Don't Go Near the Park

Don't Go Near the Park is a 1979 American supernatural horror film directed by Lawrence D. Foldes, and starring Aldo Ray, Meeno Peluce, Tamara Taylor, Robert Gribbin, Barbara Bain, and Linnea Quigley. Its plot follows a brother and sister, both cursed in prehistoric times, who remain on earth and must eat the entrails of young people to regain their youth; in an attempt to break their curse and achieve immortality, the brother conceives a child as a virginal sacrifice. Filmed in Los Angeles, Don't Go Near the Park was then-19-year-old Foldes' directorial debut. He had previously produced the commercially successful exploitation film Malibu High (1979). The film was released theatrically in September 1981. It gained notoriety when it was successfully prosecuted for obscenity in the United Kingdom and placed on the "video nasty" list due to its violent content. In the intervening years, it was released on the home video market under several alternate titles, such as Night Stalker and Curse of the Living Dead. Critical response to the film was largely negative, and it attracted commentary in subsequent decades for its themes of cannibalism, incest, and pedophilia. In 2006, Dark Sky Films released a DVD featuring the original U.S. theatrical cut.