Link (film)
1986 film by Richard Franklin
Link is a 1986 British horror film starring Elisabeth Shue and Terence Stamp along with a trio of simian stars which consist of Locke as Link, Jed as Imp, and Carrie as Voodoo. The title character, "Link", is a super-intelligent yet malicious chimpanzee (played by an orangutan) who lashes out against his masters when they try to have him euthanised.
It was directed by Richard Franklin and written by Everett De Roche from a story by Lee David Zlotoff and Tom Ackermann. The score was provided by Jerry Goldsmith. It was filmed in St. Abbs, Scotland. Shue and Goldsmith received Saturn Award nominations for their contributions.
Franklin was a devotee of Alfred Hitchcock - he had recently directed Psycho II - and said after filming “I hesitate to liken it to The Birds because everyone will say ‘Oh shit, he's doing Hitchcock again.' Unlike The Birds, which is kind of a fantasy, Link is based on anthropological realities. I'm calling it an anthropological thriller as opposed to a psychological thriller.”
Plot
One night a young girl, Becky, screams in bed, claiming she saw something at the window. Elsewhere in the house, someone has killed some animals.
The public source identifies “Link (film)” as 1986 film by Richard Franklin. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Link, film and Richard.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Link (film)”, the useful work is to connect “1986 film by Richard Franklin” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1473486. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1986.
Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Link (film)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Link (film) primary sources, Link (film) archive and Link research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Link (film)”?
- Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
- How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Link (film)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.