Last House on Dead End Street

| language = English }} Last House on Dead End Street is a horror film released in 1977 about a disgruntled man, recently released from prison, who takes out his anguish by making snuff films.

Few knew who actually directed the film, until Roger Watkins, who died in March 2007, posted on Internet message boards three decades after it was made saying he was behind it »Current Movie Reviews, Independent Movies - Film Threat. The film was made in 1973, but was not released until four years later.

Watkins said he was high on amphetamines while making the film. He also said only about $800 was spent making the film, while the remaining $3,000 budgeted was used to buy drugs. Barrel Entertainment insert interview

The film was virtually unavailable until Barrel Entertainment released a double-disc DVD in 2002. In the 1970s, its release was limited to grindhouse and drive-in theaters. It is also known as "The Cuckoo Clocks from Hell" and "The Fun House". The version entitled "The Cuckoo Clocks Of Hell" originally ran some 175 minutes in length - though the only remaining print of it in that form is thought to be stored in a New York film lab.

Synopsis

Terry Hawkins, played by Watkins, has just been released from spending a year in state prison on drug charges. He wants to get into filmmaking, and claims he previously made pornographic films that he was unable to sell.

Hawkins believes audiences want something more, so he decides to make snuff films. Victims are lured to an abandoned building. There they are murdered in elaborate ways for the films, including by decapitation or receiving a power drill to the head. Hawkins is complimented on how realistic his films look.

The narration ultimately informs viewers that the film crew was arrested and sentenced to prison.

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