James Lorinz (Jeffrey), Joanne Ritchie (Mrs. Shelley), Patty Mullen (Elizabeth), J.J. Clark (Mr. Shelley), C.K. Steefel (Dolores), Louise Lasser (Mom), Charlotte Helmkamp (Honey), Joseph Gonzalez (Zorro).
In Frankenhooker, Jeff is a med-school dropout and inventor whose fiancée is killed by a runaway lawnmower that he invented. Able to save her head, Jeff decides to rebuild her body with readily available parts from prostitutes. Though this may sound like a reasonable plot for a horror film, this is actually a ridiculously done B-movie. The plot is really secondary to poking fun at low budget horror flicks and other Frankenstein films.
Acting was awful here, or was it? While performances were lacking from just about every aspect, that also could have been the intent of the film. Lorinz felt like he was trying to inject some depth to his character but it came off as a very poorly done impersonation. Gonzalez, while physically fitting for his role, felt dry and inexperienced, as did the remainder of the cast.
Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were all B-movie fodder with strange lingering shots, poorly done sets, and backgrounds that felt incidental. Effects were ridiculously elementary and rough, but surprisingly added to the comedy impact of the film. Dialogue was campy, corny, and often lacking purpose. Sound and soundtrack lacked energy.
If you are a B-movie fan you should enjoy Frankenhooker, which is darn near a poster child for the genre. Who recommended this thing to me anyway? Those hoping for an actual horror flick, exciting effects, or quality acting may be disappointed.
With plenty of gore, drugs, sexuality, nudity, and foul language, save this for older teens and above.
Released: 1990
Reviewed: 5.30.16
Star rating: 2 out of 5
Genre: Cult Comedies, B-movies, Cult Horror, Frankenstein satire, Sci-Fi Horror
copyright ©2016 Dave Riedel
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