Director:
Lucio Fulci
Writers:
Lucio Fulci (story), Gianfranco Clerici (story)
Stars:
Jack Hedley, Almanta Suska and Paolo Malco
Movie:
No stranger to controversy, Lucio Fulci has made a number of unrelentingly violent films that have angered both audiences and critics alike. Nothing however prepared viewers for the brutally, misogynistic 'The New York Ripper', one of Fulci's most hated and misunderstood films.
Cloaked in the shadows of the New York skyline, someone with a penchant for Daffy Duck impersonations is carving up women in a number of brutal ways. Charged with taking down this madman is Detective Fred Williams (Jack Hedley), who enlists the help of university professor Dr. Paul Davis (Paolo Malco) to try and make sense of these strange, violent murders. With the bodies starting to pile up, Williams and Davis have to rely on their only witness and survivor of a 'Ripper' attack, student Fay Majors (Almanta Keller), who believes the killer to be disfigured sex fiend Mickey Scellenda.
God I love this movie, from the ludicrously voiced murder, to the assortment of crazy downright demented supporting characters that populate Fulci's most entertaining flick. I know there are a lot of horror fans who have a love/hate relationship with his work, but you can't deny his bloody ambitions. While censorship was rampant in the mid '80s, Fulci defiantly never shied away from showing the true horror of murder. and its bloody aftermath. Whether he's making an entry in the zombie genre (Zombie Flesh Eaters), or here as a violent slasher/giallo hybrid, he is always stayed committed to making the most of his chosen genre. Although his work does lack a certain finesse, that say an Argento production has, I personally think they are unique and effective enough to be taken seriously on their own rewarding merits.
As I mentioned before 'New York Ripper' has the unfortunate disadvantage of being labeled Fulci's most controversially, misogynistic movie. As he takes his trademark extended gore style to Everest levels of unpleasantness, towards his female cast. From the toe masturbation moment, to the infamous nipple slicing scene, and not forgetting the horrific green hued, bottle meets vagina murder. While these scenes are admittedly disturbing when taken out of context, the film is so out of whack with reality, that as part of the movie as a whole, the violence comes off more as cartoonish than offensive. I guess it just comes down to whether you can accept his particular style or not, I personally can't get enough of the demented carnival ride that is 'New York Ripper'.
Rating:
If you're looking for something a little different over the more routine American slashers, this will certainly tickle your morbid curiosity. For fans of bizarre, outlandish cinema, no one can take you to strange lands, filled with bloody fruits, like Fulci can. With this, and his 'Gates Of Hell' trilogy, Fulci has rightfully joined other Italian horror legends like Bava and Argento, as masters of horror.