Well I must say that this movie is certainly an interesting addition to the slasher genre, a movie about a killer nun, well with a title like that I just had to see this, apparently this movie was part of the video nasties list back in the 1980's and well that just made me want to see this movie even more.The basic plot Sister Gertrude (Anita Ekberg) a deranged nun who resides at a gloomy geriatric hospital and rules over her patients with an iron fist, stamping on an elderly woman's false teeth , injecting herself with morphine and even resorting to lesbianism with another nun. But someone starts killing off the patients and all signs point to Sister Gertrude, is it her or is someone out to frame her.Well I must say that this movie is just hilarious, seconds into this movie you know that Sister Gertrude is a villain, thanks to Anita Ekberg's comical overacting performance, and plus it's known very early on that she's a junkie and addicted to sex (kinky sex) as well. It makes you think is how she was even let into the convent and how in the hell she doesn't get thrown out. Obivously this movie lacks big time in logic and sense but once the murders start this movie really gets going. There are major drawbacks in this movie, like it takes way too long to get going and the sickening scene with the old man in the wheelchair and the 20 year old girl was just plain sick and wasn't needed. Killer Nun is certainly stylish and sleazy in almost every way but lacks depth and substance, the supposed twist ending, was easily guessed, I figured it out after the first murder. Anita Ekberg gives her role as Sister Gertrude true elegance, she was hilarious and stole every scene she was in, she was brilliant and Sister Mathieu played by Paola Morra was beautiful and shows true innocence and had great chemistry with Anita Ekberg.All in all "Killer Nun" is a fun ride with interesting murders and certainly shocking, but it doesn't really require more than one viewing and not quite up there with the other Italian shockers that came out during this period.

Well, with a name like this, you definitely know that it falls into the Nunsploitation category. Without having seen this title, or knowing the premise, I already knew it was Italian - and it is, directed by Giulio Berruti. Only something with the name "The Killer Nun" could it come from Italy, and only from the 1970's. To be honest I don't even know where to start with the analysis for this one...there's not too much to say and plenty to mention all at the same time. There are nuns. There are lesbian undertones. There is nudity, sex, and a fair amount of weakly-displayed violence that virtually has no effect whatsoever on the viewer. There are only a handful of films that people consider to exist in the Nunsploitation category with this one leading the pack. Now I almost have to see the others just so I can see what I'm missing out on. I don't know know how to convey my thoughts concerning the plot - some nun who works at a hospital has a heroine and morphine addiction and is paranoid about her possible diagnosis of cancer. Of course they have to throw in Giallo elements, or to us Americans, the Who-dun-it. I'm not racist by any means, but this is typical 70's Italian sleaze in every sense of the word. If I was the type of person to be offended by movies, which I'm not, this title would probably manage to do that on every level. I invite films to explore and display themes not socially acceptable if they manage to have an impact. Berruti's resume is pitiful and I wouldn't be surprised if he was run out of town after making this. In conclusion, it's not thrilling, shocking or stimulating. I would rather use the box art for this film to line the bottom of my cat's litter box. If any of you have ever thought about seeing a lesbian nun with a drug addiction and possible murderous tendencies then you should look no further.

Without any prejudices, I went into "Killer Nun" with a half smile and a head full of wonder. The taglines on the box don't do this one justice! The soundtrack is so cool it's stupid. The cinematography is right on. The violence and gore is better than "Suspiria" and the overall sleaze is on the level of, say, "New York Ripper." This is honestly one of the only true exploitation films I have seen. It exploits the convent and it exploits religion, without a doubt. But it does it so perfectly and with such an underlying message, it makes it all okay. This film is about hypocrisy, denial, abuse, and depravity. It absolutely defines nunsploitation in my opinion. I can't imagine seeing a film in that genre that is any better than "Killer Nun." I thoroughly enjoyed this one and if you like Italian horror, you will too. One of the coolest flicks I've seen recently.9 out of 10, kids.

Sister Gertrude, in the 1978 Italian horror film "The Killer Nun," is certainly not your typical, garden-variety nun. Addicted to mainlining morphine (Sister Morphine?!?!) as a result of a recent brain tumor operation, she also smokes cigarettes, drinks liquor in bars, hallucinates, has up-against-the-wall sex with casually picked-up men, wears makeup, steals, engages in domineering lesbian sex with her roommate, and, perhaps most shocking of all, refers to her Mother Superior as "bitch." Still...does that mean she's responsible for the wave of recent murders in the French hospital where she works? What would YOU think? As played by Miss Sweden 1951 herself, Anita Ekberg, Gertrude really is a sight to behold, both in and out of the, er, habit. Sadly, this picture, though great sounding in synopsis, is a real mixed bag, never dishes out quite enough in the sex and violence departments, and will probably leave most viewers wanting more in terms of sleaze, shocks and scares. Still, there are some pleasures to be had here. Giulio Berruti's directing is occasionally quite stylish, and the film's score, by Alessandro Alessandroni, is freaky (especially during Gertrude's "shooting sprees") and really quite excellent. Film buffs will also be happy to see Alida Valli and Joe Dallesandro in small roles, and one of the film's murders, featuring multiple hypodermic needles in an old woman's face, should satisfy all the gorehounds out there. The DVD that I just watched, from the good folks at Blue Underground, looks fine but has been poorly dubbed; subtitles would have been infinitely preferable. I had to watch the film twice to make sure I understood the ending correctly--the hushed, fast-talking dubbing doesn't always make things easy--and, if I may make a, um, confession, did appreciate it more the second time around.