poster

The Driller Killer
Director: Abel Ferrara
Year: 1979
TRT: 1:31

Reviewed: 7/16/2024
VIDEO REVIEW

Gotta say, this has a nice gritty New York punk rock aesthetic to it. Music plays a pretty prominent part throughout, not exactly punk, but dirty enough. And given the title of the film, there is gore, via drills, so you got that covered. And one kinda creepy painting of a buffalo.

Odd opening. Disheveled hippy-like dude and a classy chick at a church at the behest of a nun. Hippy dude Reno is an artist, of course, and has an odd experience with an old dude in the front pew of the church, who had his name and number. Reno freaks and they book outta there to a live band at a club, but the experience seems to instigate some recall of his past and some memories he prefers to block out. But stress via financial woes, bad relationship with his kinda girlfriend/two female roommates, and a new band moving into the apartment building that practices practically non-stop drives him to new, darker places. Ones with a battery belt pack and power tools.

This in no Hershcell Gordon Lewis production, it’s classier than that. And better made. While yeah, pretty low budget and director Abel Ferrara starring in the lead role (though actually credited as Jimmy Laine), it does a quite competent job in the cinematographies, especially considering a lot of night-time shots (involving a lot of said drills, go figure) that are lit a lot better than an 8mm camera with a single blaring light source. Ferrara goes on to direct the excellent King of New York a few films later, as well as the infamous Bad Lieutenant starring Harvey Keitel. Seems he doesn’t stray much from the darker-themed material, that’s just not as gory as this early foray. This is a solid psychotic break kinda movie, with some brash music and a nice shower scene sprinkled in. But classy, of course. Acting overall isn’t great but good enough to give the overall film a realness that isn’t hokey, especially given the plot. That art dealer is a real douche bag, though.


Great Scene: There’s a crazy/drunk/homeless guy at a bus stop. Nice capture of the other guys standing there trying to ignore the antics.

Great Kill: Street Lobotomy. If that’s not a song title, it should be.


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