Another one of SOMETHING WEIRD's new triple feature output, THE ZODIAC KILLER/THE SEX KILLER/ZERO IN AND SCREAM is a mixed bag of exploitation flicks.THE ZODIAC KILLER is allegedly based on an authentic crime case, a serial killer that stalked the San Francisco Bay area in the late 1960ies. As serial killer flick this 1970 effort is years ahead of its time. That is not to say that THE ZODIAC KILLER is a good movie. Generally it is rewarding viewing for exploitation fans, if you are willing to forgive cheap gore effects and some dragging here and there. The killer's motivation is a bit silly to put it mildly and he is the usual mister-nice-guy-next-door type, always willing to lend a helping hand, inviting the folks at his favorite bar for a drink, etc. He even breeds pet rabbits (!) and takes good care of them, a trait that endeared him to me. Well, he is a nice guy - until his personality's dark side takes over and he embarks on a killing spree...It has to be said that many of the murders are poorly staged. Much more fun than the bloodier parts is a subplot about a weirdo - a vain but ugly, extremely foul-mouthed truckdriver full of barely hidden aggressions. This guy hams it up, but since he is not much of a thespian, he comes across more laughable than menacing. Due to his foul language (every second word is "broad") and his antics he adds a lot of entertainment value, but unfortunately his character does not have too much screen time.The film gets surreal in places with the usual hapless cops seeking advice from a psychic, it also drags in places, but ends on an effective and satisfying punchline.Picture quality on this one is is poor with scratches and grain, but given the film's vintage on the whole acceptable.Far better is the second film THE SEX KILLER, a mid-1960ies b/w sleaze film concerning a young loner with some serious sexual problems. First he buys binoculars to spy on women, then he proceeds to steal a mannequin's head for his pleasure (!) I liked the scene where he stops on his way home for a drink in a bar with his plastic "date" - the embarrassed gazes of the bartender and the patrons are priceless! I bet this was shot with hidden camera. As his sexual madness progresses he strangles and rapes women...A quick sick sleazefest THE SEX KILLER never outstays his welcome due to a brief running time. The weird proceedings are accompanied by an instrumental music theme, which is repeated over and over again, but fits surprisingly well. I also enjoyed the nice 1960ies New York location footage. Picture quality is also very good with a pristine print.ZERO IN AND SCREAM's plot (so to speak) concerns a mad sniper stalking love-making couples in the Hollywood Hills area and shooting the men during intercourse. It plays more for titillation than for thrills with the sniper story a mere pretext. The sex scenes are quite graphic, particularly the one in the swimming pool. Nice underwater photography, by the way.The film ends rather abruptly. I'm reliably informed that the movie is cut by over a minute. Clearly the weakest of the bunch, in both entertainment value and picture quality.There is not much in the way of extras here, just a gallery of "Sick Sixties Sex Stills With Audio Oddities", which is much fun and runs for about 10 minutes.There are also 5 trailers, for THE SEX KILLER, ZERO IN AND SCREAM, THE PSYCHO KILLER, AROUSED and HONEYMOON OF TERROR. The last is my favorite of the bunch. This mid-1960ies b/w film is apparently about a couple on honeymoon being terrorized by a crazed redneck in an isolated wooden area. Hope, this one will hit DVD one day!Like i mentioned above, this contains the original, first ever movie made about the Zodiac, who at the time was still doing "his thing" as he like to say it in California. The movie itself insn't that bad for a cheesy explotation film, much like the classic "Town that Dreaded Sundown" (which was based on the hood wearing lovers lane serial killer the "Texarkana Phantom", who some Zodiac researchers have claimed was the early killing spree of Zodiac... m.o. & costume matched atleast). The plot is a little bizzare at time (sometimes borderline silly, but hey! it's the 70's). There was alot of actual truth in the movie, from Zodiac's letters (which are to a tee), his costume, the locales (Presidio Heights, Vallejo, etc), the murders (all the lovers lane shootings, the costumed attack, cabby shooting, even the whole Kathleen Johns affair is covered) & even parts of the investigation. Paul Avery (the guy who Robert Downey jr played in the new Zodiac movie) also delivers a message at the beggining. 3 & a half star regular movie, 5 star if you like "grind-house" or serial killer flicks. As for gore/kills, the shootings are too the point, the costumed attack suffered from a lack-luster actress, though there were several "fictional" kills that are pure explotation film gold.The second movie is the Sex Killer, which (in all liklihood) is based on the then current Boston Strangler / Albert DeSalvo case (the killer even looks like De Salvo), though not as good as the Tony Curtis movie, but way better than the 1st movie they did on the murders called "the Strangler". The plot is rather laughable, though it does get better towards the end, with our Norman Bates-like killer strangling (with stockings like De Salvo did) & preforming necrophilic acts on his female victims, he also has a bizzare penchant for fake female heads, and even takes one on the most awkward date in history. 2 & a half star regular movie, a good 3 if you like serial killer or Corman esque 60's crime films. PS the stranglings are a bit disturbing & unlike the other murders on this dvd, are not that badly staged.The last film, Zero in & Scream also apparently takes some of it's plot from the Zodiac murders (and maybe to a lesser extent the Charly Whitman shootings), with a sexually repressed, redneck sniper, who is targeting young couples as they engage in sex, shooting them with his high powered rifle. Pretty short & to the point movie, i liked the "feel" of this film (though, like the others before it, does suffer from a somewhat "foolish" scripting). There is also some "great" vintage 70's softcore sex scenes, with plenty of nudity. 3 star regular film, 3 & a half if you like the genre.Well worth the buy, 5 stars overall.This product is a DVD-R, not a factory-pressed DVD.At first glance, it looks like the real thing: it comes shrinkwrapped in a box with a professionally-printed cover (there's even a barcode on the back), with what looks like professional silkscreen printing on the disc; but the giveaway is that the shiny side of the disc is purple, while factory-pressed DVDs are silver.I don't have a problem with companies releasing DVD-Rs, as long as they are honest about it; in this case, the professional-quality printing, which is practically indistinguishable from an original, combined with the fact that there is no indication anywhere on the box or disc that it's a DVD-R, suggests an intent to deceive.Giving Something Weird Video the benefit of a doubt, I sent them a polite email inquiring about these discs, and got back a curt, evasive response: "If you didn't buy them directly from us, I don't know what they are." Not amused, I sent a second, more forceful email, and this time got an admission that these Image Entertainment double/triple feature discs are indeed "made-on-demand" (including the ones sold direct from SWV). I don't know of any other company that releases DVD-R replicas of its back-catalogue without telling anyone like this. It'll be some time before I'm willing to trust any product that has "Something Weird Video" printed on the cover again.The main problem with DVD-Rs is that they degrade over time, eventually developing errors that show up as noticeable glitches in playback, or becoming flat-out unplayable. A factory-pressed DVD, if it's treated kindly, should last a lifetime, while no one can truthfully say how long a DVD-R will last. I personally own name-brand DVD-Rs that have gone bad in under 4 years, and some reviewers on Amazon have reported problems reading "burn-on-demand" discs after only months.The reason I ordered these movies on DVD as opposed to, say, downloading them, was because I wanted to own them in a durable form, so receiving them on DVD-R defeats the purpose, even if the DVD-R is functionally identical to a DVD.I've noticed that on Amazon.com, it is now clearly stated at the top of product pages when something is a DVD-R. I hope Amazon.ca starts doing the same. In the meantime, I've written this review to warn people, since there was nothing here to warn me when I made my purchase. Remember: If the shiny side of the disc is purple or purplish rather than silver, it's a DVD-R, not a real DVD, no matter what the box says or how slick the packaging.