Hello, this is Kevin from HouseofMysteriousSecrets.com; my girlfriend is trying to track down the title of a movie she saw when she was a young teen. Below is her memory of it, do you think your team of experts might be able to figure out what this one is? Thanks!!!
Okay, so the one memory I have from a movie I cannot identify is something I saw on VHS when I was about nine years old. I probably only saw ten minutes before my mom flipped out and we went to bed. It was a man being beaten to death with a hammer. The killer was a fully visible older male (not a faceless stone cold killer). He was verbally mocking his victim while he was trying to run away. The setting was outside. I think in the scene they show them exiting a house into a back yard (?). The kill happens outdoors in daylight. I remember it being ultra violent compared to anything else I had seen at the time. It is very possible they showed the hammer to head impact. It was super low budget and grainy. Could be 80's but it didn't look like typical 80's slasher style, more exploitation gore. It was a memory that stuck with me because it was one of the first times after I started watching horror that I actually closed my eyes and had not wanted to watch. Also the fact that my mom was so upset by it.
Hmm… since I was nine years old and only watched ten minutes it isn't a very clear memory, many details could be inaccurate. If I get at least one significant detail correct someone might be able to figure out the movie based on that… if they take into consideration that my memory might be off or blended with a memory of another movie I had seen. I felt like there was some obvious exploitation element to it… like the killer was a preacher or the guy he killed was mentally challenged or something super disturbing.
A few years ago I had come across the film on youtube in a gore compilation video. Somehow I managed to lose the title of it. I remember it having a striking title that I would probably recognize if I came across it again (perhaps multiple word title). Also in my research of the film I found that it had a small fan base and at the time they were excited that there was word about it getting a DVD release; I'm uncertain if this ever happened. It also seemed that rest of the film was a pretty extreme gorefest so the film may be know for it's low budget practical efx. I since spent hours on youtube trying to locate clips and doing google searches and I have not yet been able to identify. Most likely this film is underground and very obscure. Hope someone can help. I'd be very impressed and curious to see how much of my description is accurate.
Thanks Kevin!
All I have is wild guesses…
The outdoor murder reminds me of DON’T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT
The hammer weapon and gore reminds me of NIGHTMARE (IN A DAMAGED BRAIN)
and I was also reminded of BLOOD AND LACE but I don’t think that one was ever properly released.
For some reason, this is making me think of Screamtime, an anthology film from 1984. The first story involves an older man obsessed with his Punch-and-Judy style puppets. He winds up going off the deep end and killing people – including his jerkwad stepson – by beating them to death and speaking in the voice of his puppet. Can't quite remember if he used a hammer or not, but it's possible.
It wasn't grainy and it wasn't an super-explicit exploitation film, but I swear I remember there being a scene a lot like this in Stepfather III.
Writergrrrl,
That’s a good suggestion. Love that one!
Taylor,
You are right! In fact I used a picture from that scene in our PART 3 Funhouse a little while back. He beats the guy with a shovel but it’s outdoors and he mocks him while doing it….
I think I have to have a Stepfather marathon soon.
Henry, Portrait of a Serial Killer?
Hey, could it be something like the cliff scene in Bad Taste? Lots of hammers and some taunting.