Rating: 
Summary: Very Cheap and Quite Nasty
Review: "The ToolBox Murders" is one of those films that has gained most of its notoriety because of it's title. The question for anyone new to watching it is, does it live up to the promise? Well the answer is yes, but only for the first 20 minutes. Pretty much as soon as the film starts, the viewer is treated to several murders featuring hammers, drills and screwdrivers, all in quick succession, and all of women. After a brief pause for breath, the film plays its trump card, the scene in which a woman is interrupted while taking a bath to be chased naked around her apartment by the killer, who this time is wielding a nail gun. This scene is by far the nastiest in the movie, even though the special effects are achieved very cheaply. Actually, goremongers may be upset to learn that most of the gore in the movie is delivered in a very cheap and poorly filmed way. The editing of the first batch of murders is terrible...it seems that only the nail gun murder had any kind of story boarding or professional editing done on it!
Sadly, there is worse to come, for after this eye-popping first half hour, the film grinds to a virtual standstill, as it is at this point that the murderer is revealed and the killings all but stop as the action turns to the detectives trying to solve the case, along with depicting the prolonged plight of a young girl who the murderer has kidnapped and is keeping bound and gagged at his home. This remainding section of the film just drags on and on, despite some laughs on offer from Cameron Mitchel as he pours his heart out to the terrified girl.
On that note, the rest of the acting talent on offer throughout the movie is also rock bottom bad, especially in some of the minor roles where performances reach almost H.G. Lewis standards! About the only exception to this is Pamelyn Ferdin as the unlucky final victim, who does manage to wring some believeability out of her plight, despite having to share screen time with Cameron Mitchell singing "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child."...oh dear.
The DVD edition of the movie presents a great picture considering the quality of the film is pretty ropey at best. And there are some nice extras, including an interview with Kelly Nicholls, who suffered the nail gun murder. Its surprising that a film this poor has enough of an audience to deserve such a good DVD makeover, as it's strong points are few and far between. Strangely, all the murders are set to twee country music that seems to be playing out of every record player in the apartment block, something I have not often seen before. In fact, during the nail gun murder, this lends an almost surreal touch to the unfolding horror, leaving me to wonder if the effect was intentional or just decided on at random. That, and the seriously downbeat ending (quite effective in my opinion, at least for anyone who hasn't switched off before that time), are probably the only original touches to the movie which sadly fails in all other respects to come close to the style and quality of the countless better films it so obviously is trying to copy.
Rating:
Summary: Very Cheap and Quite Nasty
Review: "The ToolBox Murders" is one of those films that has gained most of its notoriety because of it's title. The question for anyone new to watching it is, does it live up to the promise? Well the answer is yes, but only for the first 20 minutes. Pretty much as soon as the film starts, the viewer is treated to several murders featuring hammers, drills and screwdrivers, all in quick succession, and all of women. After a brief pause for breath, the film plays its trump card, the scene in which a woman is interrupted while taking a bath to be chased naked around her apartment by the killer, who this time is wielding a nail gun. This scene is by far the nastiest in the movie, even though the special effects are achieved very cheaply. Actually, goremongers may be upset to learn that most of the gore in the movie is delivered in a very cheap and poorly filmed way. The editing of the first batch of murders is terrible...it seems that only the nail gun murder had any kind of story boarding or professional editing done on it!
Sadly, there is worse to come, for after this eye-popping first half hour, the film grinds to a virtual standstill, as it is at this point that the murderer is revealed and the killings all but stop as the action turns to the detectives trying to solve the case, along with depicting the prolonged plight of a young girl who the murderer has kidnapped and is keeping bound and gagged at his home. This remainding section of the film just drags on and on, despite some laughs on offer from Cameron Mitchel as he pours his heart out to the terrified girl.
On that note, the rest of the acting talent on offer throughout the movie is also rock bottom bad, especially in some of the minor roles where performances reach almost H.G. Lewis standards! About the only exception to this is Pamelyn Ferdin as the unlucky final victim, who does manage to wring some believeability out of her plight, despite having to share screen time with Cameron Mitchell singing "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child."...oh dear.
The DVD edition of the movie presents a great picture considering the quality of the film is pretty ropey at best. And there are some nice extras, including an interview with Kelly Nicholls, who suffered the nail gun murder. Its surprising that a film this poor has enough of an audience to deserve such a good DVD makeover, as it's strong points are few and far between. Strangely, all the murders are set to twee country music that seems to be playing out of every record player in the apartment block, something I have not often seen before. In fact, during the nail gun murder, this lends an almost surreal touch to the unfolding horror, leaving me to wonder if the effect was intentional or just decided on at random. That, and the seriously downbeat ending (quite effective in my opinion, at least for anyone who hasn't switched off before that time), are probably the only original touches to the movie which sadly fails in all other respects to come close to the style and quality of the countless better films it so obviously is trying to copy.
Rating: 
Summary: Bob Vila's Favorite Film!
Review: Back in the day Phil Donahue devoted an entire show to violent films and their alleged harmful effects, focusing mainly on The Toolbox Murders. This type of horror film was still quite new at the time, Halloween still being a year away and Friday The 13th three years away. I can understand how Phil and Co. thought this was appalling at the time, but any hardcore horror fan will say, "what's all the fuss about?" Actually I'm surprised they singled this out and didn't devote the hour to Last House On The Left. I guess Phil didn't watch that one. Imagine his reaction if he saw Cannibal Holocaust! Anyhow, as you'll read in other reviews, people really think this is a stinker. Most of these folks are young horror fans exposed to this film for the first time since it recently got a dvd release expecting an all out bloodbath coz of the film's reputation. Yeah, if you have those expectations I can almost guarantee you'll walk away disappointed. the actual "toolbox murders" occur from the getgo and go on for about a half hour or so, then we're done with the slasher flick portion of the film. The film totally switches gears at this point, right after the killer abducts a fifteen year old girl. Ya see, this guy feels he's doing God's work by killing women he finds immoral and dirty. All victims are from the same apartment complex, and do cool stuff like dance in lingerie right in front of the window. How come this never happens in my apartment complex? Although I did hear a couple going at it last summer. Anyhow, that's not important, back to the story. He kidnaps this girl to save her from these evils, but also becomes convinced that she is his daughter who had died some years before. I've seen this film a time or two before, so I know about the psycho-drama part of the film. Quite frankly, I enjoy it. Cameron Mitchell does an adequate job, looking like a psycho Tom Jones. Lots of acting bashing here, but the scenes showing him and the girl in a father/daughter type mind game aren't too bad and even a bit disturbing at that. Gore? Confined to the first half hour mainly. The murders aren't barf bag sick or anything, but unpleasant enough. Don't hold your breath for the infamous nail gun scene, coz it's nothing to write home about. The tub scene preceeding it is an attention getter, but if you see enough slasher films, the nail gun's not so shocking. It's only famous coz it's a nail gun, which is something that had never been used in a horror film before. I would recommend The Toolbox movies if you're a connoisseur of old horror and exploitation films. It's a minor classic in it's own right, so what could it hurt to say you've seen it? Once again Blue Underground's devotion to the restoration of crappy films comes through nicely here. This film probably didn't look or sound this good upon it's original release! Watch it in your underwear with a full stock of Funyuns for full effect.
Rating:
Summary: 3 Stars sounds fair.
Review: Bit by bit by bit, he carved a nightmare! In a quiet Los Angeles apartment complex, a deranged handyman savagely murders "immoral" women with the tools of his trade: claw-hammers, screwdrivers, power drills and even a deadly nail gun! But these gruesome murders are just the beginning of this landmark epic of violence and depravity that was vilified by critics, banned by censors, and treasured by splatter fans worldwide! Four breasts. Nine corpses. Claw hammer to the brainpan. Nailgun attack. Implied rape. Self-gratification. Pepsi spilling. One human torch. Improper use of scissors. Gratuitous radio evangelist. Our friendly neighborhood serial killer reasons, "The best are always taken when they're young. I think maybe God wants it that way. Because the world would ruin them." And later he howls, "YOU DIRTY, FILTHY FORNICATOR!!!" All in all, it's a little to intense for some, but it's funnier than it is scary. 3 stars definately.
Rating:
Summary: Great Presentation!
Review: Blue Underground deserves full marks for their excellent transfer of this low-budget thriller, one of the darkest and crudiest looking of its era. The film itself is less praiseworthy but you have to love Cameron Mitchell's oddball performance and the killings are pretty disturbing. Great extras too.
Rating:
Summary: toolbox terror
Review: Far superior in every way to Tobe Hoopers new version, Cameron mitchell stars as the balaclava wearing drill/nailgun weilding maniac who for the first 20 minutes or so lovingly despatches a host of maidens with a different tool in his box everytime. This film is very grisly and is still unavailable uncut in most places, apart from the states of course. After the opening sequences the film becomes a bit mundane and plods along extremely slowly developing into a kidnap drama with a psycho twist but Mitchell is superb and strangely - for an ex-cowboy - extremely believable as the tormentor, the rest of the acting is pretty appalling as you would come to expect from these types of movies but the gore scenes at the begginning are quite shocking, especially the nail-gun scenario. Blue underground havedone a great job of cleaning up the image and is a very worthwhile addition to the horror genre.
Rating:
Summary: Good for what it is...
Review: First of all, this is a very good transfer. Blue Underground really goes all out when it comes to restoration. Secondly, though interesting, the extras don't add up to much. Trailers, a very small feature about the infamous nail-gun scene, radio spots, a Cameron Mitchell bio and a running commentary. For the price, the quality of the transfer is worth it for fans of the film. As for the film itself, the title basically says it all. In this viewer's opinion it's an above average slasher flick. It COULD be taken seriously except for the fact that some of the victims just aren't trying hard enough to escape. Overall, a noteworthy effort cinematically in terms of trash films and worth adding to any slasher fan's collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Fast forward review
Review: For sex sleaze fans, we got one star here for the can't miss nail gun scene, with an attractive young nude girl scrambling around showing all her goodies before getting . . . uh, nailed. Very sexy.The rest is some limited gore stuff and a bunch of catch the killer plot, yawn. Not enough nudity, not enough sleaze, but the nail gun scene is essential.
Rating: 
Summary: Mystery Science Theater anyone?
Review: God, this movie is so bad, it almost crosses over into good. According to the special features (Yes! There are special features on this movie!), one of the death scenes is Stephen King's favorite of all-time...it involves a naked chick running & a nail gun. Let that be a clue for you. Overall, I didn't think this film was very gruesome--I had high expectations after hearing that it was worse than the original 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre.' This movie is more of a comedy if you ask me...my friends & I laughed all the way through it. However, we did feel bad at the end when the credits said it was all based on a true story. Now that I have wracked up so much bad karma, my life (or-eeeek-death) will probably be turned into a film this awful.
Rating:
Summary: Wesley Eure Is HOT, But This is NOT Slasher Nirvana
Review: I absolutely adore Wesley Eure so I was thrilled that he plays a psychopath in this movie. It's cool to see him in something besides LAND OF THE LOST. I've had a crush on him since I was a kiddy.
This movie I found slightly dissapointing only because it is not gory enough. It is does not even approach films like THE PROWLER. And all the murders happen very quickly and then the rest of the film is left to solving the crimes. This film definately needed more murders. It's reputation makes one expect something truly gruesome. This film really is not ever very graphic, it is more disturbing because you know what the killer is doing with the tools. But when compared with stuff like PIECES, or THE BEYOND, this just doesn't cut it as a gorehound movie. But it is definately worth buying for slasher fans. Just don't expect slasher nirvana.
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