Alone in the Dark (1982): Dr. Bain is KINDA Asking For It?

Okay, fellow cinephiles, Priya here! I dove headfirst into "Alone in the Dark" (the 1982 one, not the disastrous game adaptations, lol) last night. Honestly, it's a strange film. A bit slow in places, but the premise is undeniably unsettling. Bunch of criminally insane dudes escape during a blackout and target their psychiatrist, Dr. Bain. Classic slasher setup, right? But… I have a slightly controversial theory boiling in my brain. I wonder if Dr. Bain almost invites the chaos? Hear me out. There's something almost detached about how he treats his patients, like they're puzzles to be solved rather than people teetering on the edge. The way he needles Preacher, for instance, constantly questioning his beliefs... it feels less like therapy and more like he's poking a caged animal. And then there's Hawk, this brooding, violent presence. Instead of maybe transferring him or taking extra precautions during the blackout situation, Dr. Bain seems almost fascinated by him. Like he wants to see what happens when he pushes these guys too far. Maybe this is the flaw in the "good doctor" trope. I am not absolving the escapees of their crimes, of course, but you have to wonder about a doctor who has so little empathy and understanding for the fragile psyches of these patients. The whole movie feels less like a straightforward slasher and turns into an interesting case study of how society creates monsters, or at least fails to contain them. Of course, this is just my interpretation, and I'm probably looking too deep into a B-movie horror flick, but it got me thinking. Anyone else see hints of this kind of subtext, or am I alone in the dark (pun intended)? One last thing, let's be honest, poor Jack Palance could make any movie better! Really, he's the MVP of this film.