trashgang This so-called horror was made just before the slasher era. And it shows. It is based on the life of a real serial killer, Ted Bundy, but to be honest, it doesn't. Nevertheless this flick is worth seeing for those who wants to see the San Fran era at the end of the seventies, the clothes, the highway (before it collapsed in the 1989 earthquake) and the cars. If you think you are going to see some nasty stuff well it isn't going to be so. There's no scary or bloody moment to see overall this flick. The only parts that your face can turn away is the part were they show the pictures from the crime delict. What you see are full naked girls being murdered. It's slow moving in parts with stupid conversations between the detectives but the flick itself isn't released properly to this writing. You can catch it as Killer's Delight on DVD or on the extreme hard to get Dutch VHS with the opening credits as The Dark Ride which is even full uncut. I watched it on the Dutch release, dark in places because it's a low budget flick with no extra lighting. Still, for the real geeks worth picking up somehow.Gore 0/5 Nudity 0,5/5 Effects 0/5 Story 2/5 Comedy 0/5

Wizard-8 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.

Scarecrow-88 San Francisco serial killer(John Karlen, in a chilling performance), in a yellow van, who assumes various disguises, stalks pretty young women, mostly hitch hikers, and it's up to Sargeant Vince De Carlo(James Luisi) to catch him. Not only is this fiend a sexual sadist, but he snaps bones, wears fake wigs and mustaches, and we get a glimpse at how bug-eyed crazy he can be during the act. Bodies piling up, including a college girl who was about to graduate that De Carlo knew personally(in correspondence with other films before, during, and after this particular movie, we see this girl almost get away running into the woods near the road off the freeway), the detective desperately needs extra manpower. With little help besides the minuscule number of cops already helping him, De Carlo, with some assistance from Detective Mike Mitelman(Martin Speer), will personally/doggedly pursue the psychopath. Susan Sullivan is a doctor who could be a potential victim(she is also having an affair with the married De Carlo)as she agrees to work as a girl to seductively draw him into a situation which would implicate him as the one responsible for the rash of killings by his hand.While director Jeremy Hoenack doesn't dwell too much on the actual handiwork of Danny, he does allow us to enter that van on one particular occasion just to see how vicious a deviant he could be, breaking a finger back, ripping the shirt from the victim's body while smiling with a Satanic grin that sends shivers down your spine. Hoenack mentions in an interview that Danny came to fruition as Ted Bundy(who wasn't caught at the time)was killing girls in Seattle. Hoenack shot exclusively in San Francisco, and there are a couple of impressive shots from a helicopter. He includes a disturbing crime scene photograph of one such victim, bones protruding from her legs and arms. And, Hoenack shoots a creepy opening scene featuring Danny chucking a dead naked body over a cliff. It's established that Danny has "mommy issues" which contribute psychologically to his night prowling, kidnapping, and execution of girls who remind him of her. Girls are sluts just like mom and he has to make sure they are unable to do what she did to his father. George Buck Flower(missing teeth)has a cameo as a citizen whose son finds a victim while fishing in a lake nearby. KILLER'S DELIGHT(titled THE SPORT KILLER on the DVD version I watched, released by Code Red)just proves that the 70's had lots of beautiful girls to gawk at, it's just tragic that many of them fall at the hands of this movie's wacko.

lovecraft231 Detective Sergent Vince De Carlo (James Luisi) and company are on the case of a vicious Serial Killer/Rapist. Can Psychologist Carol (Susan Sullivan) help, or will she become the killer's next victim? And what is with the killer's hilarious White Dude Afro? Inspired by the case of serial killer Ted Bundy, "Killer's Delight" aka "The Dark Ride" is a rather dull Serial Killer tale from 1978 that doesn't offer much. If anything, it's more of a police procedural flick than a horror movie, as much of the violence occurs off camera. Sure, we get mutilated bodies, but we don't get a whole lot in the exploitation department-especially considering that they are from the aftermath, and not during the crime. Those hoping for the likes of "The Toolbox Murders" or "Maniac" will be very disappointed.Fortunately, there is an impressive scene involving a woman trying to escape the killer that get's the tone right, and is quite suspenseful to boot. Also, John Karlen is quite effective as the killer, though his hilarious hairstyle (white guys with Afros are always worth a chuckle) is more than a bit distracting."The Dark Ride" is too routine and mediocre to really warrant a recommendation, as it lacks the proper exploitation elements, and is dated even by the standards of the time. Those looking for a better example should probably turn to "Don't Go In The House" and a few others instead, as this just doesn't cut it.