Rating: 2.5/5
Cult Movie Challenge 2016 | 33/53 | Crown International
CW // Misogyny, Stalking, Physical and Sexual Violence, Murder, Verbal Abuse, Racism, Racial Slurs, Non-Consensual BDSM, Ableism
Kirk Smith stands shirtless in front of a statue of Jesus on the cross. He performs a ritual before going out and stalking a nurse. He strangles her and performs some unseen sexual abuse.
The radio announces a serial killer and rapist. Dr. Lindsay Gale is a radio psychologist. Kirk regularly listens to her and calls in with a stereotypical Spanish accent. He tracks down one of the callers, tying her up and performing a bizarre religious ritual.
Two detectives, Hatcher and McCabe, work with the police to solve the murders. They know two things: their killer is a Vietnam vet and a photographer.
This one isn’t as violent as much of what you find on the Video Nasties list. It leans into more of a pulpy detective story than an outright slasher, leaving the more grotesque details to the imagination.
The story is familiar, but the murder scenes effectively made me squirm. The therapy scenes aren’t any practice I’m aware of, but they increase the sense of vulnerability that makes the murder scenes icky.
The movie finds an excuse to get nearly every woman onscreen’s top off. It’s almost (almost) impressive.
No one’s giving a stellar performance. The director’s performance as the Lab Man is especially heinous. Nicholas Worth goes over the top as Kirk Smith.
The synth-heavy soundtrack is good. Like, really good! One-time composer, Byron Allred, gives us some tension and bops. I believe he’s the same Byron Allred who played with Steve Miller Band and is on their song, Threshold. If I ever watched this movie again, it would be for the music, because I can find it anywhere.
For a one-time director, Robert Hammer’s movie cuts together pretty well. It’s not art, but it’s effective.