Tim Ritter is another of the multitude of directors that emerged during the post-Halloween abyss of low-budget horror and went on to build a career within a niche sub-genre. He is something of a legend amongst his ilk because he directed and produced his first feature at the tender age of 16. Much like Fred Olen Ray, David DeCoteau and Dennis Devine; Ritter has built a decent catalogue of self financed B-Movies that have allowed him to express himself and convey his cinematic vision to audiences across the globe. His films are notoriously gratuitous and he is amongst the extremist exploitation directors currently working in American film. Truth of Dare was his second feature and since its release in the mid-eighties, the film has garnered a relatively large cult following. Its success opened up the chance for two sequels, and Ritter has worked continuously ever since. Mike Strauber returns home from work one day to find his wife in bed with his best friend, Jerry. Visibly traumatised, Mike heads to the beach to clear his thoughts. After contemplating suicide, the emotion seems to trigger a violent schizophrenia in his mind and he begins suffering aggressive delusions, which make him play truth or dare with imaginary characters from his warped mind. Before long Mike succumbs to the grips of insanity and begins a violent trail of revenge on the society that he feels has outcast him. Truth or Dare is a tough movie to judge. It has moments to be credited and moments of flagrant ineptness. Firstly, the performances are heinous from start to finish and John Brace is hilarious as the wild-eyed Strauber. The cast looked as if they were offered no guidance from an experienced dramatic adviser and they fall astoundingly short of delivering anything even remotely convincing. There are gaps in the plot that are large enough to swallow the Sahara dessert and the continuity is like something from a fairytale, with weapons and convenient props appearing as if on command. There are many schoolboy errors throughout the feature, which demonstrate a lack of experience from the production team and especially from the teenage director. The movie starts astoundingly well and almost immediately sets a high standard, which unfortunately it fails to consistently maintain. With that said, Truth or Dare is a memorable, powerful feature and it is one that deserves a stronger reputation amongst the slasher elite. Ritter came out with an intention to shock and he succeeded successfully in making a film that approaches areas that other more competently financed features would never have dared. In today's climate of extreme political-correctness and constant fear of audience offence, this movie is a fine example of a time when media was brave enough to voice an individualistic opinion. The copper-masked maniac commits a few of the most gruesome acts ever filmed in slasher cinema. Three elderly pedestrians are randomly machine gunned whilst waiting at a bus stop and a cheery child is bloodily slashed to death with a chainsaw! By far the most shocking scene sees a pram-pushing mother and her baby gorily rundown and killed by the maniac (he even goes as far as to reverse back over them); and for the father of a nine-month old child, it's a tough scene to watch. Despite Mike's extreme malevolence, the story initially builds sympathy for his journey into insanity. No matter how strong a relationship may be, everyone can have moments when they feel insecure and panic-stricken if they suspect that their love is not equally shared. How would you feel if you came home to find your partner in bed with your best friend? I doubt that many of you would put on a copper-mask and go on a killing spree, but kudos to Ritter for approaching a subject that sympathetic viewers can relate to. There's something frighteningly realistic about the scenes that see Strauber recollect memories of his relationship and realise that he should have picked up on the fact that his partner was betraying his trust. The opening is brilliantly handled and demonstrates the potential of a young filmmaker with a relevant message to convey. Like many eighties slashers (Killer Party, Terror Night, Scalps etc), Truth or Dare suffered a nightmare production. Rumour has it that the producers became anxious once realising that Ritter was only 18 years old and they eventually pulled the plug, which meant that the final version of Truth or Dare is not the director's initial vision. Ritter has said that many of the plot holes are filled within the missing footage that's gatherinmg dust somewhere in a producer's cupboard and having seen the effect that a plagued production can have on a feature (Moon in Scorpio anybody?) Ritter deserves the benefit of the doubt.Although technically the film fails to impress, it excels in its power to shock and it has a subtle political comment on the Reagan cost-cutting era of the eighties. I really enjoyed watching Truth or Dare and I feel that it's an excellent time-capsule of a cinematic period that will never be repeated. It starts well and despite a dip in its mid-section, the film ends with the flamboyance that was so flagrantly evident in its launch. Considering the fact that Ritter was only eighteen at the time and has grown into a key player and sponsor in the world of B-movie production, this is an excellent example of his ideas. On a side note look out for Backstreet Boy AJ McLean in the small film-part that he wishes he could erase from existence!

just recently picked this movie up because it sounded cool. If you have read the plot, it is about a man who finds his wife cheating on him with a friend. This is at the very beginning. he does not kill them though. I was disappointed. However, it drives him nuts. As the years go on he gets more and more nuts and plays Truth or Dare with himself. He gets institutionalized, but escapes What we see in the rest of the film is Mike go on a rampage. I was enjoying the film, but once the action started getting better all I can say is WOW.He drives around with a large assortment of weapons and kills anyone he please. Be it pedestrians or cops.If you like slashers, if you like gore, if you like over the top gore this is the movie for you. It was quite the find.

Being in my "Backstreet Obsesso" phase of my life, I found this on eBay when I got home from vacation. From the end of the opening animation it looked "B"ish, but not to the point where I thought it was going to uber-suck. Then I hear a childish voice... "Wanna play truth or dare?" Then pops up an 8 year old AJ McLean, sitting calm as a cucumber while he slices up his wrist with a blade, and then shows it off to his mother like a trophy. Disturbing? Very. But that won't prevent me from asking Mr. No-Name to sign the tape when I meet him in person.All in all, this movie wasn't THAT bad. Plot holes and repetition, yes. Bad acting, yes. Same old cheat-and-revenge plot? Yes. Entertaining? Absolutely. If you wanna have yer own MST party, this title is perfect for ya. If you're seeking exquisite five-star cinema, this movie is not for you. I found it to be worth every penny I paid once I finished watching it.

Tim Ritter's 16MM debut (shot in North Palm Beach, Florida) is a sloppy mess, but it's a low-budget attention getter nonetheless. Mike Strauber (John Brace) is a successful married man who once suffered from a nervous breakdown, and now is going insane after discovering his sexy wife (Mary Fanaro) has been cheating on him. Mike leaves the house, picks up a busty redheaded hitchhiker (Kerry Ellen Walker) and heads to a campground for the night, where the two play a twisted version of Truth or Dare by campfire. He dares her to pull out her eye with a corkscrew...and she does!! Then she makes him cut off his finger, slash open his chest and rip out his tongue before disappearing.He's found and rushed off to "Sunnyville Mental Institution" where he is eventually released due to "overcrowding". He heads back home to kill his ex-wife, but is captured again and rushed back to SMI where gory Truth or Dare games are played with other patients. All of the TorD game participants turn out to be delusions of Mike's deranged mind, an odd metaphor for insanity in general, I guess, and a means for lots of self-mutilation.By the films end a head is blown off with a grenade, arms and legs are hacked off, a face is slashed up, a baby in a stroller is run over, a little kid is chewed up in a drive-by chainsawing, an old woman is clubbed on the head, Mike takes a semi-automatic rifle to three unlucky people waiting at a bus stop and much more. It's really just a bunch of violent nonsense, but it's pretty entertaining and the gore FX are fine.Followed by several direct-to-video sequels starting with WICKED GAMES (1993). Also available is (was?) TRUTH OR DARE?-THE RETROSPECT TAPE, hosted by the director.