There are many factors that push someone to be a filmmaker. For some, it is that creative passion that they have to tell stories they believe only they can; for others, it is a means to make some cash and a name for themselves. However, sometimes movies are made for bizarre reasons, and in the 1970s, one director took a unique approach to making and promoting his low-budget horror film.
Horror certainly never shies away from controversial subjects, but one man tackled one of the most sensational true crime cases of the ’60s in The Zodiac Killer and used it as a means to try to lure in the infamous true-crime figure. Was it a marketing ploy or was it genuine? That is difficult to say, but we will explore the sensational story behind Tom Hanson’s The Zodiac Killer, including how he tried to trap the murdered at the screenings of his movie.
The Zodiac Killer Plot and Inspiration
Centering its story around the infamous Zodiac Killer, who operated in the San Francisco area during the late 1960s, Tom Hanson’s The Zodiac Killer explores the figure through two separate chapters. The first follows a disgruntled truck driver named Grover, who, in the throes of a mental breakdown, ends up taking his daughter hostage after losing her in a custody battle. Inspired by the news of the Zodiac Killer, Grover claims himself to be the infamous figure, leading to a deadly showdown with police, highlighting the social effect of the case. The second chapter follows what is supposed to be the actual Zodiac killer, a postal worker who worships Satan and goes on a killing spree following the news of Grover’s death.
“Atlantis shall rise again! I am the super zodiac!” Actor Hal Reed spouting nonsense in
The Zodiac Killer
The movie was released in 1971, only a few years after what is considered to be the real Zodiac Killer’s most active timeline; between December 1968 and October 1969. Never identified, the Zodiac Killer has remained an infamous figure in true-crime history. Having laid claim to 37 victims, though speculated there could be more, The Zodiac Killer stumped police with his encrypted messages that he used to taunt them. The case has been covered in depth in numerous books, podcasts, and movies (including David Fincher’s underrated crime thriller Zodiac), and has remained open, inspiring casual sleuths to still look over the case decades later.
How Filmmaker Tom Hanson Tried to Catch a Killer
Before deciding to take a dive into the world of cinema, Tom Hanson owned a chain of “Pizza Man” restaurants, which he used to help fund the making of his film. His only other foray into filmmaking would be the biker film A Ton of Grass Goes to Pot. Hanson worked with writers Ray Cantrell and Manny Cardoza, both of whom would also dabble in making other low-budget exploitation films that failed to make as big of a mark as The Zodiac Killer.
The subsequent promotion of the film is where the lines between marketing and a sincere desire to catch the Zodiac Killer come into question. At the film’s premiere on April 7, 1971, at San Francisco’s RKO Golden Gate Theater, Hanson set up a trap that he hoped would lure in the killer, relying on his ego to draw him into a showing. To draw a large crowd, he offered up a Kawasaki as a door prize, and then prompted everyone in attendance to answer a simple question and submit it in writing; “I think the Zodiac kills because…”
He had a large group analyzing the paperwork, in the hope that they would find a match in handwriting to the actual serial killer, with hired goons waiting in the wings to apprehend him. This ploy was done for multiple screenings, and at one screening, Tom Hanson actually believed he had caught the killer; the man was confronted and released due to lack of evidence.
It is difficult to say how sincere Tom Hanson was in this approach, and perhaps the catching of the killer would have been more of a means to an end to launching his career as a filmmaker. The truth is that the exploitative nature of the film, released when the crimes were still occurring, and its ultra-gritty approach to the subject points to it being perhaps disingenuous. Using sensational methods to get butts in the theater was also not a new trick, going back to the sensational Mom and Dadwhich broke rules of censorship through weird loopholes, to the king of gimmicks, William Castle, who used things like buzzers under seats, and ushers to scare moviegoers, to name but a few.
Should You Watch The Zodiac Killer?
For a mainstream horror audience, the simple answer is no. The Zodiac Killer has largely maintained interest in the cult fandom because of the circumstances behind it, as well as appealing to the more gritty side of the genre; it has more in common with exploitation cinema than horror. The movie itself is also unsavory in the way it approaches the subject, extremely cruel to women, and offers a more glorified vision of violence with its long-drawn-out scenes. The acting is painfully amateur, the quality of film and audio is poor, and it lacks any depth of story.
Still, The Zodiac Killer has found an audience with those who celebrate the low-budget side of cinema, with AGFA (America Genre Film Association) in association with Something Weird Video (two purveyors of oddball, outsider, and cult cinema) remastering it for Blu-ray release in 2017. Those familiar with the work of both companies will know what they are getting into if they have not already seen The Zodiac Killer; low-budget sleaze will always have its charms for a specific audience. Conversely, those interested in an oddball piece of film history may find appeal in checking it out. You can stream The Zodiac Killer onScreambox, Cultpix, or Tubi.
