A TV movie remake of the 1965 William Castle movie of the same name, this is a low-key and subtle film which makes a pleasing change from all the gory slashers and monster-of-the-week flicks which were doing the rounds at the time. The film is fairly slow-paced and set over the course of one fateful night, and benefits from realistically drawn characters and a highly effective score which adds to the tension. In particular, Robert Carradine's killer is not just a clear-cut unstoppable evil type, instead he's portrayed as a flawed man with a psychological defect, so the crimes he commits are not really his fault after all.The biggest flaw with I SAW WHAT YOU DID is the contrived plot, which is over complicated where it should be straightforward. This is especially true in the set-up, in which Kim and Lisa visit Adrian's house, thinking that he might be a prospective boyfriend, and Kim just happens to leave her handbag there so he can follow her to her home. I'll bet the original Castle film wasn't this unbelievable. The horror isn't graphic and the film is bloodless with the exception of a couple of supernatural "visions" that Carradine has which are shoe-horned into the plot to bolster the horror content, and consist of a woman in bad zombie makeup and that clichéd shot of hands pushing out from the inside of a wall.Taking the lead role of the teenage victim is Shawnee Smith, who is saddled with an unappealing character and is frankly poor - and was much better in THE BLOB. At least her friend Lisa - played by Tammy Lauren (WISHMASTER) - has spirit and is a more interesting character. Robert Carradine is effective as the multi-layered villain (and arsonist, giving a fun angle to the action) of the piece whilst his brother David is on hand to lend a touch of class to the proceedings as a minor investigative character. The suitably fiery climax also provides a fitting ending to the film's diluted horrors, and then there's another twist that I didn't see coming to finish off..

Perhaps more than any other coming-of-age angst film, this made-for-TV gem captures the fad-drenched arrogance and superciliousness of teenagers, pinpointing certain dangers that accompany such an attitude. It is the character of Lisa Harris (brilliantly portrayed by Tammy Lauren)that exudes this smart-ass front the best. Kim Fielding (Shawnee Smith) is putty in Lisa's hands as she is led down the road to perdition for the selfish motive of wanting a place for the night to rendezvous with her profligate boyfriend.This nifty little film has it all, thrills, chills, suspense...you name it. Obviously much of the credit not only belongs to the superb cast, including the two Carradine brothers who play crazed brothers, but to the script by Cynthia Cidre, since both this TV flick and the earlier Joan Crawford "I Saw What You Did" (1965) are based on the same novel by Ursula Curtiss, not to slight the original William Castle production which itself is a fine addition to the horror genre. Yet this TV version goes beyond mere terror to a more thorough psychological analysis of what makes the main players tick. Even the smaller parts are more fleshed out than is usual for a TV show.The plot is a familiar one by now. Two bored teenage girls, alone except for one's pesky little sister, decide to make prank phone calls. As expected, they accidentally reach a mad man in the midst of a murder. One bad move leads to another until the mad man is hot on the trail of one of the girls. But director Fred Walton, of "When a Stranger Calls" fame, keeps the show moving at a fast pace and though the ending is not that unusual it still comes as a surprise and as presented is extremely effective.

For a movie that was made for television, this was really good. I loved it since the first time I saw it at like age 7 or 8. While babysitting for her little sister, Kim has her friend Lisa over. Out of boredom, they play Lisa's suggested game, titled "I Saw What You Did", where they pick a name in the phone book, call the number, and say the phrase "I saw what you did and I know who you are". They game goes well for a while until they call someone who has actually just murdered his girlfriend after she breaks up with him. Thinking he sounds interesting and attractive, the girls decide to pay him a little visit. This movie is very good and entertaining. It is also especially creepy, even though it was made for television. I really hope it gets put on video some day soon. If you happen to come across a copy of this movie, definitely check it out. It stars a very young Shawnee Smith from the television show "Becker" and also Tammy Lauren.

I may be crazy... but I liked this movie!!The basic plot is this: bored high school girls play pranks and meet cute and unusual musician who turns out to be a psychotic killer.This is a low budget, made for TV movie at its best!!Robert Carradine does an excellent job of portraying over-the-edge eccentric Adrian Lancer. Quite a nice change of pace from all that "Revenge of the Nerds" nonsense. He makes the story line at least somewhat plausible and shows you convincing traits that would make two high school girls interested in him. Nice touch of having David Carradine play Adrian's brother Stephen.I was really impressed with performances by Tammy Lauren and Shawnee Smith as a prankster and a prep school do gooder. Plus, Candace Cameron is not nearly as annoying here as she was on Full House.The movie is slow moving at times. I would imagine that they had a good hour long movie, but then they had to fill up two hours in a Monday night time slot. If you get the chance to see it -- wait -- I don't even know if you CAN rent this anywhere, other than from me, since for some reason I happen to still have it taped on VHS from ten years ago. However, if you come across it, give it a chance. I suppose in some ways it is similar to the recent grouping of movies loosely titled "I Saw What You Did and Who You Were Screaming With Two Summers Ago", except that it is more like a realistic documentary of "here is what happened in one evening", rather than larger-than-life killers in costume targeting anyone in town.Don't expect too much, and you won't be disappointed.