Bloodletting (1997)

Memorable, crazy movie

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

This one of those movies that you read the description and say, "Hm. Maybe this'll be good." And then you watch it and it's amazing! I'm sure that the one-star people are all "Duuuuude. This movie about serial killers is just weeeeeeeird." Guys? Serial killing is weird to begin with. The plot is simple. Girl gets off seeing her best friend raped and killed by a famous serial killer. She tracks him down to become his apprentice and they move in together. Could that happen in real life? No. That's why it's a GODDAMN MOVIE. The premise is a set up for some great jokes, interesting situations and a logical view about how two serial killers can (or can't) live together. The script is tight. The leads are great. Most of the supporting cast, with some notable exceptions, give wonderful performances. It reportedly cost $10k to make so, yes, the production values are severely lacking but, you know what, for 10k they did a helluva a job. Here's the analogy for the idiots who don't like this: My mom LOVES the movie Ghost. That movie is crap. *I* love the movie Truly Madly Deeply, which is basically the same ghost/love story but it towers over Ghost. Thinking she'd love it, I showed it to her. She thought it was "weird" because the ghosts watched old movies in the living room.Don't be an idiot. Find this movie and watch it. It's so much fun!

blah blah blah. Already boring but hey, the opening credits contains some really nice moments. It's better then the movie. A lot of talking, stupid conversations. An unbelievable serial killer. Again some talking, boredom arises. Some stabbing.Nothing happens except....talking Almost over, one nice scene, the guy loosing his mascularity. And then again a lot of talking. Ahaaa, the end of the movie, you wouldn't believe it, stabbing while they are...talking.End credits Don't waist your time on this turkey, a waist of time and money. Better watch "man bites dog" a Belgian movie

The problem with so many zero budget films is that they really spend too much time on talking. Too talky equals dull. Scenes of talking heads that go on forever pretty much ruin many low budget efforts. this one is no exception. It feels like the author thinks he has something important to say so he makes sure every member of the cast says it. For an hour and a half. Talk and talk and then kill a person and talk while doing it and then talk some more. The film wants to be edgy. A nd shocking. And it may have worked, if I had not been talked to sleep. The ultimate sin for any movie is to bore an audience. This one has a budget against it. Uneven acting. Bad lighting. But to bore me, now THAT is the final straw. I love low budget films. I like zero budget films like films by Todd Sheets, Mark Polonia, JR Bookwalter and more. But this one is not able to sustain tension, suspense or interest. The direction is flat and takes no chances and the ideas behind the film deserve more. Watch natural Born Killers again instead.

------- WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD -------Bloodletting is one of the better low budget horror flicks to come out in the 90's involving the serial killer theme. The main characters are Butch and Serena. The basic plot involves a demented tale of murder and mayhem with many twists and shocks.Bloodletting was not an easy film to make. It's shooting time was only 3 or 4 days with a very meager budget. There was high tension on the set throughout filming and several friendships were tarnished for years. It's amazing that the final cut turned out to be a decent little movie, although it's not without mistakesA newly released official DVD of "Bloodletting" is packed with many bonus features. Although the picture and sound are nothing to rave about, it looks as good as it will ever look on DVD, especially considering it wasn't shot on 35mm film. It is presented in Full Frame, which is it's original aspect ratio. The new sound remix is leagues better than the old vhs edition. Now for the actual special features:It includes the short film "I've Killed Before" which was shot before Bloodletting and also starred Ariauna Albright & James L. Edwards. This is basically a shortened version of Bloodletting with some minor differences in the story and names. Shot on video, it had a poor production that made the final product suffer...however it is still entertaining, if only to compare with the later Bloodletting.A new and interesting "Making Of" feature sheds some light on the problems that plagued the production. Some deleted scenes are also worth it to buy this DVD. Trailers for Bloodletting and many other Tempe movies are also included. A still gallery is also very nice, with production photos and artwork of the various old vhs editions. A large section of Text Reviews from various sources are also included.The DVD does include an inner insert with notes from Tempe's J.R. Bookwalter. Perhaps the nicest feature is the DVD-ROM feature. If you place this in the DVD drive on your computer you can access the FULL SOUNDTRACK for Bloodletting (previously for sale on CD) in high-quality MP3 format!Not everyone will enjoy Bloodletting as much as some. Several scenes could be quite offensive to certain people. Especially the baby killing scene and the grotesque scene paying homage to Wes Craven's classic "Last House On The Left". But, if you're a fan of low-budget horror then you really need to check it out......