While at the dinner table, writer/producer Carlton J. Albright was talking with his children about geeks, specifically circus geeks. In the early 1900s, geeks were circus performers who would bite the heads of chickens to get some cheap booze. The idea intrigued Albright, so he teamed up with producing partner David Platt and wrote a screenplay as “Whitey Styles”. Albright decided to film in Illinois and hiring students from the University of Iowa’s film department for the crew. For the title role, Albright hired Edward Terry, who he had previously worked with on The Children in 1980. The special effects were handled by William Purcell (RoboCop) and Mike Tristano (Evil Dead II), who chose to go uncredited. Following a limited release in 1989, the film got a VHS release in the early 90s before Troma released it. Originally titled The Freak, let’s take a look at Luther the Geek.
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Rating
Synopsis
In rural Illinois in 1938, young Luther (Carlton Williams) is taken to see the local geek show and becomes obsessed. After losing his teeth as a child, he gets a set of metal teeth and becomes a geek himself. Years later, an adult Luther (Edward Terry) is released from prison on parole after serving time for murder. Soon after, he makes his way to a grocery store, where he attacks and kills an old woman. While trying to escape the authorities, he hops in the back of a car driven by local Hilary (Joan Roth). Once at her house, Luther ties her up and holds her hostage when her daughter Beth (Stacy Haiduk) arrives. With her boyfriend Rob (Thomas Mills), she and her mother become Luther’s next would-be victims along with their chickens. A local trooper (J. Joseph Clarke) arrives, but will he save them from Luther the Geek?
Review
By splatter film standards, Luther the Geek doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from the rest of them. What makes this one stand out is its central character of a circus geek who clucks about like a chicken. Edward Terry easily gives the best performance in the film as Luther as he’s clearly fully committed to the role. With dialogue mostly consisting of chicken noises, he comes off as terrifying and sadistic, yet strangely sympathetic in a way. While the film never endorses what he’s doing, you can’t help but feel bad given his obvious mental condition. Then again, this film isn’t interested in the character’s psychology, but rather going for the jugular both literally and figuratively. For splatter fans, there’s plenty of blood spilling and flesh ripping to please fans looking for something messy. It helps that the gore effects are, mostly, really good considering the low budget.
Aside from Terry, the rest of the acting is about what you’d expect from a low budget B-movie. None of the performances are downright awful, but many of them are somewhat bland and forgettable, though they’re clearly trying. Joan Roth is alright as the captive mother, and future TV actress Stacy Haiduk enhances the film with her “assets”. At roughly 80 minutes, the film goes by pretty quickly and there are never any dull moments dragging it down. Even if the script is super thin, Albright manages to at least make the film visually interesting and well-paced. This is what I’d call a “party movie”, the kind that’s best enjoyed with friends and plenty of booze. While there’s nothing remarkable about the film, it’s definitely an interesting entry in Troma’s catalog, even if it’s a pickup. Overall, Luther the Geek is a gory shocker worth at least a one-time watch.
Buy Luther the Geek on Amazon: https://amzn.to/38TVrlC
