Is The Driller Killer gory?

Somewhat — The Driller Killer rates 3/5 on The Horror Database's gore scale: some blood, not an endurance test.

Does The Driller Killer rely on jump scares?

Not really — The Driller Killer leans slow-burn (12/100 on THDB's slow-burn↔jump-scare spectrum); the fear builds as dread rather than shocks.

Will The Driller Killer stay with you after watching?

Some of it — The Driller Killer rates 3/5 on lingering effect; it follows you to bed but lets go within a day or so.

Who is The Driller Killer for?

The Driller Killer is genuinely disturbing (75/100 toward disturbing on THDB's fun-scary↔disturbing spectrum) and rates 3/5 on overall intensity — for viewers who want horror that cuts deep.

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The Driller Killer(1979)

Name: The Driller Killer
Genre: Horror
Released: 1979
Duration: 101 min

1979 · Abel Ferrara · 101 min

An artist slowly goes insane while struggling to pay his bills, work on his paintings, and care for his two female roommates, which leads him taking to the streets of New York after dark and randomly killing derelicts with a power drill.

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Horror

5.2202 votes

TMDB score

3/5

Intensity

3/5

Gore

3/5

Stays with you

How The Driller Killer scares

There's a grimy, sweaty discomfort to watching this one, like you're trapped inside someone's breakdown alongside them. It moves slowly for most of its runtime, following a broke, stressed-out artist as his grip on reality slips, before tipping into sudden bursts of raw, ugly violence. The scares aren't jumps or monsters, they come from watching a real person unravel in a decaying city, and the violence when it hits feels cheap, sudden, and mean rather than stylish. This is more for people who like rough, low-budget cult curiosities than anyone looking for a fun scare.

Intensity over runtime

Shape only — no events

Reveal pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.

A slow, grimy slide from everyday stress into mounting dread, with the real punishing violence saved for the back stretch.

How scary is The Driller Killer?

On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, The Driller Killer rates 3/5 — solidly scary, building its fear through slow-burn dread rather than shocks. It works on both fronts, unsettling the mind while going for the body. Expect it to be moderately gory and genuinely disturbing. Some of it will follow you to bed, but it lets go within a day or so.

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