Skinner

 



Director - Ivan Nagy (Deadly Nightmares, Jane Doe)
Starring - Ted Raimi (The Midnight Meat Train, Ash vs. Evil Dead), Ricki Lake (Serial Mom, Crybaby), and David Warshofsky (Fear the Walking Dead, Sons of Anarchy)
Release Date - 1993
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "He'll get under your skin"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

 

     I kept the Severin Films' train rolling on through my vacation.  After I watched Anthropophagous and Absurd I decided to toss in another newer Severin release.  This time I went with the 1993 Ted Raimi lead film Skinner.  This Ivan Nagy directed serial killer film also featured John Waters' regular Ricki Lake and Traci Lords.  This was one I had never heard about prior to receiving the press release.  I reached out to Severin Films and they were kind enough to send a review copy my way.  Thank you Severin for allowing Horror Society and myself the opportunity to review this release. 

     The film follows nomad Dennis Skinner (Raimi) who acquires about renting a room from Kerry Tate (Lake) while her husband is out of town for work.  Dennis gets a job a janitor during the day but at night he moonlights as a serial killer who has a knack for skinning his victims.  When Kerry goes missing her husband is forced to look for her when he crosses paths with a former victim of Dennis' who now is fixated with him.  Will Kerry's husband find her before Dennis can show her the real him?

     I went into this one with no knowledge of what I was about to watch.  Ted Raimi is a name I'm very familiar with due to his work in the horror genre, Evil Dead II and being brother's with director Sam Raimi.  I also knew of Ricki Lake and Traci Lords due to their involvement with John Waters.  I was excited to say the least.  The movie did not disappoint but there was several aspects I wish was different.  The acting in this one is great.  Ted Raimi as a murdering madman was fucking genius.  He does a phenomenal job in the role and makes the movie what it is.  The supporting cast is fantastic as well.  Ricki Lake is an amazing actress and it's a damn shame we don't see her in more films especially horror.  It was also great seeing Traci Lords.  Her performance was fun but it is strange seeing her take on a more serious role over a seductive one.  She definitely has acting chops and it still extremely sexy even with prosthetics on.  The story for this one is fairly simple and relies heavily on character development.  I'm actually alright with this because the characters were very fun.  They made the movie worth watching.  With that being said, the movie does move a little on the slow side.  Several scenes seem rather pointless when they fail to develop the character's backstory or further the story along.  Finally, the film is not really that gory but it does have several fun scenes with some solid prosthetics and practical effects.  Overall, Skinner is a solid early 90s horror film.  Fans wanting great effects but not looking for a gory flick will enjoy what KNB brought to the table here.  Check it out now on blu from Severin Films.