Format: Drive-In Classics on rockin’ flatscreen.
Alice, Sweet Alice (originally called Communion) is a film I’ve heard about for years but just haven’t gotten around to watching. I’d been told that this was an upsetting film that went places we don’t normally have films take us. I was also told that there were some things here that were visually disturbing or weird. Both of these things are true. The problem is that it’s not a great film. There are aspects of it that are at least really interesting, but I’d call this more a thriller than a horror film. The events of this film are entirely possible, which at least for me moves it out of the pure horror realm.
This is more or less the story of two girls and it quickly becomes the story of one girl. Karen Spages (Brooke Shields in her first-ever movie role) is preparing for her first communion. It’s quickly evident that her mother Catherine (Linda Miller) dotes on Karen. This is particularly obvious to Karen’s older sister Alice (Paula Sheppard, who was 19 and playing a pretty believable 12 or 13). Alice seems to always be in trouble, especially with Catherine’s sister Anne (Jane Lowry). Alice has some pretty serious issues. She likes to wear a bright yellow raincoat and a disturbing mask that looks almost human. Alice seems to terrorize everyone around her—her Aunt Anne, Karen, her mother, and Mrs. Tredoni (Mildred Clinton), who works at the local parish.
