The Honeymoon Killers (1970)

True-life serial killer flick The Honeymoon Killers takes a long time to live up to its claim as a shocking cult classic, spending more time on the killers' unusual love affair than the actual murders; thankfully, when it eventually gets around to depicting the violence, it doesn't disappoint—for a film shot in 1969, the killings are extremely uncomfortable viewing.The film is based on real life killers Martha Beck and Ray Fernandez, an insecure, overweight nurse (played by Shirley Stoler) and a gigolo con-man (Tony Lo Bianco) who fall in love after meeting via a lonely hearts club; posing as brother and sister, the pair trick lonely desperate women out of their savings, but turn to murder whenever their plans go awry.Shot in a lo-fi, docudrama style (no doubt as a result of the very low budget), The Honeymoon Killers is rough around the edges, the pacing is often sluggish, and the dialogue dreary, but the film still achieves a certain sordid appeal thanks to its sickening subject matter and memorably nasty murder scenes, which include a callous hammer attack/strangulation and the drowning of a child.

It's in black and white, the opening scenes are not well-acted, and the sound is not good. After awhile I was thinking this would segue into a color film that would explain that this was an early film by Ed Wood or John Waters -- you know, before they got good. But no."The Honeymoon Killers" opened in 1969. I saw the movie on DVD, with an interview of the screen writer and director, Leonard Kastle. He said it was a direct response to "Bonnie and Clyde," which he despised. "Bonnie and Clyde" had Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway as the leads, of course, and glamorized Barrow and Parker and their violence. Kastle said he wanted to make a more realistic movie and picked a couple called "the lonely hearts killers."Kastle said in the interview that he had just written an opera and that it was being performed in LA, when an acquaintance of his suggested that they do a movie. There was $150,000 available, so Kastle wrote a script, they hired new-comer Martin Scorsese to direct, and they started casting. They hired Tony Lo Bianco as Ray Fernandez and Shirley Stoler as Martha Beck. Lo Bianco is a recognizable face from the many movies he did in the 70s, and Stoler of course is famous for her role in "The Seven Beauties." The rest of the cast was drawn from local talent in upstate New York, when the movie was filmed.Kastle said Scorsese was fired for taking too long; with a budget of $150,000, they had to shoot very quickly. The assistant director took over, but he was fired, too, so Kastle directed with the able assistance of cinematographer Oliver Wood. In the interview, Kastle said many of the scenes were filmed only once -- much of the movie was done in one take. I believe it. (The cinematography is excellent, by the way.) Lo Bianco was good given the material, and Stoler got better as the movie went on. In her opening scenes she was decidedly amateur; however, she got some real emotion going by the end.The cast is amateurs, and the script is, too. I can't remember why this was in my list of movies to watch. Although the events depicted occurred in the late 1940s, no attempt is made to set the movie in that time; all the costumes and cars are current for 1969. An end card on the movie tells us that the couple was executed in 1951.It gets rave reviews on IMDb and is called elsewhere a cult classic. It's beyond me why. It's interesting to watch a movie Scorses got fired from; according to the interview with Kastle, Scorsese directed the scenes at the lake. Given Kastle's sensibilities as shown in the interview, I can understand why Kastle let him go. I think it was the right decision. But it's interesting to contemplate "The Honeymoon Killers" as it would have been if Scorsese had been able to finish.In his interview, Leonard Kastle says although he's open for another movie, no one in Hollywood has come calling. I understand.

A young woman named Martha (Shirley Stoler) and her Latin lover, Ray Fernandez (Tony Lo Bianco) conspire to defraud lonely old ladies of their money. Ray charms the women into marrying him, on receipt of their money. And Martha tags along, posing as Ray's sister. Based on a true-life 1940s murder case, the film could have been quite significant. But a poor script, poor direction, and generally poor acting short-circuit the effort.What slays me is how Ray could be physically attracted to Martha, a big mama who bitches, whines, moans, and exudes anger at every opportunity. In real-life, Martha was indeed heavy-set, and she practically threw herself onto Ray, who then used her in his marriage scam. That motivation doesn't come across in the film.Further, the script's dialogue lacks subtext. Characters say exactly what they think, which renders sophomoric interchanges. And the story takes way too long to get going. For the first half of the film, not much happens.Though Tony Lo Bianco gives a credible performance, the rest of the performances are below average. Stoler is just annoying, as is Doris Roberts with that phony Southern accent. The actress who plays Janet Fay overacts and has a nasal voice that makes her performance campy. I could not take her seriously.You would think that the director would have placed the story within a proper 1940s context. But at no time did I get any sense of the 1940s. Indeed, with some campy performances, cheap sets, and sophomoric dialogue, the film comes across almost tongue-in-cheek, a relic from the 1950s Ed Wood school of film-making.I know this was a low-budget effort. But it takes little or no money to write a good screenplay. And a good director can do wonders with settings and performances. The only factor that saves this film for me is knowing that the events described really happened. I can, to a limited extent, thus overlook the lousy cinematic end product.

Based on the true story of Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck, who met through a lonely-hearts correspondence club, Ray (Tony Lo Bianco) is sleazy and untrustworthy; Martha (Shirley Stoler) is obese, compulsive, and needy. Together, they play out a horrifying scheme in which he lures lonely women out on dates and proposes marriage to them, while she pretends to be his sister. After the marriage ceremonies, they take the womens savings and then murder them in cold blood.The way this film is shot, with its grainy black and white footage, murky sound, bright whites and dark shadows, only adds to its incredibly unsettling nature. Watching this is almost like watching a documentary, and occasionally, a snuff film.Though the acting from the supporting cast is a bit iffy at times, the two leads are excellent. Particularly Shirley Stoller. While Lo Bianco creates one of the most hateful slime-balls I've ever seen, Stoller dominates this film. Her Martha is a frightening, unpleasant, disgusting woman, who is as ugly on the inside as she is on the outside. Her evil nature fills the frame whenever she is on screen.If you're looking for a fast paced thriller, look elsewhere. The pacing in this movie is slow, which only adds to the disturbing documentary feel. But if you want to see a movie where character comes first, and action second, seek this classic out.