By Geno McGahee
The 1990s were not a good time for horror, especially considering the amount of classics that the 1980s produced, but that’s not to say that there were not any that stood out from the 90s. That 10 year period is really defined by two films: THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and SCREAM. Sticking with the 1980’s whodunit slasher formula is ZIPPERFACE, a gem that comes to us from 1992. What a pleasant surprise this was.
Written by Barbara Bishop and Mark Troy, and directed by Mansour Pourmand, ZIPPERFACE surrounds the seedy world of S&M and prostitution. A man that is dressed all in leather, including a leather mask, is going around and killing prostitutes and it’s up to detectives Ryder (Dona Adams) and Shine (Harry Clover) are on the case but it is a complicated one.
Ryder makes it more complicated when she gets involved with the lead suspect, Michael Walker (Jonathan Mandell), a photographer that has had involvement with one of the dead girls on a very personal level as well as doing some pictures for the others. He is linked to most of the murders and does have a suspicious nature to him. He is one of several good suspects in this whodunit.
Zipperface continues his murderous ways and that puts pressure on the Mayor to solve the case and put the public at ease. She tells the department to arrest anyone to appease the public and they try, placing the blame on Walker. Now it’s up to Walker and his girl, Ryder, to solve this case, prove his innocence and expose the real killer.
I have said before that I love overacting. Well, this film has heard my cries and it takes the cake when it comes to overacting. Every character is remarkable and hilarious. I even love how one of the suspects is a transvestite. They added that characteristic just for fun and it was very amusing. I found myself laughing over and over again. At one point, the detectives speak to Reverend Dimsdale (Christopher Dakin) about the deaths and he looks up to the heavens and says: “Forgive me father. I have failed thee!” It was that overdramatic and that fantastic, and the absurdity never lets up. The writers and director of this film decided to go soap opera-dramatic on this movie and it worked like a charm.
ZIPPERFACE reminds me a great deal of 555, LAS VEGAS BLOODBATH, and CITY OF PANIC, but it’s just far better. It’s a shame that I have already compiled my Halloween recommendations for this year, because this would have gone right on top. This movie is fantastic. I plan to watch it again in the near future. Just writing about it makes me want to watch it. This film is now free on YouTube. I’ve attached the link. Enjoy it while it’s there. I can’t recommend this enough!
Rating: 9/10
