NEW
YORK RIPPER (1982)Director: Lucio Fulci
Anchor Bay Entertainment
NEW
YORK RIPPER (1982)What movie is the worst date film ever? Well that esteemed title would have to go to Lucio Fulci's NEW YORK RIPPER. This one will separate the gorehounds from the Cahiers Du Cinema crowd faster than Tipper Gore would have a stroke watching this film.
Long edited in the U.S., Anchor Bay has released the complete edition of the film on DVD and it looks and sounds better than ever. If this is a good thing, it really depends on your tolerance for gore, sleaze and downbeat melodrama. Easily Fulci's darkest film without even the token good characters usually found in this kind of film, and full of downright nasty (though not often convincing) gore, with a horribly manipulative finale, it should have no problem securing a place in the little horror hall of fame under the "Most squirm inducing" category.
When an old man finds a prostitute's severed hand under the Brooklyn Bridge, the police decide to do a little investigating. Seems our victim was heard speaking to a strange duck-voiced man. As the murders add up (some truly gutwrenching stuff here; eyes slashed and faces mutilated) the police recruit a psychology professor to help find out who this Donald Duck Ne'er Do Well could be. From there on out, plot be damned as the film slides from one sick setpiece to another. We have cops who love their favorite prostitutes, nipple slivering, toes used incorrectly (this little piggy didn't go to market!), the incorrect use for glass bottles and other abominations to occupy the running time. The conclusion isn't shocking or surprising, but look for an odd twist that will leave you thinking at the end.
Featuring a virtual who's who of 80s shock cinema, look for frequent Euro victims Alessandra Delli Colli (whose "Golden Toes" sequence is both hilarious and repulsive--not to mention frequently cut), Zora Kerova (from CANNIBAL FEROX), and Daniela Doria (who met an even more obnoxious death at Fulci's hands IN CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD). The ever-popular Paolo Malco is great as the all too obvious Psychology professor as well. Keep your eyes peeled for Fulci's good cameo in the police station.
The DVD looks very clean (superior to the nice Cult Epics LD from some years ago), and is presented in scope (2.35:1) so you can see every drop of blood. A good theatrical trailer and a well-written bio of Maestro Fulci finish up the package with style. Hats off to Anchor Bay again for bringing another Lucio Fulci title to the States correctly.
I would warn all of you not to settle into this one while eating Chinese food, but perhaps a nice Peking Duck would be appropriate! (David Zuzelo)