Someone is killing young women with gardening tools.The police are baffled.Eric Stern,the star of "The Love Butcher" displays a dual personality which is truly fascinating.One character is Caleb,a crippled,bald and ugly gardener whom his women customers pick on.The other character is Lester,Caleb's handsome dead brother.When a woman puts down Caleb,Lester pays her a lethal visit."The Love Butcher" is perhaps the best horror film made by Donald M.Jones,the man behind watchable exploitation flick "Schoolgirls in Chains" and worthless slasher "The Forest".It certainly offers some twists and turns plus a little bit of violence.Eric Stern is quite believable in the dual role and the script is refreshing.Give it a chance.
16 Reviews
What you expect from low budget 70's horror.
abduktionsphanomen4 February 2024
The Love Butcher - 1975
(This Film Rates a C+ )
The public is upset because there have been six murders and no suspects. There is a lot of anger, yelling and shouting. From there we meet, Caleb who is an odd "crippled gimp" gardener for the snobby. He goes home to an already deceased brother (Lester) who torments and belittles him in a delusional like state. Or is this reality? Seems like Lester is the stud and Caleb is the dud when it comes to women. Lester just can't help but kill them though. Caleb slowly delves into madness and the lines are blurred until the twist ending. It isn't awful. The women in this film are portrayed as dumb and stereotypical as are the police officers. The kills aren't gory but there is some intensity behind the actions. Plus, the drowning by having a garden hose shoved down your throat was fun. The music is pretty bad, the acting is juvenile, and the script is lacking. There are some moments that were meant to be funny that really aren't, for instance, challenging a killer by stating "I can outperform you 10 days in a week". But there is sex and boobs.
So-bad-it's-good Psycho copy thriller
Leofwine_draca19 August 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Out of all the cheesy, godawful, low budget exploitation thrillers that hit grindhouse cinemas in the US in the 1970s, THE LOVE BUTCHER has to be one of the funniest – albeit unintentionally. This laugh riot offers an unusual spin on the PSYCHO storyline, which is no surprise: the Hitchcock thriller enjoyed something of a renaissance during the decade, with filmmaker after filmmaker riffing on its plot when making their own sleazy versions of the story. I've seen a fair few of these now and THE LOVE BUTCHER stands head and shoulders above the rest purely because it's so entertainingly bad.
In an outstanding performance, Erik Stern essays a dual performance as Caleb the gardener and Lester the lady killer. Caleb is a self-confessed, self-loathing gimp, crippled and half-blind; he's scorned by the women whose gardens he tends throughout the day. By night, Caleb turns into the smooth, suave and physically perfect Lester, a man who beds beautiful women before offing them with a series of deadly garden implements. Yes, this is a story of schizophrenia packed with scenes of somebody talking to himself, very effective scenes I might add and years before Peter Jackson got the same idea when he turned Gollum into a split-personality psychopath in his LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy. The finger-twirling musical interlude in the mirror is hands-down the funniest thing I've seen in years.
The theme is over done and the film itself far from boring, indeed it's actually very well paced with good interplay between time spent with the murderer and his victims and the traditional police procedural investigation. There are some shocks and surprises along the way, along with a little gore and nudity, although the film has surprisingly little of the latter two qualities that are usually plentiful in such films. While Stern is scene-stealing unforgettable in one of the most over-the-top performances of all time as the titular psychopath, he's assisted by some other fine talent: the unknown Kay Neer in her single screen appearance as a lovely, warm-heated potential victim; B-movie veteran Robin Sherwood (DEATH WISH II) as a man-hater and character actor Richard Kennedy as the cop hot on Stern's heels.
Director Donald Jones made something of a career out of quickly forgotten exploitation quickies. His first film was ABDUCTED, also known as SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS, which explored very similar territory to this one: in essence it was another PSYCHO type film about insanity and women getting murdered. He later made THE FOREST, another insanely rare movie, this time a backwoods slasher that has a certain atmosphere to it. His career ended with the 1993 softcore comedy HOUSEWIFE FROM HELL, which is a shame, as although his films may not be exactly high quality, they're certainly fun to watch.
In an outstanding performance, Erik Stern essays a dual performance as Caleb the gardener and Lester the lady killer. Caleb is a self-confessed, self-loathing gimp, crippled and half-blind; he's scorned by the women whose gardens he tends throughout the day. By night, Caleb turns into the smooth, suave and physically perfect Lester, a man who beds beautiful women before offing them with a series of deadly garden implements. Yes, this is a story of schizophrenia packed with scenes of somebody talking to himself, very effective scenes I might add and years before Peter Jackson got the same idea when he turned Gollum into a split-personality psychopath in his LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy. The finger-twirling musical interlude in the mirror is hands-down the funniest thing I've seen in years.
The theme is over done and the film itself far from boring, indeed it's actually very well paced with good interplay between time spent with the murderer and his victims and the traditional police procedural investigation. There are some shocks and surprises along the way, along with a little gore and nudity, although the film has surprisingly little of the latter two qualities that are usually plentiful in such films. While Stern is scene-stealing unforgettable in one of the most over-the-top performances of all time as the titular psychopath, he's assisted by some other fine talent: the unknown Kay Neer in her single screen appearance as a lovely, warm-heated potential victim; B-movie veteran Robin Sherwood (DEATH WISH II) as a man-hater and character actor Richard Kennedy as the cop hot on Stern's heels.
Director Donald Jones made something of a career out of quickly forgotten exploitation quickies. His first film was ABDUCTED, also known as SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS, which explored very similar territory to this one: in essence it was another PSYCHO type film about insanity and women getting murdered. He later made THE FOREST, another insanely rare movie, this time a backwoods slasher that has a certain atmosphere to it. His career ended with the 1993 softcore comedy HOUSEWIFE FROM HELL, which is a shame, as although his films may not be exactly high quality, they're certainly fun to watch.
Sleazy little dumpster-dive in the "vengeful alter-ego" subgenre.
EyeAskance18 March 2004
From Mirror Releasing, the same outfit which unleashed the soul-corrupting masterpiece SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS, comes this crude little enterprise about a docile gimp yard-worker and his strapping, confident "brother", who is, in actuality, his physically transposed alter ego. It should be no big surprise that the meek, challenged persona is frequently a defenseless pigeon for heartless cruelty and degradation, and that the studly alpha-male persona emerges as his bloody avenger.
Raunchy little killer-thriller obviously culls its gist from the cinema realm of PSYCHO, HORROR HIGH, and similar titles dealing with the psychogram of Jeckyll/Hyde duplexity. It's a patently rollback production, and it shows, but that shabby quality only enhances the film's old-school sleazy goodness. THE LOVE BUTCHER is miles away from "classic" and it probably shouldn't be labeled "high priority" on your watchlist...it's a decent enough little side-order, all the same, a quickie-sickie which more-less delivers, up to its ears in glorious grindhouse lubricity. 5.5/10
Raunchy little killer-thriller obviously culls its gist from the cinema realm of PSYCHO, HORROR HIGH, and similar titles dealing with the psychogram of Jeckyll/Hyde duplexity. It's a patently rollback production, and it shows, but that shabby quality only enhances the film's old-school sleazy goodness. THE LOVE BUTCHER is miles away from "classic" and it probably shouldn't be labeled "high priority" on your watchlist...it's a decent enough little side-order, all the same, a quickie-sickie which more-less delivers, up to its ears in glorious grindhouse lubricity. 5.5/10
There is always another killing
christopher-underwood19 May 2023
There are flowers, mainly roses in the credits, they are beautiful and lovely although there are some bugs and something on the grass. There are more flowers and a gardener but clearly a body with something like a fork right through. Almost at the final credits there is a scream. This is a cop who shouts all the time and a reporter who gets in the way but really there is James Lemp (aka Erik Stern) who is the gardener rather physically impaired with really thick glasses. There is always another killing and it seems as if there have been already more. We hear the killer and he talks to some psycho and then we really see the psycho who has disguises and good acting as it seems he is a bit of a lady's man as well as a lady killer. Are they all the same and the reporter as well, surely not but it is rather splendid although rather silly as well and we have to have a smile even as there is horrible killing. Don Jones who also made Schoolgirls in Chains (1973) and worked also with Mikel Angel who made Psychic Killer and The Candy Tangerine Man both in 1975.
The wrong kind of horror.
haildevilman27 June 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Revived by the video boom in the 80's.
Why? This was a puerile mess.
The acting was so horrible, it's no surprise most of these folks never worked again. And the ones that did were relegated to TV spots.
Erik Stern 'stars' as twins. One ugly, one handsome, both evil. His acting was almost laughably bad. I spent the whole time trying to figure out if he was serious or not.
I rented this because of its graphic packaging. Boy did I get taken. The best scenes are right on the box. There, now YOU don't have to see it. You're welcome.
Why? This was a puerile mess.
The acting was so horrible, it's no surprise most of these folks never worked again. And the ones that did were relegated to TV spots.
Erik Stern 'stars' as twins. One ugly, one handsome, both evil. His acting was almost laughably bad. I spent the whole time trying to figure out if he was serious or not.
I rented this because of its graphic packaging. Boy did I get taken. The best scenes are right on the box. There, now YOU don't have to see it. You're welcome.
But of Course, Ma'am
saint_brett11 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I didn't know whether to watch this movie or 'The Witch Who Came from the Sea' tonight. I went with this on the flip of a coin.
Oh, it's trash, alright. How so? Because it's a Substance DVD release, that's why.
That's right, this is the one about the weirdo who owns a Styrofoam mannequin.
The movie stars Erik Stern. Fine actor Erik Stern was. He was especially good in all those black-and-white movies he made. Brilliant actor. He came from a fine acting school that pumped out tons of other great-quality actors in his time. Was in that other Oscar-nominated movie of his.
Why are VHS ripples scrolling down my DVD copy? You're going to test me after only 1 minute and 40 seconds, movie?
So, what looks like the son of Doc Brown, Kaleb, overuses the title "ma'am" too many times. Get used to that.
Kaleb's split between being him and Lester apparently. It's funny because you'd think Lester the Unlikely would be a nerd, but he's the pretty alternative.
Confused? Well, in between his split personality, there's a mannequin dressed in cheap thrift store rags that has a Styrofoam bowling ball for a head and talks a whole lot of smack to Kaleb or Lester in a sassy tone.
Look how thick his microscopic glasses are.
A subplot with a news reporter and his bickering wife breaks momentum as you're trying to come to grips with the snazzy Styrofoam bowling ball character, as I'm still trying to fathom if what I'm seeing is for real. Is the mannequin the star of the show?
Enough with the "ma'am" business already. This is 2023, not the 50s. No one says that anymore.
This guy with the Jeffrey Dahmer hair has John Saxon's voice.
I know that laugh - it's Max Cady in the cinema laughing while smoking.
Doc Emmett Brown's goofy son, Kaleb, wearing microscopic glasses, is fired from his gardening job and look at his brain react, "No, please, no." Shut up, babble mouth. Lose your composure and your job with some dignity, and take it like a man.
He keeps alternating his appearances, claims he's the great magnet to all women, and keeps consulting this mean Styrofoam bowling ball head thug who keeps teasing him.
Tell me that's not Jeffrey Dahmer at the 35-minute mark.
Um, what looks like Michael Ironside or Greg Norman rigs a water main to dupe his way into an angry lady's residence, then literally hoses her down to test that there's nothing wrong with the plumbing?
It turns out that the Styrofoam bowling ball head character is Kaleb's stepbrother, who taunts him any chance he can get about who's prettier and who can score with the lady's more.
I don't know how the Dahmer, Ironside, or Norman characters fit in. Is Kaleb also one of those three personalities?
When do we get to see the Styrofoam bowling ball character in action? Is it going to do anything or just sit in that chair, barking orders and running its mouth? It doesn't even have a mouth, so how can it talk? I like the furry hat.
The Styrofoam bowling ball character in this movie is going to pop some tags; it's only got twenty dollars in its pocket.
Kaleb, the former gardener, goes missing in the movie and is replaced with the guy who has Dahmer's hair. He gets in on the act and starts debating the Styrofoam bowling ball head character about who's prettier or who's unattractive.
The silly news reporter cracks the case with the vital clue about a gardener being a weirdo, so he puts two and two together and realizes that it's Kaleb who's the only weirdo in this movie, but that weirdo is elusive because now Kaleb has turned into the other weirdo with the Dahmer hair, and he proves that he's also a weirdo himself by driving a pair of garden sheers through the silly news reporter.
After disposing of yesterday's news, the weirdo with the Dahmer hair turns into a doctor and analyzes whoever the actress is in the green dress here. How many people can he be? She encounters the dead news reporter who's coming to you live from the obituary column now, while Max Cady starts laughing in the cinema again.
The actress in the green dress requests that the guy with the Dahmer hair kill her, so he obliges and fulfills her wish without second thought.
For no reason, his hand becomes possessed by the 'Evil Dead 2' and is pulled over by the protect and serve, who grill him for wearing a suit in a Nike zone.
The guy with the Dahmer hair turns back into Kaleb, minus his 'Evil Dead 2' hand, and apparently, they were all one in the same person.
Taking enough of Max Cady's cinematic laughter torment, Kaleeb repeatedly stabs the Styrofoam bowling ball head character, who doesn't put up much of a fight. Its innards bleed beanbag balls and succumbs to rage at the hands of a madman. May it rest in tiny pieces.
With a new outlook on life the next morning, Doc Emmett Brown's son is reborn with vigor but is still a deluded fool who's under the impression that he's pretty and ready to take on the world.
With the movie nearly 98% complete, it decides at the last minute to insert a subplot scene about when Kaleb was a child, but it should have been told at the start.
Oh, it's trash, alright. How so? Because it's a Substance DVD release, that's why.
That's right, this is the one about the weirdo who owns a Styrofoam mannequin.
The movie stars Erik Stern. Fine actor Erik Stern was. He was especially good in all those black-and-white movies he made. Brilliant actor. He came from a fine acting school that pumped out tons of other great-quality actors in his time. Was in that other Oscar-nominated movie of his.
Why are VHS ripples scrolling down my DVD copy? You're going to test me after only 1 minute and 40 seconds, movie?
So, what looks like the son of Doc Brown, Kaleb, overuses the title "ma'am" too many times. Get used to that.
Kaleb's split between being him and Lester apparently. It's funny because you'd think Lester the Unlikely would be a nerd, but he's the pretty alternative.
Confused? Well, in between his split personality, there's a mannequin dressed in cheap thrift store rags that has a Styrofoam bowling ball for a head and talks a whole lot of smack to Kaleb or Lester in a sassy tone.
Look how thick his microscopic glasses are.
A subplot with a news reporter and his bickering wife breaks momentum as you're trying to come to grips with the snazzy Styrofoam bowling ball character, as I'm still trying to fathom if what I'm seeing is for real. Is the mannequin the star of the show?
Enough with the "ma'am" business already. This is 2023, not the 50s. No one says that anymore.
This guy with the Jeffrey Dahmer hair has John Saxon's voice.
I know that laugh - it's Max Cady in the cinema laughing while smoking.
Doc Emmett Brown's goofy son, Kaleb, wearing microscopic glasses, is fired from his gardening job and look at his brain react, "No, please, no." Shut up, babble mouth. Lose your composure and your job with some dignity, and take it like a man.
He keeps alternating his appearances, claims he's the great magnet to all women, and keeps consulting this mean Styrofoam bowling ball head thug who keeps teasing him.
Tell me that's not Jeffrey Dahmer at the 35-minute mark.
Um, what looks like Michael Ironside or Greg Norman rigs a water main to dupe his way into an angry lady's residence, then literally hoses her down to test that there's nothing wrong with the plumbing?
It turns out that the Styrofoam bowling ball head character is Kaleb's stepbrother, who taunts him any chance he can get about who's prettier and who can score with the lady's more.
I don't know how the Dahmer, Ironside, or Norman characters fit in. Is Kaleb also one of those three personalities?
When do we get to see the Styrofoam bowling ball character in action? Is it going to do anything or just sit in that chair, barking orders and running its mouth? It doesn't even have a mouth, so how can it talk? I like the furry hat.
The Styrofoam bowling ball character in this movie is going to pop some tags; it's only got twenty dollars in its pocket.
Kaleb, the former gardener, goes missing in the movie and is replaced with the guy who has Dahmer's hair. He gets in on the act and starts debating the Styrofoam bowling ball head character about who's prettier or who's unattractive.
The silly news reporter cracks the case with the vital clue about a gardener being a weirdo, so he puts two and two together and realizes that it's Kaleb who's the only weirdo in this movie, but that weirdo is elusive because now Kaleb has turned into the other weirdo with the Dahmer hair, and he proves that he's also a weirdo himself by driving a pair of garden sheers through the silly news reporter.
After disposing of yesterday's news, the weirdo with the Dahmer hair turns into a doctor and analyzes whoever the actress is in the green dress here. How many people can he be? She encounters the dead news reporter who's coming to you live from the obituary column now, while Max Cady starts laughing in the cinema again.
The actress in the green dress requests that the guy with the Dahmer hair kill her, so he obliges and fulfills her wish without second thought.
For no reason, his hand becomes possessed by the 'Evil Dead 2' and is pulled over by the protect and serve, who grill him for wearing a suit in a Nike zone.
The guy with the Dahmer hair turns back into Kaleb, minus his 'Evil Dead 2' hand, and apparently, they were all one in the same person.
Taking enough of Max Cady's cinematic laughter torment, Kaleeb repeatedly stabs the Styrofoam bowling ball head character, who doesn't put up much of a fight. Its innards bleed beanbag balls and succumbs to rage at the hands of a madman. May it rest in tiny pieces.
With a new outlook on life the next morning, Doc Emmett Brown's son is reborn with vigor but is still a deluded fool who's under the impression that he's pretty and ready to take on the world.
With the movie nearly 98% complete, it decides at the last minute to insert a subplot scene about when Kaleb was a child, but it should have been told at the start.
From what I remember
kevromills27 June 2008
It was the early nineties and me and my 2 stoner flatmates loved hiring dodgy horror movie at the local video shop. From time to time i would pick up this whilst trying to choose a rental in the store, and sing the title to the tune of "The Love Boat" to my whacked mates - I'd usually get a laugh. One day i showed up at home with this under my arm. We blew a joint and watched in awe/horror/hysterics. The 3 of us all found the last scene quite disturbing. So much so that whilst the the credits rolled, one of my flatmates stood up from his chair, walk to the video player, ejected the tape, placed it under an upturned milk crate in the middle of the living room, and left.
This movie is gold.
This movie is gold.
Oh Brother, Why Are Thou So Disturbed?
Coventry1 August 2008
Stephen Thrower's bible of American exploitation highlights entitled "Nightmare USA" is rapidly becoming the most expensive spending I ever made! Not just the book itself is quite costly, but the way he extendedly glorifies certain obscure and incredibly rare movies simply make you crave to own them yourself and you unwarily start browsing the Internet for copies. But hey, so far all purchases were worth every single penny I spent on them and Thrower's reviews albeit sometimes a little over-enthusiast are always 100% reliable if you too are into demented and raunchy 70's cinema as well. "The Love Butcher" sounded like one of those titles I simply couldn't afford to miss and indeed it certainly didn't disappoint. This is a wondrous example of cheap, sleazy, grainy and tasteless exploitation madness, with a simplistic but effective plot and a handful of shockingly misogynistic scenes of violence. The creators looked for inspiration in Alfred Hitchcock's notorious horror film "Psycho" (like many aspiring horror directors did around that time) and unscrupulously imitated the concept of a schizophrenic killer. However, this film doesn't keep it a secret until the end. The crippled Caleb works as a gardener in a fancy neighborhood where a lot of pretentious and bored housewives spend their days twirling around in sexy outfits. Caleb is a quite pathetic figure with a shiny bald head, exaggeratedly thick glasses and a malformed hand, so he's usually the target of mockery for his obnoxious female customers. But when Caleb returns home, he talks to his brother Lester a black foam mannequin wearing a blond wig and then suddenly becomes him. Self-confident Lester is, and I quote, "the great male Adonis of the universe" and he pays a charming visit to each woman that mistreated his "brother". The result of these visits is a disturbing murder spree that baffles the local police, even though the victims all live on the same block and have the same gardener. I wonder how they could overlook that pattern
As far as I'm concerned, "The Love Butcher" is vintage and delightfully prototypic exploitation stuff. The atmosphere is thoroughly unpleasant, the male characters are despicable yokels (ending every sentence with "yes, ma'ammmm) and the overall tone of the film is extremely women-unfriendly to say the least. The murder sequences aren't as repulsive as I expected (or hoped) but there nevertheless are a couple of highly memorable bits of nastiness, like the creative use of various gardening tools and a brutal butchering in an outdoor swimming pool. Besides, the slight and already forgivable lack of bloody carnage is widely compensated by the awesome and over-the-top demented use of dialog! The conversations between Caleb and his alter ego Lester, and particularly the latter's monologues, and indescribably entertaining to listen to and they even single-handedly uplift "The Love Butcher" to the level op pitch black comedy. The supposedly heart-breaking flashback near the end, clarifying what tragic event overcame Caleb and Lester at young age, is literally the cherry on an already delicious cheesecake. It has to be said the film owes a lot of its powerful impact to the performance of Erik Stern as the schizophrenic. Stern is stupendous and maintains the exact right balance between comical and disturbing during the numerous sequences where he just talks against a foam mannequin or empty gardening outfit. The male supportive cast is pretty forgettable, but the female victims give good performances, most notable Eve Mac (as a lewd Texan co-ed), Robin Sherwood (as the cocky rebellious chick) and Kay Neer (as the cherubic good-hearted woman you really wish she survives the ordeal).
As far as I'm concerned, "The Love Butcher" is vintage and delightfully prototypic exploitation stuff. The atmosphere is thoroughly unpleasant, the male characters are despicable yokels (ending every sentence with "yes, ma'ammmm) and the overall tone of the film is extremely women-unfriendly to say the least. The murder sequences aren't as repulsive as I expected (or hoped) but there nevertheless are a couple of highly memorable bits of nastiness, like the creative use of various gardening tools and a brutal butchering in an outdoor swimming pool. Besides, the slight and already forgivable lack of bloody carnage is widely compensated by the awesome and over-the-top demented use of dialog! The conversations between Caleb and his alter ego Lester, and particularly the latter's monologues, and indescribably entertaining to listen to and they even single-handedly uplift "The Love Butcher" to the level op pitch black comedy. The supposedly heart-breaking flashback near the end, clarifying what tragic event overcame Caleb and Lester at young age, is literally the cherry on an already delicious cheesecake. It has to be said the film owes a lot of its powerful impact to the performance of Erik Stern as the schizophrenic. Stern is stupendous and maintains the exact right balance between comical and disturbing during the numerous sequences where he just talks against a foam mannequin or empty gardening outfit. The male supportive cast is pretty forgettable, but the female victims give good performances, most notable Eve Mac (as a lewd Texan co-ed), Robin Sherwood (as the cocky rebellious chick) and Kay Neer (as the cherubic good-hearted woman you really wish she survives the ordeal).
I am the great male Adonis of the universe.
BA_Harrison8 October 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Everyone has heard of movie maniacs Michael Myers, Norman Bates and Hannibal Lector, but mention the name Lester in regard to the pantheon of cinematic psychos and the most likely reaction will be looks of utter bewilderment. It's a shame, because Lester deserves better: he's just as batst crazy and as unpredictably dangerous as his better known contemporaries, has his own catchphrase (But of course!), and even gets to bed some of his attractive female victims before offing them.
As a child, Lester is responsible for the accidental death of his disabled brother Caleb, for which his mother never forgives him; years later and guilt has resulted in Lester (now played by Erik Stern) adopting his dead sibling's personality as well as his own. When dressed as Caleb, he is a short sighted, balding gardener with a manky hand, but when he becomes Lester, he is a be-wigged ladies man who punishes any female who has treated his 'brother' with contempt.
The film is low budget and exploitative, with any excuse for a spot of bright red gore or cheap titillation, and many scenes verge on the comical, but it still qualifies as a genuinely powerful experience thanks to Stern's intense dual performance, pitiful as Caleb, but completely menacing and merciless as Lester. In the film's most memorable scene, he does away with the film's only sympathetic female character, stripping her naked and repeatedly bashing her with a serrated hoe—it's a real shocker of a moment, a brave move that makes this film all the more impressive, and all the more deserving of recognition.
As a child, Lester is responsible for the accidental death of his disabled brother Caleb, for which his mother never forgives him; years later and guilt has resulted in Lester (now played by Erik Stern) adopting his dead sibling's personality as well as his own. When dressed as Caleb, he is a short sighted, balding gardener with a manky hand, but when he becomes Lester, he is a be-wigged ladies man who punishes any female who has treated his 'brother' with contempt.
The film is low budget and exploitative, with any excuse for a spot of bright red gore or cheap titillation, and many scenes verge on the comical, but it still qualifies as a genuinely powerful experience thanks to Stern's intense dual performance, pitiful as Caleb, but completely menacing and merciless as Lester. In the film's most memorable scene, he does away with the film's only sympathetic female character, stripping her naked and repeatedly bashing her with a serrated hoe—it's a real shocker of a moment, a brave move that makes this film all the more impressive, and all the more deserving of recognition.
You'll never forget Caleb and Lester.
Hey_Sweden24 January 2015
Erik Stern earns himself a place in the annals of cult cinema with his deliciously demented performances in this somewhat obscure mid-70s exploitation-horror film. He plays Caleb, physically impaired gardener-for-hire who is dominated by his "brother" Lester, a smooth ladies man. Lester is also a lady killer, and detectives are stumped as to figuring out who is behind the murders. Annoying, schmucky reporter Russell (Jeremiah Beecher), who's somehow scored himself a hot girlfriend, Flo (Kay Neer), gives the detectives a hard time while doing some investigating of his own.
Essentially, Sterns' performances ARE the movie, which is, for the most part, not that distinguished. There's the requisite gore and titillation, but not that much of it. Directors Don Jones and Mikel Angel do get some credit for their canny choice of soundtrack music. There are some familiar exploitation genre faces among the cast, such as Richard Kennedy ("Ilsa: She Wolf of the SS") as a cop and John Parker ("Schoolgirls in Chains") as a minister. Lovely Robin Sherwood ("Tourist Trap", "Death Wish II") is set up as one of a number of potential victims.
Stern, who went on to do a fair amount of TV work, is a fun guy to watch do his thing, especially when he's trying to adopt different ethnic identities. Kennedy is good, and the ladies are all quite attractive. At approximately 85 minutes long, "The Love Butcher" doesn't overstay its welcome, and offers ample entertainment for drive-in movie lovers who want something they don't want to take all that seriously.
Eight out of 10.
Essentially, Sterns' performances ARE the movie, which is, for the most part, not that distinguished. There's the requisite gore and titillation, but not that much of it. Directors Don Jones and Mikel Angel do get some credit for their canny choice of soundtrack music. There are some familiar exploitation genre faces among the cast, such as Richard Kennedy ("Ilsa: She Wolf of the SS") as a cop and John Parker ("Schoolgirls in Chains") as a minister. Lovely Robin Sherwood ("Tourist Trap", "Death Wish II") is set up as one of a number of potential victims.
Stern, who went on to do a fair amount of TV work, is a fun guy to watch do his thing, especially when he's trying to adopt different ethnic identities. Kennedy is good, and the ladies are all quite attractive. At approximately 85 minutes long, "The Love Butcher" doesn't overstay its welcome, and offers ample entertainment for drive-in movie lovers who want something they don't want to take all that seriously.
Eight out of 10.
Tongue-in-cheek psycho thriller
lor_20 January 2023
My review was written in October 1982 after a screening on Manhattan's 42nd St.
"The Love Butcher" is a case history psycho-horror thriller, in the genre of "Psycho", "The Sniper", etc. Filmed in 1975 (or perhaps even earlier) the new release is a B-feature supporting the comedy "Goin' All the Way", and sharing some of that pic's tech personnel. It has some gore and cruelty for the hardcore fans of the genre, but is largely of interest as a curio only.
The fascinating thing about "Love Butcher" is that while it precedes the recent trend of violent "flasher" pictures, its script is almost a manifesto declaring the misogyny of the genre. Played tongue-in-cheek and overwritten for comic effect, pic's lead character, a split personality of "brothers" Caleb and Lester (Erik Stern) not only kills women but first hands them a tirade about how they emasculate men and deserve to die. This heavy emphasis makes the film virtually required viewing for students working on master's theses concerning horror, as well as those trendy crusaders against the genre's excesses: Harlan Ellison and Chicago's Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel.
Simple-minded plot has Caleb as a crippled gardener who kills his femme employers (on an L. A. block) with various gardening utensils. Pic's ad copy trumpets: "see grotesque underwater tortures" and in fact the most bizarre killing has him offing a woman by forcing an active garden hose down her throat while she's underwater in her swimming pool. This exaggeration for effect is fairly typical.
What makes this cheapie funny is its combination of "artsy" technique (flashy slow-motion inserts and ludicrous cross-cutting) with goofy dialog. Midway through the pic, the dim-witted police Captain Stark (Edward Roehm) declares of the series of murders: "whoever did this is weird, not just sick, but a real weirdo". This opens the floodgate, and the rest of the cast takes to peppering their dialog with "weird" in the way the term "awesome" is bandied about today.
For a film that credits two of everything (directors, cameramen, etc.), "Love Butcher" is well-made and has a different look for a low budgeter by virtue of its anamorphic Techniscope lensing. Stern has an actor's field day, hamming it up with a variety of wigs as the two halves of the central character, but he still comes off as a pale shadow of Rod Steiger's definitive version in "No Way to Treat a Lady". The rest of the actors are poor.
"The Love Butcher" is a case history psycho-horror thriller, in the genre of "Psycho", "The Sniper", etc. Filmed in 1975 (or perhaps even earlier) the new release is a B-feature supporting the comedy "Goin' All the Way", and sharing some of that pic's tech personnel. It has some gore and cruelty for the hardcore fans of the genre, but is largely of interest as a curio only.
The fascinating thing about "Love Butcher" is that while it precedes the recent trend of violent "flasher" pictures, its script is almost a manifesto declaring the misogyny of the genre. Played tongue-in-cheek and overwritten for comic effect, pic's lead character, a split personality of "brothers" Caleb and Lester (Erik Stern) not only kills women but first hands them a tirade about how they emasculate men and deserve to die. This heavy emphasis makes the film virtually required viewing for students working on master's theses concerning horror, as well as those trendy crusaders against the genre's excesses: Harlan Ellison and Chicago's Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel.
Simple-minded plot has Caleb as a crippled gardener who kills his femme employers (on an L. A. block) with various gardening utensils. Pic's ad copy trumpets: "see grotesque underwater tortures" and in fact the most bizarre killing has him offing a woman by forcing an active garden hose down her throat while she's underwater in her swimming pool. This exaggeration for effect is fairly typical.
What makes this cheapie funny is its combination of "artsy" technique (flashy slow-motion inserts and ludicrous cross-cutting) with goofy dialog. Midway through the pic, the dim-witted police Captain Stark (Edward Roehm) declares of the series of murders: "whoever did this is weird, not just sick, but a real weirdo". This opens the floodgate, and the rest of the cast takes to peppering their dialog with "weird" in the way the term "awesome" is bandied about today.
For a film that credits two of everything (directors, cameramen, etc.), "Love Butcher" is well-made and has a different look for a low budgeter by virtue of its anamorphic Techniscope lensing. Stern has an actor's field day, hamming it up with a variety of wigs as the two halves of the central character, but he still comes off as a pale shadow of Rod Steiger's definitive version in "No Way to Treat a Lady". The rest of the actors are poor.
great 70s horror movie trash!
pudman24 June 1999
They don't make them like this anymore. This over-the-top tale of a dorky gardener and his suave studly "twin brother" is one of the funniest horror movies of the 70s. It's goofy and tasteless, and not quite so inept that you ever think the humor is completely unintentional. It's enlivened by buckets of red paint that look nothing like blood and the sheer hilarity of seeing this ridiculous guy act like a ladies' man.
Top quality seventies trash!
The_Void1 April 2008
The Love Butcher is undoubtedly a piece of trash, but it's a hell of a lot better than a lot of the trash released in the seventies and anyone who enjoys this sort of movie will definitely enjoy this one! The film takes obvious influence from the king of all psycho movies - that being Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 masterpiece - and could be pigeon-holed in somewhere between the slasher and exploitation genres. Whether or not the film was intended to be humorous is unclear - but the film certainly is very funny in places and director Donald M. Jones has also managed to pack the film with plenty of gore and kill scenes, which is what anyone tuning into this film will want to see. The plot focuses on Caleb; a deformed gardener. Because of his deformity, Caleb is often pushed around by women; and unfortunately for him, most of his employers happen to be slutty examples of the fairer sex. However, Caleb is also Lester; his womanising alter-ego. Lester is a 'ladies man', but also a murderer; and after charming the woman with his good looks, he kills them.
The film is lead by an excellent dual performance from Erik Stern. Of course, the performance is a bit on the silly side; but that fits in with the nature of the film and he plays both of the wildly different sides of his character very well and the scenes between 'them' actually have quite a haunting edge to them. It's clear that the film was made on a low budget and as such it all feels very cheap. However, while it's obvious that the kill scenes etc are fake; the low budget gives the film some real charm and the filmmakers get round this restraint excellently. The plot plays out well although it does feel like ideas are lacking somewhat as the first few kills are mainly just the same thing repeated with a different woman. However, it's done well and the way that the alter-ego charms his victims works well. Aside from the central plot, we also get a police investigation running throughout and this is fairly interesting even though we know who the killer is from the outset. The way that the police discover his identity is a bit suspect; but there is a good resolution to the main plot. Overall, this is a very nice little seventies flick and comes recommended.
The film is lead by an excellent dual performance from Erik Stern. Of course, the performance is a bit on the silly side; but that fits in with the nature of the film and he plays both of the wildly different sides of his character very well and the scenes between 'them' actually have quite a haunting edge to them. It's clear that the film was made on a low budget and as such it all feels very cheap. However, while it's obvious that the kill scenes etc are fake; the low budget gives the film some real charm and the filmmakers get round this restraint excellently. The plot plays out well although it does feel like ideas are lacking somewhat as the first few kills are mainly just the same thing repeated with a different woman. However, it's done well and the way that the alter-ego charms his victims works well. Aside from the central plot, we also get a police investigation running throughout and this is fairly interesting even though we know who the killer is from the outset. The way that the police discover his identity is a bit suspect; but there is a good resolution to the main plot. Overall, this is a very nice little seventies flick and comes recommended.
A new high in low budget film making
bengleson15 April 2002
This is a very funny ,albeit gruesome, slasher movie. While the characters seem to be taking themselves very seriously, the audience has little choice but to chuckle with every over the top scene. It's gotta be satire don't you think? I guess the only saving grace is that there don't seem to be any copies readily available. In any case, a humorously morbid little diversion.
One of the most delightfully awful films I've ever seen
Steave11 November 1999
I've seen this movie many times, and I still like to watch it. This movie is beyond bad. I love it.
The plot is a sad mutation of a very very popular thriller. The acting is so bad at times The "action" in this movie is awesome. The "Love Butcher" kills all of his victims (all female, of course) with garden implements. Accomplishing this modus operandi could take quite a bit of doing, particularly if the urge to murder comes while indoors. This is not a problem for our killer, though. In his world, people keep hoes and rakes near the fireplace.
There are some great lines, atrocious dub-ins, and druken edits. Add to this a deliciously lame disco-era feel, and you've got a winner.
If you're a connesieur of bad films, you have to see this one.
The plot is a sad mutation of a very very popular thriller. The acting is so bad at times The "action" in this movie is awesome. The "Love Butcher" kills all of his victims (all female, of course) with garden implements. Accomplishing this modus operandi could take quite a bit of doing, particularly if the urge to murder comes while indoors. This is not a problem for our killer, though. In his world, people keep hoes and rakes near the fireplace.
There are some great lines, atrocious dub-ins, and druken edits. Add to this a deliciously lame disco-era feel, and you've got a winner.
If you're a connesieur of bad films, you have to see this one.
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