The Honeymoon Killers (1970)

The Honeymoon Killers: Directed by Leonard Kastle, Martin Scorsese, Donald Volkman. With Shirley Stoler, Tony Lo Bianco, Mary Jane Higby, Doris Roberts. An obese, embittered nurse doesn’t mind if her toupee-wearing boyfriend romances and fleeces other women, as long as he takes her along on his con jobs.

“Released in 1969 under the guise of a low-budget exploitation film, The Honeymoon Killers is in fact one of the best American real-life crime movies ever made. It tells the story of Martha (Shirley Stoler), a lonely, overweight nurse who is entered into a u0026#39;lonely heartsu0026#39; club by her friend Bunny (Everybody Loves Raymondu0026#39;s Doris Roberts). She receives a response from Latin lothario Ray Fernandez (Tony Lo Bianco), who is a con-man who preys on lonely women, shaking them down for their money. When he reveals this to Martha, she is undeterred, and insists on joining him on his quests by posing as his sister. Ray promises that he wonu0026#39;t sleep with any of them, but Marthau0026#39;s overbearing jealousy soon leads to murder.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBased on the notorious case of the u0026#39;lonely hearts killersu0026#39;, first (and only) time director Leonard Kastle adopts a documentary-style approach, opting to use mostly hand-held photography, naturalistic lighting, and minimalistic editing. If sometimes the small budget becomes obvious, this only heightens the sense of realism running throughout the film, assisted by two astonishing performances from itu0026#39;s leads. Stoler is immense, evoking sympathy at first but then revealing her true motives are rooted in jealousy and bitterness as she becomes unpredictable and frightening. Bianco, who is still enjoying a prolific career, performs with a flawless Latino accent, demonstrating the charm and seduction that helped Fernandez dupe so many of his unfortunate victims in real-lifeu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBut the film is not without artistic merits as well. Lacking blood and devoid of any kind of shock tactics, the murders are cold and brutal. A hammer blow to the head has as much impact as Leatherfaceu0026#39;s notorious entrance in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), as the victim struggles and twitches while the killers struggle for finish her off. Another has the camera focus just on the panicking eyes of a sedated victim, as Martha and Ray argue off- camera about to do with her. A gun then appears at the corner of the screen and itu0026#39;s all over. Itu0026#39;s shockingly blunt for itu0026#39;s era, but only serves to make The Honeymoon Killers one of the most invigorating and uncomfortable experiences Iu0026#39;ve had in recent memory.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ewww.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com”