THE TOOLBOX MURDERS (1978)
Label: Blue Underground
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: R
Duration: 94 Minutes
Audio: English Dolby Atmos, DTS-HD MA 5.1, DTS-HD MA Mono 1.0 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: DolbyVision HDR10 2160p UHD Widescreen (1.85:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.66:1)
Director: Dennis Donnelly
Cast: Cameron Mitchell, Wesley Eure, Aneta Corsaut, Kelly Nichols.
Made in '77 and looking to cash-on on the success of Texas Chainsaw Massacre the seedy L.A. set video nasty The Toolbox Murders (1978) concerns a masked killer who is snuffing out the lives of young women in an apartment building that is undergoing renovations. On a particular night a blacked gloved killer with a ski mask and a toolbox full of sharp tools unleashes his inner fury on three unsuspecting young women, dispatching the first with a large wood boring drill bit, and then sets upon a pair of women with a hammer and screwdriver. When the bodies are discovered the police, Lieutenant Mark Jamison (the brother of the director Tim Donnelly, Parts: The Clonus Horror) and Sergeant Cameron (Don Diamond) arrive to investigate the killings, interviewing the building superintendent Vance Kingsley (Cameron Mitchell, Raw Force) and others, though no one seems to have seen anything unusual. Undeterred by the police presence the killer returns the very next night and interrupts a young woman (future porno starlet Kelly Nichols, Ultra Flesh) who is masturbating inher bubble bath, chasing the nude woman around the apartment before dispatching her with a nail gun to the gut and gead. He then kidnaps a fifteen year-old girl Laurie Ballard (Pamelyn Ferdin, The Mephisto Waltz), after which her brother Joey (Nicholas Ballard, Diary of a Teenage Hitchhiker) and Vance's twisted nephew Kent (Wesley Eure, TV's Land of the Lost) become keenly interested in sleuthing the identity of the killer, while the cops come up short at every turn.
Despite this being a masked killer flick, at least at the start, there's not a lot of whodunit slasher suspense happening. It starts off strong with the first couple of murders happen in quick succession, but the identity of the killer is fairly easy to guess and it's actually revealed not long after. So that goes right out the window dow. The flick has a certain black-gloved giallo vibe about it that I dig, as well as seedy 70's police procedural element along the lines of The Massage Parlor Murders and Don't Answer the Phone, but it has a very made-for-TV style about it, despite some creative editing and some decent bloodshed and implied gore.
With not much suspense concerning the killer's identity the film relies on the it's sleaze-factor via nude victims and bloody tool-themed murder set-pieces, and a weird character study of a killer motivated by a past trauma and his belief that he is cleansing these women of sin. The most interesting stuff here aside from the pulpy kills and entiful nudity is seeing star Cameron Mitchell nutting it up, bordering on being hokey, but it's a lot of fun, plus we get a climax that has a deranged table-turning incest slant that more than makes up for the soft middle third of the movie with bloody dolls, a teen set fire to, and some more sleaze.
Audio/Video: The Toolbox Murders arrives on 2-disc UHD/BD from Blue Underground in both 1080p HD and 2160p Ultra HD framed in 1.66:1 widescreen, benefitting from a brand new 4K scan of the uncut original camera negative. It's another top-notch Blue Underground presentation with lush film grain, pleasing color saturation and mostly solid black levels. It looks better than ever but manages to retain rhe 70's era seediness of it all. The Dolby Vision HDR10 color-grading deepens the color spectrum and deepens shadow detail, though there is a tiny bit of black crush in spots.
Audio comes by way of uncompressed English Dolby Atmos and DTS-HD MA 5.1 and original 1.0 mono, with optional English subtitles. The Dolby Atmos is quite strong and nuanced within the constraints of the vintage, cheaply made production. The DTS-HD MA 5.1 is also quite good but its the original 1.0 that is my go-too, it just feels more authentic and has a vintage up front directness that I enjoy.
Onto the 4K UHD disc extras we get a pair of commentaries, first up is the archival 2002 track with Producer Tony DiDio, Director of Photography Gary Graver and Star Pamelyn Ferdin, then onto a brand new and excited track from Film Historians Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson, both are great listens if you're a fan of the film. Aside from the main feature the UHD also features the Theatrical Trailer, TV Spot and Radio Spots.
Onto the Blu-ray we get the same pair of audio commentaries, trailer, TV spot and radio spots, plus a host of new and archival featurettes. First up is the 8-min I Got Nailed In THE TOOLBOX MURDERS – Interview with Actress Marianne Walter from the previous Blue Underground Blu-ray and the DVD before that, then new stuff by way of the 20-min Drill Sergeant – Interview with Director Dennis Donnelly, featuring the spirited the director gleefully recalling working at Universal starting out as a second unit director on TV's Hawaii Five-0, directing 39-episodes of Adam 12, and being offered his first directing gig on The Toolbox Murders by producer George DiDio (Reborn), and working with talented cinematographer Gary Graver, shooting the film in 11-days on a shoestring budget, and how Mitchell wrote the infamous bedroom scene himself. It's a pretty great interviews and you can tell he loves talking about the movie. In the 26-min Tools Of The Trade – Interview with Star Wesley Eure, the star of Land of the Lost talks about how fun it was to play a villain in contrast to his TV characters, getting really into the character (maybe a bit too much), and how the director let him try out his own ideas, like emulating a scene from King King '76 with a bloody doll! The 31-min Flesh And Blood – Interview with Actress Kelly Nichols features her talking about her early career modeling and being a Penthouse Pet, the genesis of her stage name, body-doubling Jessica Lang in King Kong, shooting her nude scenes with Cameron Mitchell, and how she has trouble recalling her porn career particulars thanks to the copious amounts of drugs. The 25-min Slashback Memories – David Del Valle Remembers Cameron Mitchell features the fan-favorite film historian talking about the life and times of the storied actor, getting into why he was in so many of these low-budget flicks in the 70's (it's all about the alimony) and how he was still great even if the movies were not. It's Del Valle, so we have to get a great Old Hollywood tale about Mitchel, Lee Marvin and Richard Burton filming a rape scene. The last of the new stuff is the 20-min They Know I Have Been Sad' – Video Essay by Film Historian Amanda Reyes and Filmmaker Chris O'Neill that examines the reception of the film by critics of the time and how it holds up today as an example of urban horror. We also get a new Poster & Still Gallery with over a hundred promotional images for the film.
The 2-disc release arrives in an oversized black keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork featuring the terrific illustrated movie poster. This release also includes a slipcover with the same artwork and embossed features and lettering, and inside the discs themselves are adorned with separate artworks containing elements of the key art. Sadly, no booklet or CD soundtrack on this one, but still a terrific 2-disc set.
Special Features:
- Ultra HD Blu-ray (2160p) and HD Blu-ray (1080p) Widescreen 1.66:1 feature presentation
- Audio: Dolby Atmos (English); 5.1 DTS-HD (English); 1.0 DTS-HD (English)
- Subtitles: English SDH, Francais, Espanol
- Audio Commentary #1 with Producer Tony DiDio, Director of Photography Gary Graver and Star Pamelyn Ferdin
- NEW! Audio Commentary #2 with Film Historians Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson
- NEW! Drill Sergeant – Interview with Director Dennis Donnelly (20 min)
- NEW! Tools Of The Trade – Interview with Star Wesley Eure (26 min)
- NEW! Flesh And Blood – Interview with Actress Kelly Nichols (31 min)
- I Got Nailed In THE TOOLBOX MURDERS – Interview with Actress Marianne Walter (8 min)
- NEW! Slashback Memories – David Del Valle Remembers Cameron Mitchell (25 min)
- NEW! 'They Know I Have Been Sad' – Video Essay by Film Historian Amanda Reyes and Filmmaker Chris O'Neill (20 min)
- Theatrical Trailer (2 min)
- TV Spot (33 sec)
- Radio Spots (1 min)
- NEW! Poster & Still Gallery
- Easter Egg (45 sec)
The Toolbox Murders (1978) recieves a handsome 4K UHD upgrade from Blue Underground; spiffing it up with fan-pleasing A/V upgrades, but still retaining the seedy and sleaze-packed charms that make it the exploitation gem that it is, and stacked with extras.
Screenshots from the 2022 Blue Underground Blu-ray:
