Killer Workout

Last updated
Killer Workout
Aerobicide poster.jpg
Directed by David A. Prior [1] [2]
Written byDavid A. Prior [1]
Produced byPeter Yuval [1]
Starring
CinematographyPeter Bonilla [1]
Edited byDavid A. Prior [1]
Production
company
Maverick Films Productions [1]
Distributed byAcademy Home Entertainment
Release date
  • March 27, 1987 (1987-03-27)
Running time
86 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Killer Workout (originally titled Aerobicide) [1] is a 1987 American slasher film written and directed by David A. Prior, and starring Marcia Karr, David James Campbell, Fritz Matthews, Ted Prior, and Teresa Van der Woude. The story revolves around a Los Angeles fitness club owned by Rhonda Johnson, whose twin sister burned in a tanning salon five years ago. Detective Morgan begins to investigate the gym, after several of its members are brutally murdered by an unknown attacker.

Contents

Plot

A young model, Valerie, is burned in a tanning salon accident. Five years later, Valerie's twin sister Rhonda Johnson is operating a fitness club in Los Angeles. Rhonda chastises one of her employees, Jaimy, for missing an aerobics class she was supposed to lead. Shortly after, a killer brandishing a large safety pin enters the women's locker room and slashes Rachael, a client, to death. While closing the club, Jaimy finds her corpse stuffed in a locker, as well as a blood-soaked knitting needle in the locker of Diane Matthews. Detective Morgan is assigned to the murder case and questions Rhonda and Jaimy.

The next day, Chuck is unexpectedly hired by Rhonda's senior managing partner of the club. Chuck gets into a physical fight with patron Jimmy, which impresses club patron Debbie, Jimmy's ex-girlfriend. Later, Morgan learns that Diane's knitting needle was not the weapon used to kill Rachael. Later that night, a group of teenagers vandalize the club with spray paint, only to be brutally murdered by an unseen assailant.

The next day, Tom, a club patron whom Morgan has deemed a suspect, is murdered in the locker room, and later, Jaimy is found hanged inside the club. Rhonda harangues Morgan for her perceived ineffectiveness of his investigation. Morgan uncovers that Rhonda is in fact Valerie, who survived the tanning accident, and that she never had a twin sister—instead, she legally changed her name to Rhonda and has kept her badly-scarred body hidden with clothing and a wig. Morgan confronts Rhonda with his discovery, and she admits it, but remains stern and impervious to his assertion that she may be the murderer, killing out of jealousy.

Shortly after, Chuck is murdered. Morgan tracks Jimmy to a nearby concrete plant, believing that Jimmy has taken the fall as a suspect given there is no evidence linking him to the crimes. Morgan confronts Jimmy at gunpoint, questioning him if Rhonda committed the murders, but Jimmy manages to incapacitate Morgan. Jimmy returns to the gym and is shot to death by Rhonda, but not before admitting he killed Chuck out of his love for her, hoping to implicate himself to spare her from being suspected by police. Rhonda claims self-defense, and Jimmy is widely believed to have committed the serial killings.

Some time later, Rhonda is brought to a wooded area by Morgan. When asked why they are there, Morgan recounts a story of his police officer father, who enacted vigilante justice against a serial killer whose case was dismissed on a technicality. Knowing that Rhonda will not be prosecuted for her crimes due to Jimmy's involvement, Morgan attempts to kill Rhonda, but she manages to kill him using a shovel.

Rhonda returns to her gym to oversee it, and is congratulated by her patrons, who herald her as a hero. In her office, she removes the large safety pin from her desk and fondles it, smiling.

Cast

Release

Home media

Killer Workout was released direct-to-video in the United Kingdom under the alternative title Aerobicide in the spring of 1987. [3] Academy Home Entertainment released the film on video in the United States on March 27, 1987. [4] In 2016, Olive Films released a Blu-ray edition under their Slasher Video sub-label. [5]

Critical reception

A reviewer credited as "Lor." of Variety reviewed the film on March 14, 1987 on VHS by Academy Home Entertainment. [1] "Lor." described the film as a "pretty standard slasher" and "unexciting", [1] "Lor." noted the film was too sparing in nude scenes to satisfy a voyeur audience while the final reel "boasts a couple of nice twists and an amoral ending." [1]

In his book Horror and Science Fiction Film IV, Donald C Willis referred to the film as a "lame horror thriller" that was "crude at everything - t&a displays in the gym, suspense sequences, plot twists." [6] In their review of the blu-ray, Bloody Disgusting opined that "the plot is the very basic slasher setup in that you meet a handful of characters and an unknown killer begins picking them off one by one...none of the characters are very well developed and are introduced to fit two very specific needs – be eye candy and become victims...this won’t result in a groundbreaking slasher that breaks the mold, but it works perfectly to create some enjoyable trash". [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>American Psycho 2</i> 2002 American black comedy slasher film by Morgan J. Freeman

American Psycho 2 is a 2002 American slasher film directed by Morgan J. Freeman from a screenplay by Alex Sanger and Karen Craig. Starring Mila Kunis and William Shatner, it is a stand-alone sequel to the film American Psycho. Kunis portrays a criminology student who seeks to advance her career by murdering her classmates.

<i>High Tension</i> 2003 French slasher film

High Tension is a 2003 French slasher film directed by Alexandre Aja, co-written with Grégory Levasseur, and starring Cécile de France and Maïwenn, alongside Philippe Nahon appeared in supporting roles. Its plot follows two female students who arrive at a secluded farmhouse to study, where they are shortly invaded by a serial killer.

<i>Eyes of Laura Mars</i> 1978 film by Irvin Kershner

Eyes of Laura Mars is a 1978 American supernatural horror thriller film directed by Irvin Kershner and starring Faye Dunaway, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Dourif, René Auberjonois, and Raul Julia. It follows a New York City fashion photographer (Dunaway) who suddenly develops clairvoyant ability to witness disturbing serial murders from the point of view of the killer. The screenplay was adapted from a spec script titled Eyes, written by John Carpenter; it was Carpenter's first major studio film. H. B. Gilmour later wrote a novelization.

<i>Hell Night</i> 1981 American slasher film by Tom DeSimone

Hell Night is a 1981 American slasher film directed by Tom DeSimone, and starring Linda Blair, Vincent Van Patten, Kevin Brophy, and Peter Barton. The film depicts a night of fraternity hazing set in an old manor—the site of a familial mass murder—during which a deformed killer terrorizes and murders many of the college students. The plot blends elements of slasher films and Gothic haunted house films. Filmmaker Chuck Russell served as an executive producer, while his long-time collaborator Frank Darabont served as a production assistant.

<i>Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers</i> 1988 American black comedy slasher film by Michael A. Simpson

Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers is a 1988 American slasher film written by Fritz Gordon and directed by Michael A. Simpson. It is the second installment in the Sleepaway Camp film series, and stars Pamela Springsteen as Angela, and Renée Estevez. The film takes place five years after the events of the original, and features serial killer Angela, working as a counselor, murdering misbehaving teenagers at another summer camp.

<i>The Slumber Party Massacre</i> 1982 film by Amy Holden Jones

The Slumber Party Massacre is a 1982 American slasher film directed by Amy Holden Jones and written by Rita Mae Brown. It is the first installment in the Slumber Party Massacre series, and stars Michelle Michaels, Robin Stille, and Michael Villella. The film follows a high school senior who gathers her friends for a slumber party, unaware that an escaped power drill-wielding killer is loose in the neighborhood.

<i>Sweet Sixteen</i> (1983 film) 1983 American slasher film by Jim Sotos

Sweet Sixteen is a 1983 American slasher film directed by Jim Sotos and starring Bo Hopkins, Susan Strasberg, Dana Kimmell, and Patrick Macnee. The film follows a teenage girl who moves to a small Texas town, after which a series of brutal murders plague the young men there. The film features Don Shanks, Steve Antin, Sharon Farrell, and Michael Pataki in supporting roles.

<i>Black Christmas</i> (2006 film) 2006 film by Glen Morgan

Black Christmas is a 2006 slasher film written and directed by Glen Morgan and starring Katie Cassidy, Michelle Trachtenberg, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Oliver Hudson, Lacey Chabert, Kristen Cloke, and Andrea Martin. The film takes place several days before Christmas and tells the story of a group of sorority sisters who are stalked and murdered in their house during a winter storm. It is a loose remake and reimagining of the 1974 film of the same name. A co-production of Canada and the United States, the film was produced by Morgan and James Wong through their production company Hard Eight Pictures, along with 2929 Productions, Adelstein-Parouse Productions and Hoban Segal Productions. It is the second film in the Black Christmas series.

<i>Hospital Massacre</i> 1982 film by Boaz Davidson

Hospital Massacre is a 1982 American slasher film directed by Boaz Davidson and starring Barbi Benton. Its plot follows a woman who becomes trapped on an empty floor of a hospital, where a murderer posing as a surgeon attempts to kill her.

<i>Slumber Party Massacre II</i> 1987 film

Slumber Party Massacre II is a 1987 American black comedy slasher film written and directed by Deborah Brock, and produced by Roger Corman. It is the second installment in the original Slumber Party Massacre trilogy, and stars Crystal Bernard. The film follows Courtney, a character introduced in the previous film, as she and her friends are attacked by a supernatural killer with a power-drill guitar.

<i>Graduation Day</i> (film) 1981 film by Herb Freed

Graduation Day is a 1981 American slasher film co-written, co-produced and directed by Herb Freed, and starring Christopher George, Patch Mackenzie, Michael Pataki, and E. Danny Murphy in his film debut. The plot follows a high school track team who are stalked and murdered by a masked assailant days before their graduation. Linnea Quigley, Vanna White, and Karen Abbott appear in supporting performances.

<i>Night Screams</i> 1987 American film directed by Allen Plone

Night Screams is a 1987 American slasher film directed by Allen Plone.

Midnight Movie is a 2008 American slasher film directed by Jack Messitt, who also co-wrote the film, and produced by Kacy Andrews.

<i>Eyes of a Stranger</i> (1981 film) 1981 American film

Eyes of a Stranger is a 1981 American slasher film directed by Ken Wiederhorn, and starring Lauren Tewes and Jennifer Jason Leigh. Its plot follows a newscaster in Miami who suspects that her neighbor may be a local rapist and serial killer. It features makeup effects by Tom Savini.

<i>My Super Psycho Sweet 16</i> American TV series or program

My Super Psycho Sweet 16 is a 2009 American made-for-TV slasher film, based on the MTV show, My Super Sweet 16. The film follows two girls: outcast Skye Rotter, and the spoiled Madison Penrose who hosts her sweet sixteen at an abandoned roller skating rink, where a masked killer begins murdering the party patrons.

<i>Nail Gun Massacre</i> 1980s American rape-and-revenge slasher film

Nail Gun Massacre is a 1987 American rape-and-revenge slasher film written by Terry Lofton and directed by Lofton and Bill Leslie. It follows a young doctor and a sheriff seeking a killer in a motorcycle helmet who is murdering locals with a nail gun.

<i>Those Redheads from Seattle</i> 1953 film by Lewis R. Foster

Those Redheads from Seattle is a 1953 American musical western film produced in 3-D directed by Lewis R. Foster and starring Rhonda Fleming, Gene Barry and Agnes Moorehead, and released by Paramount Pictures. It was the first 3-D musical.

<i>Death Spa</i> 1988 American film

Death Spa is a 1988 American supernatural slasher film directed by Michael Fischa and starring William Bumiller, Brenda Bakke, Merritt Butrick, Ken Foree, Karyn Parsons, Rosalind Cash, and Vanessa Bell Calloway. Its plot follows a series of mysterious deaths occurring in a high-tech Los Angeles health spa, resulting from the spirit of the owner's deceased wife, who possesses the club's intricate computer system.

<i>Happy Death Day</i> 2017 American slasher film

Happy Death Day is a 2017 American black comedy slasher film directed by Christopher Landon, and written by Scott Lobdell. It stars Jessica Rothe and Israel Broussard. The film was produced by Jason Blum through his Blumhouse Productions banner, in association with Digital Riot Media and Vesuvius Productions. It follows a college student who is murdered on the night of her birthday and begins reliving the day repeatedly, at which point she sets out to find the killer and stop her death.

<i>Twisted Nightmare</i> 1987 film by Paul Hunt

Twisted Nightmare is a 1987 American supernatural slasher film written and directed by Paul Hunt and starring Rhonda Gray, Cleve Hall, and Robert Padilla. Its plot follows a group of young people who return to a summer camp they attended in their youth, and are killed off by a hulking killer.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Lor. 1991.
  2. ↑ "Killer Workout | TV Guide". TV Guide.
  3. ↑ Booker, John (April 2, 1987). "Video View: Nightmare Over Again". Walton and Weybridge Informer. p. 22 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "New release for March 27–April 7". Abilene Reporter News . p. 36 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 Coffe, Chris (January 23, 2016). "Blu-ray Review, 'Killer Workout' is Trashy, Slasher Fun". Bloody Disgusting . Archived from the original on July 28, 2023.
  6. ↑ Willis 1997, p. 5.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.