David Hess followed up his unforgettable turn as lecherous murderer Krug in Wes Craven's THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT with roles as lecherous murderers in a couple other movies. A lot of horror fans are familiar with Hess's performance as Alex in Ruggero Deodato's HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK, but less viewers have seen him play Adam Konitz in Pasquale Festa Campanile's 1977 film HITCH HIKE.
In HITCH HIKE, Hess torments DJANGO star Franco Nero and soon-to-be MOONRAKER Bond girl Corinne Clery as the following story plays out:
While on a cross-country drive, a bitter writer ( Nero) and his beautiful wife (Clery) pick up a stranded motorist (Hess). But when this hitcher turns out to be a depraved psychopath, their road trip takes a vicious detour into sex and savagery where the miles are marked in mayhem and vengeance is the ultimate rule of thumb.
The three leads deliver great performances while bringing their questionable characters to life, and HITCH HIKER is a twisted thriller that provides some troubling entertainment. If you haven't seen it yet, I would recommend checking it out, and soon you'll be able to pick up an uncut version of it "presented in a stunning new HD transfer".
Raro Video and Kino Lorber are teaming up to release HITCH HIKE on Blu-ray on February 16th. This special edition of the uncut and uncensored film will also include a documentary entitled ROAD TO RUIN and a fully illustrated booklet.
Sounds like a great release that will hopefully bring more attention to this movie.