Review of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986) by Nicholas D — 27 Mar 2009

Call it a slasher film, call it a character study film or call it a horror film, because no matter what you call it, you can't deny that Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer is one of the most shocking and disturbing movies to ever be committed to celluloid.

Michael Rooker gives an astonishing and startlingly real performance as the enigmatic Henry, a serial killer who is relentless and terrifying. He's somehow relatable yet a complete maniac that it haunts you to know him so personally.

The film was shot on 16mm and looks gritty and downbeat, giving the movie a really real feeling that only plays into it's own hyper-reality. It's dark and dirty most of the time and doesn't spend time trying look good, which gives it the edge it needs.

The score is dated by the cheesy 80's synthesizer, but it still gives the character his dark and disturbing theme, which only enhances his character. The gore level of this movie is not quite what you'd expect.

There are some truly grisly and gory shots in the film, but overall, not enough to garner the attention it received at the time. My only complaint about the film would be it's length during certain scenes, which feel tiresome and long.

A long slow build-up to each following scene in some cases feels burdensome, particularly the scene where Otis and Henry watch the tape of the family massacre. I don't think cuts should have been made because of the disturbing images, but they should have been made to pick up the pace a bit.

In this film, we don't see a lot of what Henry does. In his most grisly acts, we are only shown the aftermath of what Henry does to his victims, with the sounds of their final moments. I found this infinitely MORE successful than actually showing what he does, so the tape of the family being murdered just seemed out of place to me when most of the time we don't see him doing these terrible things.

So some trims here and there could have helped that sense of mystery, rather than show it. Be forewarned though, this WILL startle you and probably haunt you for a while after you see it. It certainly did in my case.

It's absolutely honest and unapolegetic approach is maniacal and unflinching, never stopping for a moment to self-analyze what it is, only show it. It leaves a bad taste in your mouth...and I like that.