that deftly upturns the cliches of the lady-in-distress genre," likening it to the Coen brothers's Blood Simple (1984). Malcolm Johnson of the Hartford Courant praised the film as a "gripping" thriller, adding that "as it moves toward its harrowing conclusion, Torment is by turns sad, scary, and darkly amusing." The Philadelphia Daily Newss Joe Baltake praised the film for its blunt and unfiltered presentation of violence against women, noting: "Borrowing freely from Wait Until Dark, Halloween and any number of Hitchcock thrillers, Torment takes its theme from what was merely implied—hinted at—in other slasher movies, i.e., that the women who get bludgeoned to death deserve it because of their brazen, sexually liberated ways." Carrie Rickey of The Philadelphia Inquirer praised the film, summarizing: "Tautly edited, crisply photographed, Torment takes the standard suspense scenario—waiting for fish in the barrel to be shot—only to reveal that the barrel contains flying fish... I could gripe that all the obvious intelligence it took to make this picture might be better applied to more humanistic endeavors. But then I also have to admit I haven't been so nerve-wracked since Halloween." Bill Cosford of the Miami Herald was less laudatory of the film, deeming it a "cramped, low-budget thriller" boasting a "shabby" script. Home media Scorpion Releasing released the film on Blu-ray on July 21, 2020. References External links 1986 films 1986 horror films American crime films American psychological horror films American independent films American neo-noir films American serial killer films American slasher films American thriller films Films scored by Christopher Young Films set in San Francisco Films shot in San Francisco New World Pictures films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films