matters by reissuing a BBFC-approved version. The original uncut Thorn-EMI release is worth a great deal of money today. In 1992, the United Kingdom video re-release suffered additional cuts to the raft attack, plus cuts to the killing of Karen. It was finally released fully uncut in 2002.

Critical response

OnRotten Tomatoes,the film has an approval rating of 83% based on reviews from 12 critics, with an average rating of 6.90/10.OnMetacritic,the film has aweighted averagescore of 42 out of 100, based on reviews from 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

A number of critics noted the film's graphic violence and parallels toFriday the 13th(1980) andits sequel:On his weekly "Sneak Previews" show with Gene Siskel,Roger Ebertchose the film as one of the critics' "Dogs of the Week"; Ebert was particularly unimpressed by the film's similarity toFriday the 13th Part II,another slasher film from the summer of 1981 that he despised. Bill Cosford of theMiami Heraldpraised the film's dialogue and special effects as convincing, but similarly noted that it bore too many similarities to films such asFriday the 13thandFriday the 13th Part II.Joe Baltake of thePhiladelphia Daily Newsalso compared the film toFriday the 13th,but added that, where that film "is periodically nasty,The Burningis all nastiness. "A review published inVarietywas similarly critical of the film, describing it as derivative and overtly violent.

Janet MaslinofThe New York Timeswrote: "The Burningmakes a few minor departures from the usual cliches of its genre, though it carefully preserves the violence and sadism that are schlock horror's sine qua non ".

TheTime Outfilm guide wrote: "Suspensewise, it's proficient enough, but familiarity with this sort of stuff can breed contempt".Kim NewmanofEmpiremagazine was critical of the film for being "an obvious imitation ofFriday the 13th"but praised Tom Savini's special effects. AllMoviewrote: "With deliberant pacing and shocking scenes of full-on gore,The Burningdelivers on the creep-out levels and would probably be better regarded if not for the boom of familiar flicks that came out after this release ".While reviewing the film's 2013Blu-rayrelease fromScream Factory,Scott Weinberg ofFearnetwrote, "[The Burningis] dated and sort of dull. But there's some amazing gore, and the new Blu-ray makes it shine ".Leonard Maltingave the film one out of a possible four stars, calling it "[an] awfulFriday the 13thrip-off ".

Home media

The Burningwas released onDVDin North America for the first time ever on September 11, 2007, byMGM Home Entertainment.The DVD contains several extras, including a commentary by director Tony Maylam, a featurette covering Savini's make-up effects, a stills gallery, and the theatrical trailer. Despite the DVD cover displaying the 'R' rating, the print used is the full uncut version.

Shout! FactoryreleasedThe Burningon Blu-ray Disc/DVD Combo Pack on May 21, 2013, under their sub-label Scream Factory.In May 2023, Scream Factory announced aUltra HD Blu-rayrelease that came out on July 11, 2023.

Soundtrack

The Burning
Soundtrack albumby Rick Wakeman
Released	1981
Recorded	1981
Studio	Workshoppe Recording Studios, New York
Genre	Progressive rock
Length	35.42
Label	Charisma(UK) Varèse Sarabande(USA)
Producer	Rick Wakeman
Rick Wakemanchronology
Rhapsodies (1979) The Burning (1981) 1984 (1981)

Asoundtrackalbum featuring Rick Wakeman'sscorewas released onLPin 1981 in Europe, and shortly after in the United States and Japan.It includes music from the film and rock band arrangements by Wakeman, known as The Wakeman Variations, as well as selections from the score, written by Alan Brewer and Anna Pepper. Brewer was musical director for the film and co-producer of the score and soundtrack album with Wakeman.

The soundtrack was released in the United Kingdom for the first time onCDin February 2007.

Track listing

1. "Theme fromThe Burning"– 3:32
2. "The Chase Continues (Po's Plane)" – 3:53
3. "Variations on the Fire" – 5:13
4. "Shear Terror and More" – 4:39
5. "The Burning (End Title Theme)" – 2:00
6. "Campfire Story" – 3:08
7. "The Fire" – 3:25
8. "Doin' It" – 2:42
9. "Devil's Creek Breakdown" – 2:21
10. "The Chase" – 2:00
11. "Shear Terror" – 2:49

Legacy

Many people involved inThe Burninghave gone onto achieve great success.BobandHarvey Weinsteinhave become successfulfilm producers,acting as founders and heads ofMiramax Filmsfrom 1979 until 2005 (which was owned byThe Walt Disney Companyfrom 1993 to 2010), when they createdThe Weinstein Company.Bob is also the founder and head ofDimension Films,which continues to release genre films, though many of them heavily reedited by Weinstein from 1992 until 2019, including the successfulScreamslasher film franchise and five of theHalloweenfilms. Harvey won anAcademy Awardfor producingShakespeare in Loveand has garnered sevenTony Awardsfor producing a variety of winning plays and musicals, includingThe Producers,Billy Elliot the Musical,andAugust: Osage County.Brad Grey,who received a writing credit onThe Burning,became the chairman andCEOofParamount Pictures,a position he held from 2005 until his death in 2017. Grey produced eight of the ten top-grossing films to come from the studio. ActressHolly Hunterwon an Academy Award in 1993 for her performance inThe Piano,and was also nominated for her performances inBroadcast News(1987),The Firm(1993), andThirteen(2003), as well as winning twoEmmy Awardsand receiving seven nominations.Jason Alexanderwould star in the long-running, critically acclaimedsitcomSeinfeldasGeorge Costanza.Fisher Stevenswould star inThe Flamingo Kid(1984) andShort Circuit(1986), before turning to documentary directing, where he won an Academy Award for his filmThe Cove(2010) and anIndependent Spirit AwardforCrazy Love(2007).

The film was cited byHifumi Konoas being the inspiration for Bobby Barrow's signature scissors weapon inClock Tower.

In 2009, writer-director Joshua Zeman and director Barbara Brancaccio released a documentary titledCropsey,which details the Cropsey maniac urban legend on whichThe Burningis based. Despite sharing little connection toThe Burning,the film re-ignited the popular mythos of the character.

In 2017,Complexmagazine namedThe Burningthe 12th-best slasher film of all time.The following year,Pasteincluded it in their list of "The 50 Best Slasher Movies of All Time",while Cropsy was ranked the 12th-greatest slasher villain of all time byLA Weekly.

In October 2017, former-production assistant Paula Wachowiak alleged that producer Harvey Weinstein'shistory of predatory behaviorwent back as far as the initial filming ofThe Burningin June 1980. Then a 24-year-oldUniversity at Buffalograduate and divorced mother, Wachowiak was tasked with getting Weinstein to sign checks for anauditorworking with the production's accounting department. When Wachowiak arrived at Weinstein's hotel room to have him sign the checks, he allegedly answered the door wearing only a towel, that he then dropped and asked for a massage from his employee. When Wachowiak refused, she alleges that Weinstein harassed her about the incident through the rest of the film's production, up until the film's May 1981 premiere.

External links

• The Burningat theAFI Catalog of Feature Films
• The BurningatIMDb