When I was growing up, I saw this movie (under the title "The Dark Ride") in several video stores in my town. I was curious about it, but I never got around to renting it. Recently, I found a copy in a thrift store, and felt it was now or never. To tell the truth, I thought it would be awful, but to my surprise I found several aspects of the movie worthy of merit. It's decently acted for the most part by the no-name cast, for one thing. And there are a number of scenes involving the killer that have some genuine creepiness, such as using the simple but effective technique of little to no background music. The movie also correctly illustrates that investigations of serial killers take a lot of long and hard work. Unfortunately, that leads to the big problem of the movie. Even though the movie runs less than 90 minutes, the story is still too drawn out, and gets dull at times. Also, if you are looking for plenty of exploitation material like gore and sexual stuff, there isn't much of that here. In fact, it wouldn't take that much editing to make this movie safe to broadcast on commercial TV. So while I am firm in my opinion to not seek out this movie, I will say that if you find yourself watching it you won't find it completely bad.

I'm surprised to see so many positive reviews here. Not that this is a bad film by any means, but I think that people are trying too hard to find significance and meaning in this somewhat dull crime flick. As has been mentioned in other reviews, much of this movie was allegedly inspired by the crimes of Ted Bundy. Yes, John Karlen's character (the killer) does torture and murder attractive young women, but the resemblance pretty much ends there. Bundy was a good looking charmer, while this guy is a creepy freak, plus, I don't recall any detective having his mistress murdered during an abortive attempt to snare Bundy. Add this to about another 100 inconsistencies, and you can see that there isn't a lot of commonality. The Hillside Stranglers or even the Zodiac had more in common with Karlen's character than Bundy.Anyway, to me, this film is most effective when looked at as being a prototype for the buddy films of the 80s like Lethal Weapon, 48 Hours, et al. James Luisi is the tough cop, and for me, his unending tough guy posturing and attempts to be "the man" around women half his age came off as forced and eventually tiresome. I was more entertained by his sidekick Martin Speer, who was barely discernible amidst his forest of facial hair and feathered do. TV staple Susan Sullivan is adequate as Luisi's mistress, and the rest of the cast is generally competent.Worth a look, and entertaining if one isn't expecting too much. I must say, the basketball scene between the 2 detectives is hilarious. Neither of them look like they had ever handled a ball before and the stilted. awkward gamesmanship is a hoot.

Cruel and cunning misogynistic serial killer Danny (superbly played with creepy intensity by John Karlen of "Dark Shadows" and "Daughters of Darkness" fame) preys on nubile young lady hitchhikers in a small San Francisco town. It's up to tough, determined Detective Vince De Carlo (a fine and convincing performance by James Luisi) and his easygoing partner Mike (a solid Martin Speer; Dee Wallace husband in Wes Craven's horror classic "The Hills Have Eyes") to nab the foul fiend. Director Jeremy Hoenack, working from a tight and gripping script by Maralyn Thoma (amazingly, Thoma has gone on to a hugely successful career as a head writer for various daytime TV soap operas!), relates the grim and absorbing story at a steady pace, maintains a gritty, serious tone throughout, and develops a considerable amount of nerve-wracking suspense. Moreover, Hoenack admirably eschews for the most part the standard graphic sex and violence route of typical trashy 70's drive-in exploitation fare to focus more on the plot and characters. However, the violence against women is still pretty ugly and upsetting stuff, with the movie reaching its harrowing zenith with a gut-wrenching sequence depicting Danny brutalizing two frightened gals in back of his van. This film further benefits from credible acting by a sturdy cast: Luisi and Speer make for likable protagonists, Karlen excels as one memorably vicious and depraved mother-fixated wacko, plus there's neat supporting turns by Susan Sullivan as helpful psychologist Carol, Hilarie Thompson as the sweet Annie, and the ubiquitous George 'Buck' Flower as old-timer witness Pete. Arthur R. Botham's pretty polished cinematography adds an impressive sense of scope with its occasional breathtaking aerial panoramic shots of San Francisco. Bryon Olson's shuddery score likewise hits the shivery spot. The startling downbeat ending packs a wicked punch. A real sleeper.

I came across this movie in a list of movies inspired by true crime cases. The inspiration for this film was the cases of Ted Bundy and Edmund Kempler.The script is very simple, clearly having some influence by European films like 'Bird With The Crystal Plumage' or 'Black Belly of the Tarantula'. However, Maralyn Thoma doesn't make this mystery that complex, focusing more on the cat and mouse game between the killer and the detective.Compared to most modern slick thrillers and horror movies, it is easy to consider this film dull with it's steady progression and lack of cheap fake scares. What this film is trying to achieve isn't cheap shocks but a slow sense of frustration and dread.The killer is underdeveloped as a character for a simple reason, this film is from 1978. A lot of the information about serial killers, their psycho-pathology and victimology was still being developed at the time. Without the information we take for granted now, it was much better to keep the tension by detaching from the killer, making him a monster by mystery.The actors in this film are giving their all. James Luisi is a very sympathetic, complicated protagonist, absorbed in this case and torn between his home life with his family, and his mistress, a psychologist who can give him his first clues on the nature of this kind of monster.The girls playing the victims are very convincing in their naivety, their shock at being trapped and their fear being in the hands of a madman. They aren't mere cookie cut bodies or subtly being blamed for their victimization, with small action and dialog, they are made real and ordinary for us.Oh, and also because it is a late seventies film, there has to be one lame, over sentimental song. That's just a given.This is an overlooked film, and that's a pity. For a true horror maven, it is well worth watching.