Sunday, May 1, 2011

Lucker The Necrophagous (1986)



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Summary:

Convicted serial killer, John Lucker is pronounced criminally insane, once the authorities
discover the disturbing details of his extra curricular activities with the decomposing corpses
of his female victims. After spending several months in various psychiatric facilities
before being temporarily admitted to a private clinic after a failed suicide attempt.
Lucker is given his chance to escape.

The medical staff seem convinced of his sedation after pumping him full of narcotics.
Yet make the fatal mistake of leaving him unattended in his room. Once the staff depart,
Lucker escapes, making sure to leave a few victims in his wake.

Now that he can enjoy his new found freedom, Lucker discovers that one of his
victims survived.With that notion, he begins to spy on his prey, waiting for the right moment
to finish what he started.

To pass the time, Lucker finds several female companions to play with, but they never seem
to fill the void.

It's always hard to forget the one that got away ;)

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Decision:

There are 2 versions of the film available on the DVD. A 68 minute Director's cut and rare 74 minute VHS print. I decided to view both versions, so I could compare them individually.

Both prints have a certain graininess to them that I sorta dig. It adds an underground mystique and atmosphere, but it also detracts with darkly lit scenes.

The 68 minute version was created by the Director using available materials. The sound is superior on this version, but I was immediately aware of a frequently distracting looped vocal track. Screams, sound effects and certain dialog is repeated ad nauseum. Footage is also recycled to extend the running time. In addition, all of the death scenes are often obscured by the poor picture quality.

The 74 minute version is my favorite of the two. Even with irremovable Dutch subtitles. There is a certain fluidity that the previous cut lacks since certain scenes that give supporting details were excised.
Thankfully, the annoying sound effects are absent with this version. And to me the picture seemed to be slightly better, despite a disclaimer before the start of the film, stating that the VHS version is of considerably lower picture and sound quality.

That being said, I still really enjoyed this movie. It's simple and effective. Plus, the lone scene of necrophilia would make this a worthy purchase for those with an affinity for corpse love films.

It's really, really gooey! :P

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Availability: In print

Price: 3-14$

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Screen Captures: (No copyright infringement intended.)





1 comment:

the jaded viewer said...

The best part of this flick is he solicits a prostitute without saying a word. Go Lucker!