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Slayground is a 1983 British crime film thriller film directed by Terry Bedford and starring Peter Coyote, Mel Smith and Billie Whitelaw. The screenplay was by Trevor Preston, adapted from Slayground, the 14th Parker novel (1971) by Donald E. Westlake (as Richard Stark).
Costello kills Stone's two associates in the robbery, and a friend who facilitates Stone's trip to England. Stone's wife goes to hide in Mexico. Stone tries to help Abbatt with some troubles the latter is having with gangsters.
Costello arrives in England. He kills a friend of Abbatt's and then Abbatt himself before Stone shoots Costello dead.
Very little of the novel was used in the film adaptation.
Lambert later said, "I wasn't very keen, but I thought, 'Well, I'm starting off and this is definitely different to television and maybe I have to go by somebody else's judgement'." She claimed the distributors were convinced the film would be a commercial hit. Filmink called it a "very random" selection.
Others in Lambert's slate included Comfort and Joy, Illegal Aliens (which became Morons from Outer Space) and Dreamchild.'Cinema Verity: Peter Fiddick talks to EMI-Thorn 's new film production chief' Fiddick, Peter. The Guardian 24 November 1983 p 13. "I believe all these films have international appeal," said Lambert.'EMI back with four feature films' Fiddick, Peter. The Guardian 16 November 1983: 2.
Two thirds of the film was shot in Britain, one third in the US. Filming took place in March 1983 on location at Southport and Blackpool Scenes were shot at Southport's Pleasureland amusement park and Blackpool's Pleasure Beach. Filming in America took place in and around Rockland County, New York.
Academic Paul Moody wrote in his story of EMI Films that Slayground "marks a transition point in EMI's history, both literally and metaphorically, and it has a liminal feel to it that betrays its origins from two divergent production strategies." He felt the fact the second half of the film moving to England was "a metaphorical handing over of the baton... a dramatic shift in tone from what had until then been a pedestrian American thriller, bringing in supernatural elements that shift the film towards a more English gothic sensibility." Moody felt "the film has some genuinely atmospheric moments and marks the point at which historically, EMI transitioned back towards making films set in Britain and which focused specifically on British culture."
Leslie Halliwell said: "One of those tedious and violent films in which the criminal wins out; slickness seems to make it worse."
Filmink magazine called it "almost a text book example of how not to adapt a novel. Very little is kept from the original.. Instead, there’s three other stories going on – one about a killer trying to get Stone on behalf of a vengeful father, another about a teen Lolita who kills men who pick her up, and another about ex criminal Terry trying to establish a new life in Blackpool with his lady... None of these stories are done well." The magazine added "The movie completely betrays the character of Parker, one of the great bad-asses in literature" but praised the acting, production design and action sequences.
| 1984 | – Festival internazionale del giallo e del mistero | Best Film | Terry Bedford | ||
| Golden Bee (Audience Award) |
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