Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker

Cheryl, still haunted by a broken romance, treats Billy, the orphan she raised as her own son, as the center of her world. She will go to any length to keep him by her side, shaping his life to fit her desires. When her carefully laid plans unravel, she descends into a feverish rage that seems to spare no one she suspects stands in her way. A determined detective, convinced Billy is the killer rather than the victim, hunts for the truth while the woman he calls aunt becomes more volatile. The story tightens into a claustrophobic maze of obsession, betrayal, and brutal acts that riffs on a familiar myth without revealing everything at once. The tension rarely lets up.

Released in 1981 and directed by William Asher, the film comes from an original screenplay credited to Boon Collins, Alan Jay Glueckman, and Steve Briemer. The cast includes Jimmy McNichol and Susan Tyrrell, with Julia Duffy and Bo Svenson.

Box office figures for the film are not widely reported, and its commercial performance remains obscure in public records. No major box office breakthrough is documented. It has since circulated in home video on release, especially among late night viewers.

Among horror fans, the title has a modest cult reputation for its over the top mood and Susan Tyrrell's ferocious performance, a late 70s and early 80s vibe that lingers in discussions of maternal obsession on screen. Its poster and marketing leaned into a sensationalist vibe characteristic of the era.

Critics tend to view the film as a tense blend of melodrama and horror that probes possessive love, manipulation, and the danger of mistaking protection for control. The plot leans into Oedipal undertones to examine how obsession distorts ordinary family ties, and it deeply robs ordinary life of its ease.