In the 1980s, horror films became less about telling stories and more about furthering a franchise. The Freddies, the Jasons and the Michaels were reduced from effective scene-stealers to cartoon figures designed to appeal to as wide a demographic as could bring in money. Refreshing then, to find any genre film from that decade unbleamished by such cynical exploitation.
'Stage Fright' resurrects the Giallo genre, so it might be argued the premise is not original - but the setting and the characters, are all refreshing and surprisingly creepy.
The eagerness for stardom is possibly the greatest monster here, and the cast is seen to suffer for that ambition. The more traditional slasher kills are displayed in a variety of pleasingly outlandish ways. The chunky - and very '80s - incidental music is cheesily effective also.
My score is 8 out of 10.