The New York Ripper ( 1982 )
Synopsis:
In this romantic comedy, Fulci tells the tale of a madman loose in the Big Apple who’s penchant for sadistically torturing and butchering nubile young women has the police baffled. The killer’s brutal and misogynistic M.O. is eclipsed, only by his bizarre tendency to taunt the police in a “ Donald Duck voice “ as they race to catch him before the body count rises.
Oh man, they sure don’t make ‘em like they used to. This is one of THE prime examples of sleaze the genre has to offer, and its fuckin’ great! The absurdity of a killer that quacks as ( to quote the movie’s coroner )
” He used a blade. Stuck it up her joy trail, and slit her wide open “ manages to be both extremely graphic and hilarious at the same time. The fact that every guy in this flick is a scumfuck degenerate to some extent ( even the hero detective ) whom treat women somewhere between bad and like shit, works as excellent commentary reflective of the times and still manages to ring true to this day unfortunately. It’s a grimy, disturbing, and nasty little film that pulls no punches in it’s portrayal of abuse and violence towards women in all its forms, set to a rockin’ score by Francesco De Masi.
The only real downfall of the film, is in its whodunnit plot point. The killer’s identity is easy to decipher, as the handful of characters we are introduced to sport only one obvious red herring, and he’s too damn obvious to be it ( though he is a cock smoker... You have to watch it, lol.) and that’s not to mention that the back of the box literally shows the murderer attacking our heroine... Fucking oops.
Overall, if you’re in the mood for a giallo that is more mystery and atmosphere, maybe check out Argento’s Profondo Rosso or Fulci’s Don’t Torture a Duckling. But, if you’re looking for something that’s light on plot, but big on gore and the kind of sleaze that makes you wanna take a shower afterwards, this is one of the very best there is.
Rating: 8 body part fetching dogs, out of 10