10 Foreign Language Horror Films Hollywood Doesn't Have The Balls To Remake

Language: German

This erotic slasher from cult German director Jörg Buttgereit attempts to explore the bizarre and sordid mind of real-life serial killer Lothar Schramm. Also known as the Lipstick Killer due to the fact that he would apply make-up to his victims before raping and murdering them (and not always in that order), Schramm is suspected of violently killing at least twelve women.

The film begins as Schramm is dying, lying face down in a pool of his own blood as the most memorable moments in his life flash before his eyes, and it isn't pleasant viewing. Buttgereit (who was also responsible for controversial taboo-breaker Nekromantik) concentrates on two particular murders, showing them both from various angles over the course of a movie that benefits greatly from a non-linear storyline, emphasising the fractured state of Schramm's perverse mind.

The mental health of this crazed sex killer and the thoughts that such a man must have had are the true focus of the film, not the abhorrent crimes that he committed. That said, removing most of his murders from the narrative doesn't mean that things get any less violent or difficult to watch. This is especially true for male viewers, who are advised to turn away the second Schramm picks up his hammer, because he is about to nail his penis to his table.

Hollywood is most certainly fond of loosely adapting a true story to fit their biopic model, though they would be hard pressed to find anything from the life and times of Lothar Schramm that they would consider appropriate viewing.