Blu-ray Review: CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER (1985)

 

CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER

Directed by:  Mark Blair

Distributed by:  Unearthed Films / MVD

  For as long as I've been a fan of horror, and as many horror movies I have seen, I'm always amazed at how many great films have slipped past me over the years.   CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER is a film that I can recall seeing the cover for way back when I was a kid.  This film came out in 1985, when I was 9 years old.  Later on when I was a teenager, I remember always seeing the VHS cover for this film on the shelves of my local Mom & Pop video rental store.   I remember looking at it, and always passing it up for some reason.  I don't know why I never decided to give it a chance, but I have a suspicion that the cover made me think it was going to be too scary, even for me.  

  Well, here we are almost 40 years later, and I am finally able to give it the chance I should have so many years ago, thanks to the beautiful new Blu-ray release from Unearthed Films.   Unearthed Films recently started a "Unearthed Classics" line, where they bring hard to find older films to DVD and Blu-ray.  This film is a wonderful addition to the Unearthed Classics line, and truly is a classic in my opinion.   I think I'm glad I waited all these years to watch this one, as it might have been a little much for me as a kid!  

  Here is brief synopsis of the film from the film's IMDb page:

  After being arrested, a Texas man begins confessing to the brutal murder of over 200 women. He recounts his random selection of victims and his traveling companions, his friend and friend's sister. But the police can't be sure whether to believe him or not until he locates a body and shows them some polaroids. Based on the true story of Henry Lee Lucas.

 The first thing I noticed about this film is how much actor Robert A. Burns resembles the real serial killer that this film is based on, Henry Lee Lucas.  The resemblance is uncanny, which really made this film feel more realistic.  The film consists of Burn's character, named Daniel Ray Hawkins, in a police interrogation room after being arrested, and recounting all the crimes he has committed.  We then see reenactments of these crimes that he committed, or at least what he says he committed.   I like that the film alluded to the fact that, like the real Henry Lee Lucas, the cops suspected that Hawkins might be confessing to crimes he didn't commit.    Henry Lee Lucas was notorious for confessing to murders and helping the police with their investigations in return for some special treatment in jail.  The problem was, Lucas was already locked up and had nothing to lose, so he just confessed to crimes he had nothing to do with in order to get the special treatment.  In fact, he confessed to approximately 600 murders in total. This earned Lucas the famed nickname,  "The Confession Killer". 

 I can't say enough about how much I love CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER.   It is a gritty, grimy, and just dirty film which a movie like this  should be.   Even though it came out in 1985, it has the look and feel of a 1970's horror film, which was the best decade of horror in my opinion.   The acting in the film is great, and reenactments are very well done with some very brutal kills.  This film just made me feel dirty after watching it, and with a movie like this, that is a good thing!   In 1986, another film came out about Henry Lee Lucas called, HENRY:  PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER.  I feel like that film get more notoriety for some reason than this one.   I honestly think this is the better of the two films.   If you are a fan of serial killer films and true crime, this is a must see! 

CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER is available now on Blu-ray and DVD from Unearthed Films and includes the following Special Features:

• *  Commentary with director John 'Mark Blair' Dwyer, director of photography Layton Blaylock and actor Sidney Brammer
• *  The Henry Lee Lucas Story by author and TV news correspondent James Moore
• *  'Rondo and Bob' Full length documentary on Robert A. Burns and actor Rondo Hatton
• *  Polaroid Gallery
• *  Promotional Gallery
• *  Trailer

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer

CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray

CLICK HERE to purchase the DVD