Murderlust

Director - Donald M. Jones (Housewife from Hell, Project Nightmare)
Starring - Eli Rich (Deadly Diamonds, The Jigsaw Murders), Rochelle Taylor, and Dennis Gannon (Evil Acts)
Release Date - 1985
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "The serial killer...it could be anyone"
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

      There are a lot of distribution companies out there catering to the sleazy horror fan looking for lost and overlooked films.  Many prefer to find these gems on VHS but there is a large number of movie collectors that will take these films on any format they can.  We have companies like Videonomicon, Severin, Intervision, Synapse, Vinegar Syndrome, and so on that look for strange and unusual films that have been lost over time.  The films, for the most part, are very entertaining and a door way to a different time.  Recently, Intervision released the obscure horror thriller Murderlust on DVD.  This looked like one of those films that would sit on the shelf at the local ma and pop video store only to be rented by the avid horror or exploitation fan to watch late at night.  I love that type of atmosphere and immediately requested a copy.  Thanks Intervision for sending this one my way!
     The film follows Steve Belmont (Rich) who is a Sunday school teacher on Sundays but has a hard time holding down a real job.  The only thing he is good as is killing impure women and ladies of the night.  He has been hiding their bodies in the desert for sometime but his dumping ground was recently discovered and the local populace are now on edge about having a serial killer in their midst.  When he finds himself unemployed the perfect opportunity arises when the church puts together a youth program where he will have access young women that will not be missed but when his girlfriend thinks about the safe haven could be a killing ground for a serial killer she does everything to pull the plug on the project forcing him to reveal his inner demon to her.
     Honestly, I thought this film would not be entertaining but would bring about that rush of nostalgia reminding me of a time when I would rent obscure and odd horror films at Dewey's Video where I grew up.  The film surprised me and was actually pretty entertaining.  It was far from perfect and rough around the edges but was entertaining to watch.  The acting in this one is fun.  Eli Rich portrays a character that has a lot of layers.  He goes from being an innocent Sunday school teacher and all around ladies man to a drunken asshole with a craving for murder.  He does a great job at portraying all of these angles which is very demanding for an actor.  Instead of playing one person he essentially portraying two.  His supporting cast is solid as well but they don't stand out like Rich does.  He does a damn find job which is sad considering he never went on to do much else with his acting career.  The story for this one is simple.  We follow a man living a double life as he butchers women when not in church.  Pretty simple but does peg the serial killer psychology pretty damn well.  I took several psychology classes in college.  Though they were basic level classes I still found myself researching different serial killers in my spare time (most of you know this is a hobby of mine) and may serial killers led double lives.  The most well known of this is Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy.  The story had a lot of thought placed into that aspect but didn't have a lot of meat on the bone to create a full length feature film.  The film has a great story but not enough to fill the hour and a half mark so what you get is a film that has an uneven pace with some very dull scenes.  The film needed a few scenes cut to make it more even.  Finally, a film with the title Murderlust makes the viewer imagine a film full of blood and sex.  Sadly, you get neither.  The film does have a few on screen kills but they are not bloody, violent, or use practical effects.  We get a little blood at the end of the film but the practical effects are almost non-existent.  The title conjures up more blood than the actual film does.  Overall, Murderlust is a must for fans looking for lost and forgotten films.  The film is far from perfect but is a great watch late at night with some beer and a bag of chips.  Check it out.