The Initiation (1984)
The Initiation is an American slasher film from 1984 directed by Larry Stewart. Starring Daphne Zuniga, Vera Miles, Clu Gulager, and James Read.
Plot
Since childhood, college student Kelly Fairchild has suffered from a recurring nightmare in which a strange man is burned alive in her childhood home. 
The nightmare began when Kelly suffered amnesia after sustaining a head injury at age nine. Hoping to unravel the nightmare’s meaning, Kelly pitches a term project idea to Peter, the graduate assistant in her psychology seminar, about it. Peter agrees to perform a sleep study on Kelly, but her mother, Frances, subsequently forbids it. Meanwhile, at a psychiatric hospital miles away, several patients escape, and a nurse is murdered. Frances is notified of this incident by phone, and informs Kelly’s father, Dwight.
Kelly prepares to partake in her sorority’s initiation ritual
which entails her and a group of other pledges breaking into her father’s multilevel department store after hours and stealing the night porter’s uniform. Kelly, her friend Marcia, and roommates Alison and Beth are the four main pledges. On the night of the initiation, Dwight departs for a business trip, but is brutally stabbed outside his car with a hand rake 
before being decapitated. The murderer leaves in Dwight’s car with his corpse in the trunk. Kelly needs to face her attacker…
Notable scenes
The nightmare scenes
The ritual
Making of The Initiation
It was the first feature starring role for Daphne Zuniga.
The location used for the mall was the Dallas Market Center. The crew would shoot over night in the building after it closed at 7pm but would have to wrap up and be out by opening at 7am the next morning.
Some of the early scenes at the mental hospital were shot by Peter Crane the original director. Crane was replaced by Stewart.
The initiation was the film debut of Hunter Tylo.
Our view on the initiation
A good slasher from the 80s. The Initiation is surprisingly an effective and playful slasher item and delivered on what you look for. While nothing groundbreaking, I thought it stood out. It has moments of mystery, tension, atmosphere, and the violence is realy nasty. Exploitflix recommended slasher!
Trailer
Where to buy
Dvd/VHS/Betamax/VCC
Watch at Youtube
Details
Genre: slasher
Released in: 1984
Era: eighties
Actors: Daphne Zuniga
Director: Larry Stewart
