13 - Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer

    A drifter, Henry shares an apartment with Otis.  Becky comes to stay with them, and Henry winds up teaching Otis to kill.

    I first watched this sometime during high school, as it had been referenced as being a really powerful horror movie.  I remember liking it, but it wasn't quite as powerful as I had expected.  I've put off watching it again for a long time, but I wanted to break it down for the sake of analyzing serial killer horror stories.
    It's better than I remembered, and a bit more effective.  There are two things in particular that stand out.  First, there's a slow, distant quality to most of the movie.  Depending on your expectations, and how much you're willing to invest in the movie, this could be a problem for some people.  My high school self found this just too slow.  Now, it seems to be a really pleasing approach.  Second, the location does a lot to sell the feel of the movie.  It's in the midwest, somewhere outside Chicago.  We see the city a few times, but most of the movie is spent in a dreary, beer-soaked existence.
    I always think it's interesting to pair more than one killer.  To assume they would agree on their ideas is naive, and it's remarkable how well this movie sells the idea.  Henry is an accomplished killer.  He tries to explain the ideas to Otis, specifically ideas about hiding his tracks, and making sure that police don't tie all of the murders into one case.  Henry has an unusual refusal to let sexuality permeate his murders.  This does conflict with one murder scene we see, with a mostly disrobed prostitute with her arms bound.  Henry's uncomfortable behavior with sexuality is kind of welcome.  Most horror movies try to tie sexuality in so tightly with death.
    Otis is sloppy, and is much more sexually motivated to murder.  He gets so wound up about killing that he doesn't seem to think much of being safe.
    There's a third character, Becky, and she serves as a means to distinguish Henry and Otis.  What I found, at least during this viewing, was that she drives home a more tragic element to the movie.  She's dealing with having a child at a distance, her husband was abusive, she was raped by her father as a child.  By the end, she looks at Henry as a savior.
    I took massive notes on this movie, breaking down each scene, and I think it will be an invaluable aid.