Lucker (1986)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Director:

Johan Vandewoestijne

Writers:

Johan Vandewoestijne (written by)
John Kupferschmidt (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

1986 (Belgium)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Plot:

A serial killer awakens from a coma and escapes from a mental hospital to kill a survivor of his slayings years ago, all the while stalking, terrifying, and killing women on the way.

Plot Keywords:

Mental Hospital | Survivor | Victim | Stalking | Escape

Cast

Nick Van Suyt	...	John Lucker
Helga Vandevelde	...	Cathy Jordan
Let Jotts	...	Prostitute
Marie Claes	...	Sharon
Martine Scherre	...	Christine
Carry Van Middel	...	An
John Edwards	...	Friend
Tony Castillo	...	Dealer
Veerle Dendooven	...	Nurse
Frans Schepens	...	Agent
Werner Onre	...	Man reading newspaper
Nico Karadjian	...	Dealer
Eddy Cosaert	...	Driver
Heidi Callewaart	...	Video customer
Francis Impe
Frank Van Laecke	...	Bobby
Freek Neyrinck
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Frankvan Laccke
Ann Piessen	...	Christine

Directed by
Johan Vandewoestijne

Writing credits
Johan Vandewoestijne		(written by)
John Kupferschmidt		(screenplay) &
Johan Vandewoestijne		(screenplay)

Produced by
Filip Beys	....	producer
André Coppens	....	producer
Johan Vandewoestijne	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Geert Beernaert
Peter Bonne
François Lamoral
Chris Minjauw
Johan Minjauw

Cinematography by
John Kupferschmidt

Film Editing by
Johan Vandewoestijne

Casting by
Johan Vandewoestijne

Production Design by
Filip Beys

Costume Design by
Filip Beys

Makeup Department
Helga Vandevelde	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Johan Vandewoestijne	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Emmanuel Decoster	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Filip Beys	....	sound

Special Effects by
Filip Beys	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Tony Castillo	....	camera operator

Other crew
Winnie Bauwens	....	script
Filip Beys	....	titles
Pieter Gorin	....	press
Francis Impe	....	clip
Bieke Janssen	....	script

Thanks
Lee Cooper	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Desert Productions
• V.D.S. Films

Distributors

• V.D.S. Films (1987) (Belgium) (VHS)
• BDM Distribution (1987) (Belgium) (VHS)
• M. Films (1987) (France) (VHS)
• Midnight Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Skrik Horror Video (2006) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Synapse Films (2008) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Camera Team  video facilities
• Francis Impe Music  music produced by
• Loca Flash  lighting equipment
• Pyral  magnetic recording
• V.D.S. Films  recording studios

Also Known As:

Lucker the Necrophagous (International: English title)

Runtime:

74 min

Country:

Belgium

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:Not Rated | Finland:K-18 | Australia:(Banned)

Filming Locations:

Kortrijk, Belgium

Company:

Desert Productions

Trivia:

The producer destroyed all of the negatives after the film was finished, so finding a completely uncut copy is very difficult.

Goofs:

Plot holes: Lucker is a fugitive escaped from a mental clinic. The police are beginning a massive manhunt for him, and have starting points from where his victim's bodies were found (he never leaves that general area). Yet he still manages to stay in an apartment room for a week without leaving, or without the police showing up. Several people in his immediate vicinity have seen him, and the authorities surely have photos of him. If Lucker were to stay in the same place the whole time, the police would have most definitely found him within that week.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Nurse: What's wrong with him?
Bobby: Suicide attempt.
Nurse: Hmm. Who is this guy, anyway?
Bobby: His name is John Lucker. A few years ago, he murdered eight girls. Raped them afterwards. And when I mean afterwards, I mean while some of the corpses were decomposing!

Movie Connections:

References Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

Soundtrack:

Theme from Lucker

Finger-licking good!

Lucker the Necrophagous is a testament to the type of film that you either love it or hate it; there is no in between. The general consensus is that it's a terrible, disgusting movie with absolutely no redeeming values. That's right, it is. Frankly, it's downright appalling. It's another rare movie that exists only to be as atrocious as it can be, without any sort of justification. I'm a part of the minority, however, who found it worth their while. Undoubtedly, there are several boring scenes, and of course, the dubbing and acting are terrible, but there are some completely unexpected moments of sheer dread that I couldn't help but to enjoy myself. Naturally, Lucker remains as a complete surprise to me. It stays as one of the most depraved, misogynist, and disturbing movies ever conceived, but along with this grotesque content are some tense and fear-inspiring scenes. I think I found Lucker so effective is because I didn't have any expectations for it, but I was still exhilarated to see not just a famous obscurity, but one of the most shocking and appalling movies ever made. It was really a charged experience.

John Lucker has attempted suicide during a mental institution transfer, and now lies heavily sedated in a private clinic. Of course, he wakes up. He lurks around the hospital and eventually kills one of his doctors (this is one scene that has a few minutes of walking, but pays off with a brutally gory scene). He then kills the doctor's girlfriend in her car, drives off, and has sex with her fresh corpse. The next morning, he walks his way (again, for a few minutes) to town where he finds that a victim of his crimes from eight years ago, Cathy Jordan, has survived. Outraged, he continues to fulfill his sick lust by stalking and brutally murdering women, yet he becomes so overcome with rage and shame for not killing Cathy off that it develops into a physical psychosis. He decides it can wait a week, however, as one of the women he's killed since escaping (a prostitute) has turned into a nice, pus-filled corpse, presenting the infamous necrophilia scene that remains as one of the very few movie scenes that made me want to gag. He then finally arrives at Cathy Jordan's apartment building with yet another victim, and plays a sick game of simply watching her psychological torment and listening to her scream. Lucker eventually gets bored and kills Cathy's husband and goes after her. He leaves her with his other still-living victim, but she gets loose, stabs Lucker, and escapes. Lucker's mad as hell and must bring this to an end, once and for all.

This is not a perfect film by any means. Some parts indeed are rather slow, and the acting and dialogue were some of the most humorous (and then turned incredibly annoying). It was easy enough to do, as some of the content is so appalling that the dialogue faded into the background as I watched these overwhelming displays. Though Lucker tries to be the most insanely putrid movie imaginable with necrophilia and misogyny, it also has the simple structure and execution of the standard slasher movie. These elements, though cliché and watered down, are very creepy in the film's rough atmosphere, even though there's essentially no reason to fear for the victims. All characters present are simply meant to pad the body count and to make excuses for putrid scenes of overly-dramatic blood and guts. Why I think it's effective is because there's such an insane fear of the villain, not for the victims. Each time Lucker began to kill someone was a moment for me to wonder with dread what he was going to do this time (this all works because Nick Van Suyt plays such a good psychopath). Because of this natural tension being spewed by a most vile killer, I didn't mind the longer periods of walking and stalking, which seem to be the biggest complaint of this film. In fact, it was almost a relief from some of the stress produced by the mere presence of John Lucker. His uncaring and unforgiving attitude in how he kills people creates some truly unrelenting terror. This is also amplified by the music, which had a very creepy electronic tone that reminded me of the music from The Shining. There's a eerie feeling to the whole movie.

Though some horror elements here are standard, Lucker is still one of the most disgusting and unapologizing movies I've ever seen. The sheer brutality of not only the murders, but of the necrophilia angle is stomach churning. There are no limits set to how Vandewoestijne tries to shock and horrify his audience, most notably by the famous finger-licking scene. Other than just the incredibly sick necrophilia angle, the misogyny expressed in this film is outrageous and even maddening sometimes. Scenes of Lucker pulling up a chair to watch his victim scream in pain, agony, and terror are unbelievably barbaric, and his efforts at humiliation and degradation are terrifying and enraging. Those who have seen I Spit on Your Grave will see much of the same disgust and disrespect for women that this shows, maybe even more, so be sure to hold onto your hats. I can easily imagine showing this to someone who will have to leave the room to vomit. It's that type of exploitation, and it should never be taken lightly. Like I said, the slow points and humorously annoying acting are almost saving relief from what atrocities are committed in unflinching, in-your-face detail. As exploitation goes, Lucker's on the extreme!