MovieChat Forums > Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1991) Discussion > My Problem With This Film...

My Problem With This Film...

posted 8 years ago by highpriestess32
8 replies | jump to latest

...Is quite simple.

American cinema/writers take a perfectly heinous case and fabricate it for the most part. When the British make a movie based on a true crime, they stick to the facts for the most part unless they declare it to be part-fictionalised. In this movie the inaccuracies were so consistent that we even see Otis decapitated. The point being what exactly?

Either make a biographical that is true to real events or re-name it Sesame Street for this had barely 20% of its content reminiscent of what actually went on. Cheap, second-rate B movie. If I want fiction I buy fiction. Very let down by this portrayal - it certainly doesn't honour the victims.

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] rascal67 7 years ago

It's been years since I last saw this film and controversy was generated when first released due to censorship cuts. I have now seen the full version, but only the shock value of it—which has diminished—remained and I don't recall being overly impressed by the presentation. I don't mind cheap looking films, as long as they have some sense of style, atmosphere, genuine skill both in front and behind the camera and even sharp wicked humor if appropriate. Check out Basket Case-82', which blends the horror and comedy beautifully.

Don't eat the whole ones! Those are for the guests. 🍪

[–] highpriestess32 7 years ago

Howdy my friend,

I love criminology and am uber fussy about content being accurately presented. Like I say, it dishonours the victims otherwise. I see no point in making a movie based on a true story when the very basics are flawed and misrepresented. It's a cheap shot at marketting something that is wholly unrepresentative of something that was amply disturbing in reality.

Thanks for the reccomendation, not heard of that title. In truth I wish they had titled this film differently. For a start, Otis was sent to jail and not decapitated. It's a work of fiction punched out under false pretences which should be a crime LOL!

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] rascal67 7 years ago

I'd say the point they were attempting to make was one of normalcy about Henry. He was just the guy next door, with the looks to match. He was deeply disturbed deep down, yet I don't recall if the film delved into his history, other than he just liked to kill. The violence and killings were enough to shock us; but where was the substance behind the actions?

Don't eat the whole ones! Those are for the guests. 🍪

[–] highpriestess32 7 years ago

Thanks for the info there!

Yeah Henry was deeply disturbed, he also had an eye missing. Another "victim" of shabby parenting but of course not all tykes of this unfortunate start in life go on to be quite so vengeful. Are these psychopaths simply born evil or is it a physiological time bomb just waiting to be tapped into? A question all criminologists ask of course.

We don't have to look far to see a pattern (I am studying criminology via the Open Study College). Both Dahmer and Bundy experimented on animals, for example, as children. Bundy was a narcissist, Dahmer was a reject and a drunk. But both were sexually dominant. Bundy with women and Dahmer with men.

It's all terribly fascinating. I haven't looked into Hentr Lee-Lucas for over a decade. There's just so much to watch. Thank the lord for YouTube docos and my DVD collection!

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] rascal67 7 years ago

I am a strong supporter of conditioning and I don't care to believe that we are born bad, like in the film The Bad Seed. That is just sensationalism. I haven't read much on Bundy's upbringing; but he had a high IQ apparently, so did Dhamer. Dhamer's upbringing appears dysfunctional; but no more than many others. His father was aloof and his mother an attention seeker. I think what these people lack is a soul and much of that does come down to upbringing and what is being taught in the home environment.

I don't believe we are born with a soul and this is the reason why we are here on earth to develop our souls, or give birth to them. That becomes part of our contributions due to our dharma(purpose), which in turn works in unison with our karma. If parents are disconnected from the "realness" of life and aren't even vaguely aware of their own purpose and are lost, then this will get projected onto their children. Dhamer and Bundy were opportunists, felt entitled and took things they wanted, without any thought or feeling for how their victims were feeling, or any concern for those associated with them. This extreme, narcissistic and sociopathic behavior must stem from a root cause, and environment would play a massive part in this if their backgrounds were extensively researched.

Love and care is also an important factor. Someone like Aileen Wuronos, appears to have been denied this right from the get go. Those that may grow up in dysfunctional and difficult households and don't end up abusive serial killers, may have at least been shown an inkling of love and care in their lives and this is essential. It's just doesn't appear to be on offer by some parents, who are too caught up in their s<>t. How on earth can "love" and "care" fail an infant right from the start. It really doesn't and as simplistic as this may sound, I believe it is key.

Don't eat the whole ones! Those are for the guests. 🍪

[–] highpriestess32 7 years ago

It is so interesting you mentione Wuornos. I am on the friend list (Facebook), of the maker of "The Selling of a Serial Killer" and also his (Nick Broomfield's), update doco. I also got my hands on "Dear Dawn" which is a book of letters from Wuornos on Death Row to her lifelong friend, Dawn. It goes out of circulation periodically so I have kept my paperback copy pristine!

Aileen or "Lee" as she preferred to be known, had a traumatic start in life for sure. Ass-whipped by her guardian with a hatred for her mother and most men. She was selling sex for cigarettes ALLEGEDLY but she denied this in said book in a letter to Dawn. Point of fact, what will always remain interesting about Aileen is the fact that nobody ever knew, including Broomfield, when she was telling the truth for she changed her story many times on Death Row and in the end she was likely paranoid. She was also highly reactive.

The fact remains that she wanted to die. She rejected any more chances of appeal and even incited threats via Nick in that she would kill again if ever released. She was exasperated after some decade on Death Row and wanted her death to come about quickly and without further delay. All this said, I and many others have a soft spot for Aileen. Everyone sold out out on her including the cops who were later dismissed over movie deals.

I believe there can be dysfunctional brain disorders however and it can remain dormant in every potential purportrator until someone bruises their ego which happened in the case of Bundy. He was dumped and his victims were all resemblant of the dumpee. He finally got back with his girlfriend but for one devious reason. To dump her as unceremoniously as he felt she had dumped him previously. I believe he even proposed for maximum hur upon the cessation of their "relationship".

I am really enjoying our exchanges. Oh and...as for Dahmer, there is an interesting doco on YouTube whereby he was reunited with his father and they gave a prison interview. Dahmer seemed a lot more open and honest. Bundy tried like mad for multiple stays of execution. And his final interview is to be taken with a pinch of salt. He was a pathological liar after all...

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] rascal67 7 years ago

Check out this IMDB review of Basket Case your Royal Regalness:

Superior 80's rubbish

22 March 2005 | by The_Void (Beverley Hills, England) – See all my reviews

Frank Hennenlotter's "Basket Case" highlights the problem with horror films of today. Back in the eighties, films would be made with an idea and no budget, and the result would nearly always see the release of an inventive and interesting horror film. Basket Case is no exception to this, as despite hokey effects, a rather silly story and some very suspect acting; Basket Case is a trash classic all the way, and it's a film that's guaranteed to delight fans of horror. The story capitalizes on the fact that many people (including yours truly) find the subject of deformity uncomfortable, and the subject of living with it even more so. The plot follows a strange young man that carries a basket around with him. Inside the basket lies his hideously deformed Siamese twin, and the deformity wants it's revenge!

This leads the two brothers to seek out the doctors that separated them and brutally butcher them, and delivering us with a great camp horror movie! The central creature - namely, the deformed brother, is a masterpiece of creature design. The thing itself looks ridiculous, but in spite of this it actually manages to be quite frightening, and once you've gotten over the initial giggles: it takes on a life of it's own, and even manages to become quite believable.

The film is sufficiently gory, which will no doubt be good news for everyone that wants to see it. Frank Hennenlotter is one of those directors that obviously has talent and flair for making films, but also hasn't been given a real chance to realise it. It's a massive shame that the endless amounts of remakes continue to get released on huge budgets, while someone that could make a great movie is blessed only with chicken feed to make them with. Just wait until the part where the brothers' story is told – that's inventiveness for you! One thing I do love about the director is the way he casts his lead; the one here is certainly odd enough, in a naïve loser sort of a way. On the whole; fans of intricate, deep cinema should stay well clear - while everyone else is preparing themselves for a damn good time!

Don't eat the whole ones! Those are for the guests. 🍪

[–] [deleted] 6 years ago

Your "idea" for what this movie should have been is not what the movie was trying to be at all, so you shouldn't complain. It's like me eating chicken and then complaining that it doesn't taste like pork. It's chicken, not pork!