A Vietnam vet, part-time glamour photographer and bodybuilder is bumping off women in Los Angeles. He regularly rings a talk radio show and appears obsessed with the female host. He also holds quasi-religious ceremonies and has angry conversations with his deceased father.

Don’t Answer The Phone! is a nasty, gritty and sleazy piece of film-making. And it’s meant to be. It’s earned it’s place in the sub-genre known as Vetsploitation (nothing to do with pets) with, surely, Taxi Driver being the pinnacle within this category.

The locales of Don’t are notably ‘colourful’ and include motel rooms rented by the hour, massage parlours and the parts of ‘downtown’ that city officials hope the tourists don’t stray into inadvertently.

The crimes are shot from the killer’s POV, even with his wheezing and heavy breathing over the soundtrack. Some may think the film is misogynistic with the killer stalking, humiliating and ultimately killing solely female prey. But I disagree with this label. I think the film holds up a mirror to what was happening regarding real life serial killers at this time. The fact that the killer isn’t given a character name is very telling. This is a generic psycho who could represent any whack job who was/is stalking women.

Also, the fact that he entices young wannabe models to his apartment for photo sessions reminds me of the real life case of Rodney Alcala, the so-called Game Show Killer who had a similar modus operandi. When Alcala was caught, police found numerous photos he had taken of numerous such starlets. Are they still alive or did they meet a terrible end?

There’s also the scene in which the killer wears a smart suit and poses as someone entirely different to gain the trust of a potential victim. It works. The resemblance to Ted Bundy in this scene is uncanny.

When the film was released, The Yorkshire Ripper here in the UK still hadn’t been found. His victims were all female.

The film could even be seen as being pro-woman what with the bodily area the killer is shot in the film’s closing moments (if you know, you know!)

Don’t Answer The Phone holds up a mirror to the dangers women still face. You can either face this or be outraged and feel a need to suppress it (the film was temporarily banned as a Video Nasty).

Yes, the film does occasionally curdle into camp but you can see these scenes as redemption from the movie’s relentlessly grittier fare.

4 out of 5 stars