Luther The Geek Blu Ray Review (Troma)

Luther the Geek is a 1989 slasher film written and directed by Carlton J. Albright (The Children). It was produced by David Platt (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, The Planters, and Swag Town). A young country boy is plunged into the depths of homicidal madness after witnessing the strange exploits of a carnival “geek,” a caged drunk so desperate for whisky that he bites the heads off live chickens in front of a freak show audience. Thirty years later, Luther (played by: Edward Terry from The Children) is all grown up now. He’s been released on parole, after spending his childhood behind bars for a series of grisly murders. Armed with only a pair of razor-sharp metal dentures and only able to communicate through chicken clucks, Luther resurrects his bloody rampage as he terrorizes the citizens of a small town with his unique style of chaos. The psychopath takes a young mother and her family which includes Beth (played by: Stacy Haiduk from The Young and the Restless, Days of Our Lives, Superboy, All My Children, True Blood, Prison Break, and SeaQuest 2032) hostage in their isolated farmhouse!!!! Luther the Geek is a fun mix of backwoods horror, comedy, and slasher with some circus thrown in for good measure. Director Carlton J. Albright doesn’t waste any time getting into the violence here which is always great for this type of feature. The opening shows what really inspired the young boy to turn into what he is in present day. Luther killed early in his life but since his age, society gives him another chance because they think he is reformed. Lead actor Edward Terry didn’t do much in his career besides this plus other project but he had a very original look to him that made him stand out from other slashers. He was perfect for something like this. Luther isn’t your typical silent killer, this villain likes to cluck like a chicken which just makes the evil character even more bizarre than his appearance. He has an interesting weapon of choice, his razor blades sharpened teeth that tears through flesh with ease. Legendary soap actress Stacy Haiduk appears in her first major role as Beth. She’s the daughter of the family that’s kidnapped by the lunatic. She knows what kind of film that she’s making here. She goes over the top but it works for this. She’s not shy at all, she shows off her stunning body in Luther the Geek. The rest of the supporting cast includes Joan Roth (In Transit), Thom Mills (Gang Related), Jerry Clarke (Tracks), Tom Brittingham, Carlton Williams, David Pavlosky, Karen Maurise (Dark Skies), and Gil Rogers (The Children). For some reason, the main special fx artist didn’t want to be credited for this. It’s very surprising because their work on this is the best thing about Luther the Geek. It keeps itself very dark and disturbing with it’s graphic gore. Luther murders his victims like a vampire with his dangerous bites. There’s not much logic when it comes to this 80’s slasher and it’s overall story but it focuses on pure entertainment. It cuts out most character development and it gets straight to the point. It gives the crowd a quality psycho with loads of blood and nudity so it delivers all of the goods expected. It’s dedicated to one main location when it all settles in for it’s showdown. I appreciate Luther the Geek because it’s so damn weird and it does whatever it wants. The tension creates it’s hostile environment and it’s always entertaining. It has a smooth flow to it and it’s never dull. It has solid replay value to it. It’s one of the better Troma distributed titles from back in the day, RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Troma! This 1080p (1.85:1) uncut transfer is the same 2K restoration from Vinegar Syndrome in 2016 from the original camera negative. It’s massive improvement over the older VHS and DVD home video releases, I wish all Troma titles got the Vinegar Syndrome treatment. They can restore anything and make it so much better than you would ever think it could look. This low budget slasher is at it’s best possible quality here. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track on the disc. The audio has it’s stand out spots mainly for the kills and it’s score. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the tension is elevated, and the music has a big boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with director Carlton J. Albright that’s moderated by Vinegar Syndrome’s Joe Rubin. He chats about the origin of the concept for Luther the Geek. He talks why they shot in Illinois and the location that they got from family. He wanted to call it The Freak but they were threatened to be sued by the owners of Freaks at the time. He goes over the cast, characters, favorite scenes, and it’s overall production. He drops plenty of knowledge about Luther the Geek which includes some inside stories and personal information from his experiences on it. It was a quick shoot and they got lots of help from volunteers to save on their small budget. It has a few quick “Intros” from Lloyd Kaufman and Carlton J. Albright. It has a little over 10 minute “Fowl Play”. It’s an interview with actor Jerry Clarke from the original Vinegar Syndrome release. He chats about his personal experience on the horror film and that it was one of his favorite gigs. He shows off his art and his place during the conversation. He goes over some of his favorite scenes and it’s locations from Luther. He is very passionate about being an artist these days and he goes into his various art over the years that he’s worked on. It has a little over 6 minute “Interview” with director Carlton J. Albright. It has a little over 5 minute “Interview” with director Carlton J. Albright. He chats about how he came up with the concept. He talks about it originally being called The Freak. He says he wrote the role for Edward Terry. He shows appreciation for the lead and he tells some stories about him. It has the almost 3 minute “Interview” with actor William Albright. He chats about his experience playing young Luther here. He talks about working with his dad on this low budget slasher. It has a little over 6 minute “Interview” with director Carlton J. Albright. He chats about his origins in making movies. He talks about how he got help from students for credit. He tells some inside stories about working with them as a project. His special fx artist wanted to leave 2 weeks early and he didn’t want credit for his work on this. It has the 20 minute “Fowl Takes”. It’s an additional interview with director Carlton J. Albright. It’s broken down into 4 different segments which includes “Fight Between Luther and The Police Officer”, “The Old Woman Getting Attacked by Luther”, “Luther getting Shot”, and “The Shower Scene”. He dives into a variety of scenes from Luther the Geek and he provides some inside information about these situations in the movie. It has some clips and some behind the scenes footage from the set here. It has around 6 minutes of “Troma’s Freak Show” that’s broken down into 4 different segments which includes”The Archery Freak”, “The Man Who Walks on Blades”, “The Sword Swallower”, and “Tim the Tourture King”. It shows different people on the streets showing off their bizarre talents. It has the almost 2 minute “Tromatized” music video from Abbie Harper and directed by Lily-Hayes Kaufman. It has the little over a minute “Troma in Times Square”. It promotes the Troma Now app. It has the under a minute “Radiation March”. This might be the most used special feature of all time for home video. It has the little over a minute “TA in 4K!”. It’s a quick video promoting the Toxic Avenger franchise in 4K. It has the “Original Trailer” for Luther the Geek. It has “Coming Distractions” which features 10 different “Trailers” from Troma. Troma carries over all of the bonus material for Luther the Geek including the Vinegar Syndrome stuff here. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!