Luther the Geek (1989) ** (out of 4)As a child Luther saw a "freak" or a "geek" bite the head off of a chicken and this sends him to murder years later. After spending some time in prison, Luther (Edward Terry) is granted parole and he's not out very long before he starts biting the necks of people to watch them bleed out. Soon he's attacking a mom, her daughter and her boyfriend on an isolated farm.LUTHER THE GEEK became a cult favorite because it's rather unique in certain ways. There's no question that it became popular on video because of it being released by Troma. We all know that the company has a strong cult following and their titles were quite popular in the video stores back in the day. With that said, I must admit that I enjoyed the horror elements of the film but there were some things that just rubbed me the wrong way.I actually got violently angry at this movie because of how stupid the characters were. This mother and daughter combo has to be the dumbest in the history of horror films. I honestly couldn't believe some of the things that I was watching because the characters made one dumb decision after another. There are moments where the characters disappear for no reason at all and when they do reappear, sure enough, they do something stupid yet again. I know horror films wouldn't work if the characters were smart all of the time but this here is just ridiculous. Things actually get worst when a cop shows up and then things turn even dumber if you can believe it!The film does a nice job working with its low budget and there are some good and gory death scenes. The teeth in Luther's mouth are quite effective and they lead to some bloody and gory death scenes. The cast are okay for this type of film but I will say that Terry does a nice job as the main freak. Throw in some nudity and a silly sex scene and you've pretty much got everything that made this a hit on VHS back in the day. LUTHER THE GEEK isn't a complete success due to how stupid the characters are but it's worth watching.

This is an odd movie. On the surface it's no different to many other d-grade gore movies but in at least a few ways it stands out. Firstly, the main killer character is really weird. How the heck a guy who only ever clucks like a chicken got paroled is totally beyond me. What was that female parole board member thinking: "he's totally reformed and rehabilitated". He clucks! Another problem with Luther the Geek is the script/direction for the women. The daughter is so pathetic and seemingly stupid that if she was mine I'ld slap her. In attempting to untie her mother off the bed she struggles with knots and just doesn't seem to think, "I'll get scissors, or a knife". Later on, in a similar attempt to untie her mother she wanders down stairs and starts searching in a box of scrap-booking stuff for some scissors, eventually she gets a knife. By the way, this is after the killer has obviously left in the car and just returned. Bizarre. On the plus side the daughter did get her kit off for the shower scene, so that was nice, although again unusual. It seems that in many of these d-grade gore movies they happily show throats being bitten open with gushing blood but the sight of a female breast is somehow too strong for the audience. In general, it worked but it was annoying and nasty, although the bare breasts made up for some of that.

When he was a kid, young Luther saw a circus geek (a man who bites the heads off chickens and other small animals for booze money) perform, warping his psyche. Years later, he's in police custody, but he's allowed to leave thanks to an idiotic parole board. That's bad news for a mother, her daughter, the daughter's boyfriend, and a police officer, all who come face to face with Luther-and it's not pretty. Oh, and Luther likes to cluck like a chicken, and has a pair of sharp, metal dentures.While watching "Luther the Geek", two things go through your mind: 1.) What the hell did I just watch, and 2.) I can't believe that this was made in 1990, and not in the 70's or early 80's.That's right, "Luther the Geek" is a real oddity in horror cinema, and that's saying something. People do stupid things, poor dialog and acting is delivered (with the exception of Edward Terry, who does a stellar job as one of horror's strangest villains in Luther), plot holes remain unexplained, and various surreal events occur, including an ending that practically defies description.Also, as I mentioned earlier, "Luther" feels nothing like a 90's horror flick. With it's odd villain, unapologetic sleaze, gore, nudity, sex, synthesizer score, and low budget charm, "Luther" feels like it came from the days of old school Grindhouse style horror. If that's what director Carlton J. Albright was aiming for, than for the most part, he succeeded in making a nice homage to those old movies.In the end, whether or not you like it, I can guarantee this: you haven't seen anything like it.

This isn't a very good movie, but it is easily the best Troma Studios film I have ever viewed. Lloyd Kaufman - the "brains" behind Troma - isn't concerned with a good plot or even making a moderately entertaining film. His chief concern is making something bizarre. And his definition of bizarre oftentimes mirrors my definition of terrible cinema.In this film we have the titled character Luther - whose favorite pastime isn't Baseball, but biting the heads off of chickens - receiving his release from lockup. The board has deemed him rehabilitated despite the fact that he doesn't speak - he merely clucks like a chicken - and has a set of razorblade dentures at his disposal. Of course, once Luther is set free, he goes about causing mayhem, first at a grocery store and later at a farm house.VIOLENCE: $$$$$ (Lots of violence in this oftentimes tasteless flick. Luther sinks his razorblade chompers into a poor elderly lady waiting at a bus stop and then spends the rest of the film terrorizing the mother and daughter at the farmhouse).NUDITY: $$$$$ (Stacy Haiduk delivers some noteworthy skin in his picture, as the former Lois Lane (I can't recall which Superman edition she was from) gives us a shower scene followed by a romp in bed with her boyfriend - a guy who just doesn't have any chemistry with Ms. Haiduk. The extended shower scene footage in the DVD extras gives the viewer quite a bit more of Stacy. She is quite something).STORY: $ (Forgettaboutit!!!! Whitey Styles' screenplay may just be the worst ever written. The way in which Luther is released from the asylum completely throws all credibility out the window. His dialogue is something that a pre-schooler might write and the actions he writes for his characters border on the absurd. It's as if Styles spent ten years without human contact and completely forgot how people react in certain situations).ACTING: $$ (The film belongs to Edward Terry who actually does a decent job as the Geek. He is quite menacing in a stupid barnyard fashion. Joan Roth as the mother does a super job in support but Haiduk and her boyfriend's lack of chemistry made their roles awkward at best).