Killer's Delight (1978)

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Fantastic!

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

This so-called horror was made just before the slasher era. And it shows. It is based on the life of a real serial killer, Ted Bundy, but to be honest, it doesn't. Nevertheless this flick is worth seeing for those who wants to see the San Fran era at the end of the seventies, the clothes, the highway (before it collapsed in the 1989 earthquake) and the cars. If you think you are going to see some nasty stuff well it isn't going to be so. There's no scary or bloody moment to see overall this flick. The only parts that your face can turn away is the part were they show the pictures from the crime delict. What you see are full naked girls being murdered. It's slow moving in parts with stupid conversations between the detectives but the flick itself isn't released properly to this writing. You can catch it as Killer's Delight on DVD or on the extreme hard to get Dutch VHS with the opening credits as The Dark Ride which is even full uncut. I watched it on the Dutch release, dark in places because it's a low budget flick with no extra lighting. Still, for the real geeks worth picking up somehow.Gore 0/5 Nudity 0,5/5 Effects 0/5 Story 2/5 Comedy 0/5

I don't know why, but I underestimated "Killer's Delight". After all it is a 1978 film, based on the Ted Bundy case, which has been worked to death over the years. Nevertheless, I was surprised that this exploitation movie was interesting, not predictable, and beautifully photographed with saturated colors. As the body count mounts, the arrogant killer continues to stick his ass in the face of the pursuing detectives. Speaking of the detectives, one resembles John Saxon, while the other looks like Serpico's brother. The killer also bears a slight resemblance to William Devane. But I digress, The whole thing is delightfully kinky, with nudity, torture, a trap, and a very satisfying conclusion. - MERK

Detective Sergent Vince De Carlo (James Luisi) and company are on the case of a vicious Serial Killer/Rapist. Can Psychologist Carol (Susan Sullivan) help, or will she become the killer's next victim? And what is with the killer's hilarious White Dude Afro? Inspired by the case of serial killer Ted Bundy, "Killer's Delight" aka "The Dark Ride" is a rather dull Serial Killer tale from 1978 that doesn't offer much. If anything, it's more of a police procedural flick than a horror movie, as much of the violence occurs off camera. Sure, we get mutilated bodies, but we don't get a whole lot in the exploitation department-especially considering that they are from the aftermath, and not during the crime. Those hoping for the likes of "The Toolbox Murders" or "Maniac" will be very disappointed.Fortunately, there is an impressive scene involving a woman trying to escape the killer that get's the tone right, and is quite suspenseful to boot. Also, John Karlen is quite effective as the killer, though his hilarious hairstyle (white guys with Afros are always worth a chuckle) is more than a bit distracting."The Dark Ride" is too routine and mediocre to really warrant a recommendation, as it lacks the proper exploitation elements, and is dated even by the standards of the time. Those looking for a better example should probably turn to "Don't Go In The House" and a few others instead, as this just doesn't cut it.

I came across this movie in a list of movies inspired by true crime cases. The inspiration for this film was the cases of Ted Bundy and Edmund Kempler.The script is very simple, clearly having some influence by European films like 'Bird With The Crystal Plumage' or 'Black Belly of the Tarantula'. However, Maralyn Thoma doesn't make this mystery that complex, focusing more on the cat and mouse game between the killer and the detective.Compared to most modern slick thrillers and horror movies, it is easy to consider this film dull with it's steady progression and lack of cheap fake scares. What this film is trying to achieve isn't cheap shocks but a slow sense of frustration and dread.The killer is underdeveloped as a character for a simple reason, this film is from 1978. A lot of the information about serial killers, their psycho-pathology and victimology was still being developed at the time. Without the information we take for granted now, it was much better to keep the tension by detaching from the killer, making him a monster by mystery.The actors in this film are giving their all. James Luisi is a very sympathetic, complicated protagonist, absorbed in this case and torn between his home life with his family, and his mistress, a psychologist who can give him his first clues on the nature of this kind of monster.The girls playing the victims are very convincing in their naivety, their shock at being trapped and their fear being in the hands of a madman. They aren't mere cookie cut bodies or subtly being blamed for their victimization, with small action and dialog, they are made real and ordinary for us.Oh, and also because it is a late seventies film, there has to be one lame, over sentimental song. That's just a given.This is an overlooked film, and that's a pity. For a true horror maven, it is well worth watching.