A NASA captain is sent to investigate a murder. I don’t know if that is something NASA captains do, but here we are. The murder happened in a subterranean station run by Nurse Ratchet and David Lo Pan with help from Juwanna Mann. They are researching deep dream sleep, so they need to be deep underground.
The subjects are naked and in extended deep dream sleep. They got to be in this state by severing the brain cortex from the lower brain stem. Relax, not in the manner you imagine. It’s all done electronically and is quite safe. Just to confirm, that makes no sense.
The scientists can control how deep the deep dream sleep is. Like with literal levels. Level 31F opens a connection to another dimension. That always causes issues.
The people in the late 80s/early 90s were obsessed with dreams, the function of the brain and deep underground testing facilities. Everything was flung at the wall to see what sticked. Shadowzone did not stick.
The film is slow. Lumbering between scenes where the actors stare at something, wondering if anything will happen. Most of the time it doesn’t. In a sane world this would have been an episode of Tales from the Darkside but the late 80s were not sane. Not with Charles Band lurking around.
Although it does have issues with filling it’s 70-minute running time, the film is worth the watch for two reasons: actors and practical effects. Louise Fletcher was an Oscar winner, James Hong should’ve been an Oscar winner, and Miguel A. Núñez Jr. is always great to see.
The film starts showing the murder victim, post-extensive autopsy and like alternative dimensions usually do, this one brings out a bunch of creatures: a monster monkey, a gigantic rat and some kind of forming humanoid creature.
If you’re a fan of Full Moon Pictures, you know what you are walking into.
