Confessions of a Serial Killer Blu Ray Review (Unearthed Films)

Confessions of a Serial Killer is a 1985 true crime film written and directed by Mark Blair. It’s based on serial killer Henry Lee Lucas. It was the first film made about the mass murderer, a year before the popular Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. Robert Burns was only hired to do the production design but he ended up getting the lead after the original actor dropped out. It originally only got a very limited release back in the day until legendary producer Roger Corman picked it up for a wide home video release for his company New Horizons in 1992. Daniel Ray Hawkins (played by: art director Robert A. Burns from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Re-Animator, Tourist Trap, The Hills Have Eyes, Microwave Massacre, The Howling, Mausoleum, Full Moon High, and Don’t Go Near the Park) has finally been caught by law enforcement. The police officers get a huge surprise as the gruesome horror starts to set in as he speaks. The unknown man starts to confess to a variety of brutal murders over the years. He claims to have killed a little over 200 women during his insane crime spree. He tells them about his awful childhood which includes his whore mother and his crippled father that was forced to watch his wife embarrass him over and over. He was abused by her after suffering more tragedy. He goes over his sadistic travels with partner Moon Lewton (played by: Dennis Hill from Mongrel, The Underneath, Friday Night Lights, and The Innocent) and his lover Molly Lewton (played by: production coordinator Sidney Brammer from Arthur 2: On the Rocks, Cadillac Man, Betsy’s Wedding, The Birds II: Land’s End, and True Believer) as they go across the country terrorizing the united states. Sheriff Will Gaines (played by: Berkley Garrett from Cloak and Dagger, Tender Mercies, and Red Headed Stranger) doesn’t believe the psychopath for all his disturbing stories. He has get into great detail about all his victims in the past to get the true confessions of a serial killer!!!!Confessions of a Serial Killer has always felt more realistic than it’s companion piece Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. Unfortunately, this 1985 serial killer feature never had the success of that one due to it’s small release. It’s basically unknown until it hit home video in 1992 thanks to the legendary Roger Corman. As you know, he was a marketing genius so he took advantage of the 1991 horror hit The Silence of the Lambs and he created similar cover artwork for Confessions of a Serial Killer for it’s worldwide re-release. It definitely grabbed attention and it had it’s own independent success for the direct to video craze at the time but people were expecting a totally different film when they rented it. After revisiting this, it makes me wonder if director John McNaughton seen Confessions of a Serial Killer before he made Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer because the musical scores for both true crime movies are very similar. Lead actor Robert A. Burns was mainly known for being an art director for some of the greatest horror films ever made. He was also a director and he did special fx. He was the production designer for this one behind the scenes besides acting. Robert A. Burns actually gives a great performance as Daniel Ray Hawkins aKa Henry Lee Lucas. He looks more like the real life serial killer than Michael Rooker. Since he’s was in the movie business most of his life, he was a natural when it came to being in front of the camera. That’s honestly how most of the unknown cast here comes off in Confessions of a Serial Killer.You experience them as the actual people, it feels real which adds to it’s disturbing charm. Former real life detective Dennis Hill as Moon Lewton aKa Otis Toole is very impressive as the creepy sidekick. He’s a bad influence even for someone as crazy as Daniel Ray Hawkins. When they are around each other, they bring out the wurst of their psychopathic personalities. Sidney Brammer as Molly Lewton was the good balance between all that evil. For someone who barely any acting experience, she brought a powerful presence that you felt every time she was on the screen. She just wanted a normal life but she got mixed up with the wrong people. The script takes you through so many different experiences from the ruthless serial killer while he was traveling everywhere. Confessions of a Serial Killer has it’s violent moments but it isn’t a gore fest or anything like that. It all actually seems real which is even better. There’s a good amount of nudity in this, director Mark Blair was not shy about it being sleazy at all. You kinda feel dirty after watching it. This director’s cut basically has been unreleased since it’s original release. It’s not one of those petty uncut versions with just a few extra pointless minutes added to it. This director’s cut is 17 minutes longer than the most known cut that’s been available on home video. It adds so much more violence and character development to the story. I really enjoyed the other two cuts over the years but this one blows both of them away. This might be the best true crime feature that you have never seen or experienced before, I really hope this brand new home video release from Unearthed Films gives it the attention it has always deserved. The replay value is great here, I’ve lost count how many times I’ve seen it over the years and it always holds up. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Unearthed Films! This 1080p fully uncut and uncensored (1.33:1) transfer is from a brand new restoration. Confessions of a Serial Killer will never be reference quality when it comes to HD but it’s massive improvement over 1992’s VHS. I personally think that that gritty look adds to it’s sadistic charm and it makes the whole experience feel more natural. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track on the disc. The audio is much better than expected here especially when it comes to the score. All of the dialogue is crisp, the evil is elevated, and the music has a killer boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with director Mark Blair aKa John Dwyer, actress Sidney Brammer, and director of photography Layton Blaylock. They chat about the original lead actor got a big high paying Hollywood gig so he ditched the small Confessions of a Serial Killer the last minute. The director talks about how and why he ended up casting Robert A. Burns as the replacement. They say that people that actually knew Henry Lee Lucas said Robert A. Burns channelled the real life killer and he was very similar to him. They joke about the composer putting out his own record of this score and soundtrack overseas, it actually topped the charts over there. They bring up all kinds of cast and crew for this independent production. They go over their work and what some of them are doing now. A decent amount of the crew had small roles or cameos here. They get very detailed and technical about Confessions of a Serial Killer. There’s plenty of information and stories shared on this track. They have lots of fun here and they joke around about their experiences. It has the “The Henry Lee Lucas Story” with author and TV news correspondent James Moore is a little over 6 minutes. He chats about being one of the first to interview and write about Henry Lee Lucas. He talks about his experiences with the lunatic. He says he didn’t have any remorse and that always disturbed him. He brings up at one point, Lucas claimed he killed 300 girls. The stories and numbers always changed over the years when he taking officers to his crime scenes. He mentions Henry’s partner in crime Otis Toole and some of the gruesome stuff that they did together as killing duo. He chats about the film and how it’s the closest real life connection to nightmarish reality. It has the full length little over 100 minute 2020 documentary “Rondo and Bob” directed by Joe O’Connell that’s about actors Robert A. Burns and Rondo Hatton. It has interviews with Dee Wallace, Stuart Gordon, Gary Kent, John Dugan, Allen Danziger, Sidney Brammer, Joe Bob Briggs, Fred Olen Ray, Daniel Pearl, Edwin Neal, Peter Locke, David Gregory, Gunnar Hansen, and many others. It has all kinds of reenactments from real life situations. It has some footage from horror conventions. It takes you through the connection between Robert A. Burns and Rondo Hattan. So many people that knew and respected these two tell stories about them. Lots of appreciation for Texas Chain Saw Massacre in this. It takes you behind the scenes for the iconic art direction from Burns and the wild characters from Hattan. It goes back and forth for both men’s lives. They discuss important moments and memories with them. It briefly talks about Robert A. Burns directing career. There’s a section about Henry Lee Lucas and Confessions of a Serial Killer here. Director Mark Blair explains how Burns became the lead in it. He goes over how Burns studied people around Henry Lee Lucas when he got the role. He says that he transformed into him during the production. Actress Sidney Brammer chats about Burns making her better with his presence. This extra alone is worth the purchase of this brand new blu ray because before this release it’s been very hard to find. It has a “Polaroid Gallery” is almost 3 minutes. It shows off some rare photos from the set. It has a “Promotional Gallery” is a little over a minute. It has a variety of different artwork and home video releases for the serial killer film. It has 2 different “Trailers” for Confessions of a Serial Killer. It comes with a slipcover. It’s available everywhere on July 23rd, CHECK IT OUT!!!!