Dark Night of the Scarecrow

Plot synopsis:
In a small nameless town in the Deep South, "Bubba" Ritter (Larry Drake), a large but gentle retarded man, befriends young 10-year-old Marylee Williams, (Tonya Crowe). Some of the townspeople are upset by the friendship between Marylee and Bubba, and the brooding, mean-spirited postman Otis Hazelrigg (Charles Durning) is the worst. When Marylee is almost killed by a vicious dog (Bubba saves her) and lies unconscious at a doctor's office, Otis promptly assumes that Bubba has murdered (and likely raped) her. Otis and three friends - gas station attendant Skeeter Norris and farmer-cousins Philby and Harliss Hocker - form a lynch mob. They chase Bubba to his mother (Jocelyn Brando)'s house. She believes her son and they play "the Hiding Game": disguising Bubba as a scarecrow and posting him in a nearby field to wait for the drama to cool down. Otis' bloodhounds sniff Bubba out, however, and all four vigilantes empty multiple rounds from their guns into him, killing him. Afterwards, they discover that Marylee is in fact alive, thanks to Bubba, whom they have just murdered. Acting fast, Otis places a pitchfork in Bubba's lifeless hands to make it appear as if he were attacking them with a weapon.In court, Otis and his fellow vigilantes swear they acted in self-defense. Bubba's mother denounces her son's killers before the courtroom, stating, "You may think that you're getting off free, but there's other justice in this world, besides the law!" only to be ejected by the bailiff. Sam Willock, the local district attorney, does not believe the vigilantes' self-defense story, but he cannot make the murder case stick due to a lack of witnesses. The vigilantes go free, but Sam calls after them: "Hazelrigg, just a minute. I want to tell you "men" one thing. I think you executed that man. And I promise you this; If I ever find a single shred of evidence, I'll see every one of you on Death row!"That night, Otis and the rest of his friends celebrate their freedom at a local bar with several locals who stand by them and bad-mouth the simpleton Bubba. A mysterious wind blows through the deserted town's main street and through the town itself. Meanwhile, a recovered Marylee sneaks out of her house and travels to the Ritter house where Mrs. Ritter tells her that Bubba is no longer around, but that he will return.A day or two later, Harliss finds a scarecrow in his fields like the one Bubba was hidden in. Neither Harliss nor his wife can figure out how it got there as neither of them placed it. That evening, the scarecrow has disappeared. As he begins his walk up the steps to his front door, the wood chipper begins to run, and a light comes on in the barn. At first, Harliss believes Sam has invited himself over, walks to the barn, and shuts off the chipper. As he investigates, he climbs up the hayloft to confront what he now believes is the district attorney snooping around his barn. Walking on the support beam, he is startled as the wood chipper is mysteriously reactivated. Losing his balance, he grabs the cord of the light that is hanging in the barn. Screaming, he calls for his wife. No longer able to hang on as the sparks from the light shower him, he loses his grip on the light and dies after falling into the chipper.The next morning, Skeeter and Philby inform Otis of Harliss's mysterious death at the boarding house where Otis resides. The trio investigate, and find the thresher is no longer operational. Otis figures it must have run out of gas, but when its tank proves to be nearly full, he jumps to another conclusion. The next morning, he visits Mrs. Ritter and accuses her of killing his friend, although he cannot prove anything. She denies the charges, but says that all four of the men will get their just deserts promptly enough (and also implies that Otis is a pedophile).That evening, a Halloween costume party is held by the town at the local elementary school, and most of the town children attend, including Marylee. When she is alone in a hallways playing 'hide and seek' with her school friends, Otis appears and asks her questions about what she may know about Harliss' death. Marylee becomes defensive and refuses to answer. When Otis pesters her, Marylee exclaims that she knows that Otis and his three friends killed Bubba and covered it up to make it look like self-defense. When Otis asks how she knows, Marylee replies that Bubba told her. When Otis says that Bubba is dead, Marylee replies "I know".The next day, Philby discovers a scarecrow just like the one Bubba was dressed as in his field. When Otis hears about it, he acts fast. He breaks into Mrs. Ritter's house that evening as she sits before her lit fireplace and grabs her from behind, demanding that she explain what's going on with the scarecrows. But she cannot tell him anything because she has suffered a heart attack as he tries to muffle her screams. To cover his tracks, Otis turns Mrs. Ritter's gas stove on full, then walks out. As the gas reaches the fireplace the house explodes, again leaving nothing for Sam to use against Otis.The following night at his farm, Philby notices that the "Bubba" scarecrow (whom the viewer cannot see) in his field has gotten off its field-post, and is walking toward him. Panicking, Philby locks himself in a grain silo. The scarecrow jams the silo door, trapping Philby inside, and then turns on the conveyor belt feeding into the silo. Philby is buried in grain and perishes.The next day, Skeeter is ready to turn himself in rather than face the scarecrow's wrath. Yet Otis remains convinced that it's all a hoax by somebody seeking to avenge the Ritter murder. To verify said theory, Otis and Skeeter break into the local cemetery that night. They dig up Bubba's coffin and open it. Bubba is inside (again the viewers do not see the decomposing corpse). Otis has to wrestle Skeeter to stop him from fleeing in terror. They agree to fill the grave back in and forget any of this ever happened. But as Skeeter is nailing the coffin shut again, Otis kills him from behind by striking his head with a shovel. Otis re-buries both corpses and then drives off, back towards town.En route home, Otis finds Marylee alone at roadside, and chases her into a pumpkin patch. He grabs Marylee and accuses her of masterminding the scarecrow murders. Suddenly, a combination payloader/plowing machine starts up nearby and chases Otis through the pumpkin patch, snapping its shovel and turning pumpkins to pulp. (It is strongly implied that no one is driving the plow.) As he flees, Otis accidentally runs into the Bubba-Scarecrow, still holding the pitchfork, on which Otis has just impaled himself. Otis sinks to his knees and points at the Scarecrow before keeling over dead. The scarecrow walks off through the pumpkin patch and finds Marylee, to whom he hands a flower. She says: "Thank you, Bubba. You know what? Tomorrow, I think I'll teach you a new game. Did I ever show you how to play the Chasing Game? It's fun. You'll love it. It's sort of like playing tag..."

Tags: cult, revenge, cruelty, murder, violence

Review:
That way, "Dark Night of the Scarecrow" doesn't have to rely on blood, disembowelings and gratuitous special FX for its shock value.All you old-school horror fans check this out: here's a relatively recent movie that earns every shock and scare it gets with its eerie atmosphere, earnest performances and an especially villainous turn by Durning as tyrannical postman.Everything is sweaty, nail-biting and almost unbearably tense from first frame to last.
Music is by Glenn Paxton and cinematography by Vincent Martinelli.Small town Americana and Bubba Ritter (Drake), a friendly but mentally challenged man, is falsely accused of attacking and severely injuring young Marylee Williams (Crowe).
It's not long afterwards, though, that the men start to see a scarecrow in their midstSome things from movies just stay with you from when you were a wee youngster, I still remember the first time I heard the anguished cry of Bubba Ritter stating that he didn't do the crime he was being hunted for.
Dark Night of the Scarecrow stood out by some considerable mile as one of the best TV horror movies I saw as a youth, not for things that I would later appreciate in film making as I got older, but just for sheer terror of a scarecrow stalking his prey for divine retribution.
Some thought went into the screenplay, and it's credit to the writers that it never becomes a moral crusade, while the crafting of the lovely innocent friendship between Bubba and Marylee is beautifully born out by actors and technicians alike.Durning and Drake dominate the movie with classy shows, impressive in Drake's case as he is only in it for a short amount of time, but the work of young Tonya Crowe puts her in the club that houses best child performances of the 80s.
The photography is textured, the music equally so, and there's even some shards of humour and irony along the way.I can imagine many of today's horror fans going into Dark Night of the Scarecrow and being very disappointed not to get a Voorhees type movie, while some more sensitive viewers may find the portrayals of backwater folk as being ignorantly stereotyped by the makers.
The wind is always blowing leaves across a lonely road, the shadows seem especially deep, and as the title states, the night seems especially dark.There is minimal blood and special effects - the film relies on the setting and the performances of the actors to deliver the goods.
In a small country town, the thirty-six year old mentally handicapped Bubba Ritter (Larry Drake) has the mentality of a child and is the best friend of the young local girl Marylee.
They are released, but justice comes from the grave and the men are mysteriously killed, one by one, in the revenge of the scarecrow."Dark Night of the Scarecrow" is an excellent unknown made-for-TV movie.
The supernatural story is great, and the performances of the whole cast is outstanding, highlighting Charles Durning as a nasty scum and Larry Drake in the touching role of a sweet retarded man living in a prejudicial community.
In a small country town, the retarded Bubba Ritter (Larry Drake) has the mentality of a child and is the best friend of a young local girl.
They are released, but justice comes from the grave and the men are mysteriously killed, one by one, in the revenge of the scarecrow.Wow, what an excellent movie this unknown made-for-TV "Dark Night of the Scarecrow" is!
i just saw it 2 days ago on TBS with my girlfriend and it's still spooky!!!I cant believe this was a made for t.v movie!!!!SCARY AS HELL!!!Ten time scary than Friday the thirteenth, Halloween, or Nightmare on elm street...This movie, along with "The Shining",prove you don't need lots of pointless blood and guts to give you the creeps...The first time i saw this movie i was around 7/8 in my mom's bed one night and two scenes were forever stuck in my mind...(1)Otis' hate-filled look at Bubba while he hides in the Scarecrow get up (2) the scream that poor Mrs. Ritter yelled when alone with Hazelrig...In fact, I could not finish watching the movie when i was a kid because of Jocelyn Brando's scream scene so i told mom to shut it off...it wasnt till i was 24 i would learn who the scarecrow was - at least i think, i know...great acting by Charles Durning as Otis Hazelrig...an old mailman so cheap he lives in an old folks home and practically lives in his mailman fatigues...He who seems too interested in young Maylee...Awesome scenes...when Hazelrig and Skeeter go the graveyard and dig up Bubba's casket,open it and find what their looking for or what their NOT looking for?...the climactic scene where Hazelrig confronts Maylee for the truth...Is it indeed the girl?...is is the D.A?...or as Mrs. Ritter said "some other justice in the world"...I'm not tellingthe music just adds to the whole creepyness...that violin gets me spooked everytime...WATCH THIS FLICK NEXT TIME IT'S ON TBS OR TNT!!!
However, there's no evidence the district attorney can provide to suggest that the murder was anything other than self defense.Have no fear, however, as these four men will soon start to be psychologically terrorized and ultimately killed.To start with, this is an exceptionally good looking film, even more so now that the movie is available on DVD and Blu-ray and has been restored.
The story allows for some genuine scares and suspense - more to be found than in a good number of theatrical productions - and 'Dark Night of the Scarecrow' gets high marks for its potency; while its horrors are mostly implicit rather than explicit, they still pack a punch.
Even the extreme violence that the movie suggests is intense for anything made for prime time network TV; one of the deaths may well have inspired a similar sequence in "Witness" approximately four years later.Give credit to writers J.D. Feigelson & Butler Handcock and director Frank De Felitta for keeping things ambiguous right up until near the very end.
And Jocelyn Brando (Marlon's older sister) is wonderful as Bubba's loving mother, who reminds us all that the law isn't the only form of justice that exists.This is great stuff that could be enjoyed at any time of the year, not just Halloween.
Watching it now a number of scenes bring to mind other more recent films, whether it's just a coincidence or homage, there is just something about it that makes it a joy to watch.Bubba played by Larry Drake, who you might remember as Durant from the "Darkman" movies, is a sweet natured mentally challenged man in a small farming community.
The leader of the posse, played by Charles Durning in a truly evil turn, places a pitchfork in Bubba's dead hands to make it look like they killed him in self defense.
The ending is strong and provides a good conclusion to the film; and, overall, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Dark Night of the Scarecrow to any horror fan..
A mentally retarded man named Bubba (played to absolute perfection by Drake) becomes the best friend of a young girl in a small country town, but a local group of rednecks headed by Durning (another excellent performance) decide they don't like it and take it upon themselves to try to break it up.
But soon find that "there is other justice besides the law" as quoted by Bubba's mother, and begin to meet their fates one at a time.Its been my experience that whenever I see that "made for TV" note next to the title of a movie it is like the kiss of death, but this forgotten about gem is a big exception, in fact I wonder why it wasn't released theatrically?
I ended up watching the remainder of the film, very much drawn in by the story.I remember very vividly the moment when Bubba was being chased, hid in the scarecrow only to be trapped by dogs and men with guns.
If you like not complicated horror movie plots, OK acting, simple story but with simple and very good direction - "Dark Night of the Scarecrow" is surely to be check one.
What makes it still enjoyable is Charles Durning's performance as the evil postman who'll do anything to cover for his crime, that crime being the killing of mentally handicapped Bubba, who was mistakingly blamed for the mauling of his child friend, Mary Lee. Durning and his three cronies get literally get away with murder (they shoot Bubba to death while he's hiding inside a scarecrow), but they all get warned by Bubba's mother that there are other types of justice.
Genuinely scary, effective, memorable thriller about a mentally challenged man named Bubba(superbly played by Larry Drake) who is murdered by bigoted townspeople who think his innocent friendship with a young girl is inappropriate, and how this group of men(led by the sinister Otis Hazelrigg, played menacingly by Charles Durning) are mysteriously killed in "accidents".
Little seen but well remembered by those lucky enough to catch it, DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW is a great example of the TV horror film that America did so well during the '70s and '80s.
There are shades of STRAW DOGS (with Drake in the David Warner role) as the tensions escalate, but then the movies becomes something else entirely: a subtle and sinister ghost story.Let's get it straight: DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW doesn't really bring anything new to the table.
A retarded man named Bubba is wrongly accused of killing a little girl he is friends with, chased down by an angry mob (led by an incredible Charles Durning) and killed, as he hides in a scarecrow.
Dark Night of the Scarecrow is a reminder that "made-for-tv" movies were once good, and dealt with something other than child molestation, adultery, and cheesy soap opera storylines, and starred better actors than Beverly Hills 90210 wash-ups.This is one of the creepiest films I've ever seen, and I have seen a great number of so-called "horror" movies.
In fact, the only other horror movies I can think of that really do scare me are "The Shining" (Stanley Kubrick version), and the first Halloween movie.Our plotline follows a young girl and her retarded adult friend Bubba (played by Larry Drake from Darkman).
Finally watched this 1981 made for "CBS" TV movie called "Dark Night of the Scarecrow" and I must say that it was effective and worked with fright and fear and the story is simple and down to earth and twist with revenge.
Set in a small rural country southern town this story and tale is that of one Bubba Ritter(the now late veteran character actor Larry Drake of "HBO's" "Tales from the Crypt" episodes: "And All Thru the House" and "The Secret") who's a nice and liked good guy who's a little slow though with a child like mind.
DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW is a made-for-TV horror movie about prejudice, vigilantism, murder, and supernatural revenge.
***SPOILERS*** Much like the story & movie "Of Mice and Men" in this case it's the simple minded but sweet Bubba Ritter, Larry Drake, who tries to keep his 9 year old friend & playmate Mary-Lee, Tonya Crowe, from going into the Raincross family's backyard who's then savagely attacked and mauled by their dog BoBo and left for dead.
The trouble for Otis & friends is that it turns out that Bubba in fact saved little Mary-Lee's life and she fully recovered, after receiving a set of rabies shots, from BoBo's vicious attack.Found innocent in Bubba's death by Otis planting a pitchfork on his dead body to proved he was shot, 21 times no less, in self defense it's Bubba's grieving mom Mrs. Ritter, Jocelyn Brando, who predicts that her son's killers will end up getting theirs saying "Theirs other justice in the world besides the law".
Dark Night of the Scarecrow is an effective, eerie even slightly camp television film made for Halloween but seriously put some Horror films made for cinema to shame.Mentally challenged Bubba (Larry Drake) happily plays with a ten year old girl Marylee (Tonya Crowe.) When she goes missing, a group of four local red-necks egged on by postman Otis Hazelrigg (Charles Durning) assumed that Bubba attacked her and go looking for him.Bubba hides by dressing himself up as a scarecrow in a field, but the the group shoot him dead in a hail of bullets.It turns out Marylee is alive and well and that Bubba was innocent.
Hazelrigg (Durning) and his fellows did something they really should have not done - covering up their act - which leads to the "scarecrow".Good film for the Halloween season and a late night flick.
Since it is a television film, the violence is obviously minimized, but the implications during each of these payback scenes are grim, and mostly revolve around farm machinery— ouch.Charles Durning's turn as the reprehensible small town postman and cold-blooded bigot is effective in that his character is truly reprehensible, and Jocelyn Brando (yep, Marlon's sister), is wonderful as the spiteful mother of Bubba.
Dark Night of the Scarecrow (1981) *** (out of 4) Very effective made-for-TV movie has four locals killing an innocent man who they thought killed a child.
i remember on summer of 91 i turned on the TV and saw this movie.i wanted to see if they where bad guys in it and i was pleased to find four in it.i knew that Charles was the main villain from the start as he spied on bub and the girl.and when the bad guys shot him in the scarecrow i was waiting to see what happened.i didn't know it was a revenge for murder type movie.one scene is where one of the men falls in a grinder.the second one suffocates in a silo of grain and the third gets hit in the head by a shovel by Charles and of course Charles.with the pitch fork.i never did wanted to see this movie for a while after i saw it because the scene when Charles attacks his mother in the house..
Since it came out in 1981 I think I've seen it once a year since then on tv.Why not?You don't see such a good horror film like this every day.An effective sort of EC comics-style revenge story.Plus we get all the great stuff about horror movies-suspenseful,creepy ambience.This is just cool..
A group of bigoted locals wrongly blame gentle man-child Bubba (Larry Drake) for the death of a young girl and hunt the frightened dolt down, eventually finding him disguised as a scarecrow in his mother's field.
TV movie Dark Night of the Scarecrow, directed by novelist Frank De Felitta, attempts to prove to the boob tube masses that a creepy straw man can be just as terrifying as a grease-painted killer, but fails to do so: the limitations of the small screen format means that there is zero gore, and the film delivers very few genuine frights simply because the victims are all thoroughly deserving of their fates (it's hard to be scared when you're rooting for the scarecrow).It's a shame because the cast is good (Charles Durning is delightfully loathsome as mailman Otis, leader of the lynch mob, who, it is implied, is also a pedo) and De Felitta displays some not inconsiderable skill behind the camera..
A little girl no older then 10 befriends a mentally challenged 35 year old man named Bubba(beautifully played by Larry Drake who had the same touch as Benny in L.A. Law).
Hazelrigg (a marvelously hateful portrayal by Charles Durning) track down and kill gentle giant simpleton Bubba (an excellent and sympathetic performance by Larry Drake), who's been wrongfully accused of brutalizing sweet little girl Marylee Williams (appealingly played by Tonya Crowe).
Dark Night of the Scarecrow may be over 25 years old,but it still stands the test of time as a horror film.The plot is is as follows:Larry Drake plays a man named Buuba Ritter who is a mentally challenged but harmless man who is unjustly accused of attacking a young girl,and is hunted down and killed by a small vigilante posse.as it turns out,Bubba had actually saved the girl from being seriously injured or killed by a dog.the men realize their mistake and vow to take the secret(killing Buuba)to their graves.
"Dark Night of the Scarecrow" is easily one of the creepiest made for TV horror films ever made.A mildly retarded Bubba is accused by four rednecks of tragically hurting a little girl.Bubba is innocent,but they go after him anyway.He hides inside a scarecrow outfit in a middle of a field,and the four inbreds shoot him dead.Soon Otis and his friends will have to deal with living vengeance as Bubba comes back from the grave.Larry Drake("Dr.Giggles")is quite convincing as as a mildly retarded Bubba Ritter and Charles Durning is also excellent as the local mailman Otis."Dark Night of the Scarecrow" contains almost no gore,but the atmosphere is truly eerie and dark.The film has a simple plot,good acting and plenty of suspense.So if you liked this one be sure to watch also "Scarecrows" and "Night of the Scarecrow".9 out of 10..
But I think the overall best performance goes to Charles Durning who truly is the real monster of the movie and actually kills more people than the scarecrow!
Dark Night of the Scarecrow starts as the mentally child like 36 year old man Bubba Ritter (Larry Drake) plays with his best friend, a young girl named Marylee Williams (Tonya Crowe) whom are inseparable.
The acting is very strong, Charles Durning is great in a role that was originally intended for Strother Martin before he died while the rest of the cast are also excellent here.Dark Night of the Scarecrow is a really good, solid horror thriller that is is worth watching but I would stop just short of calling it an absolute classic.