Bathed In Bile: 30 Subversive Films

There's ALWAYS debate when it comes to "extreme" genre film-making. Lists of the most extreme, disturbing, sick, twisted, goriest, and the like abound on the "inter-webs."  What makes these lists fun, interesting, and well... sick, is that they're all a matter of opinion.  I could have easily come up with 40, maybe even 50 that curdle my belly, but my fingers just wouldn't let me keep typing.  Not all are in-your-face "blood baths."  Some rely more heavily on blasting your grey matter to bits with subversive content, social commentary, and taboos.  I can't say I've liked all the films below.  The quality and message behind many is certainly debatable. However, all of these movies have (in one way or another) driven me straight to the shower in an attempt to wash away whatever filth they've projected onto my soul.  Below please find (alphabetically) my list of "30 Subversive Films" PART ONE, along with a (0-10) rating regarding just how nasty they came off to me, and a brief description regarding what made them so painful to watch.

...TITLES ARE LINKED TO EACH FILM'S RESPECTIVE IMDB PAGE...

964 Pinocchio

Year:  1991

Director:  Shozin Fukui

Subversiveness:  7

Why It Hurts To Watch:  

It's odd, off-putting, disorienting, and quite nihilistic and depressing.  The physical violence is hyper-realistic with some truly grotesque body horror.  The atmosphere plays as much (if not more) of a role in disturbing the viewer as any other element on display within PINOCCHIO's narrative.

A Serbian Film

Year:  2010

Director:  Srdjan Spasojevic

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Yes, the movie is soaked in blood, broken taboos, and (the director would have you believe) social commentary.  What really drops the jaw and slams A SERBIAN FILM squarely into subversive territory is it's grotesque double finale.  Here we witness the complete and total implosion of an already dysfunctional (but seemingly once happy) family.  

Aftermath

Year:  1994

Director:  Nacho Cerda

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Clocking in at just under 30 minutes, Nacho Cerda's claustraphobic nightmare feels like it goes on about 29 minutes too long.  If you have a soul:  watching one man violate, objectify, and brutalize a woman's corpse may just drive you to drink... Gasoline... With a lit match chaser.

Baise Moi

Year:  2000

Directors:  Virginie Despentes, Coralie

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Even after 12 years, this one still elicits deep emotion from me; featuring two unflinchingly fearless performances from it's leads.  It's extremely violent, painfully real in it's depictions of sex and revenge, and a super-sized fuck you to the misogynistic world that some woman fall in and out of on a regular basis.

Begotten

Year:  1990

Director:  E. Elias Merhige

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

This is an "art" film of the highest order.  Told in stark (and highly contrasted) black and white, with no dialogue, the visual style is what truly illicits an emotional response from the viewer.  Focusing on the death and rebirth of gods and monsters; with some genuinely hideous eviscerations and mutilations.

Bunny Game, The

Year:  2010

Director:  Adam Rehmeier

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch:

One of the most masochistic experiences I have EVER had with a film.  The physical, emotional, and spiritual destruction of our heroine (at the hands of a deranged truck driver) is so complete in it's depiction; there's little left of you or BUNNY by the end.  The worst part:  it's real.

Cannibal

Year:  2006

Director:  Marian Dora

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

So the true story of Armin Meiwes and Bernd Brandes is the stuff of legend.  Germany's "Internet cannibal" who found a willing participant in his desire to eat a man alive.  There are scenes so graphic and sadistic in Dora's film that just thinking about them in my child's presence would cause him to spontaneously combust.

Combat Shock

Year:  1984

Director:  Buddy Giovinazzo

Subversiveness:  7

Why It Hurts To Watch:

A film that wraps you in filth from it's opening shot, COMBAT SHOCK is a tragic commentary on Vietnam Vets and what they came home to.  Still to this day; I've never seen a dirtier, more hopeless, despicable portrayal of New York City or a man's front door coming clean off it's hinges.  Just devastating.

Cutting Moments

Year:  1997

Director:  Douglas Buck

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Another short film (29 minutes) that packs more than enough punch in it's run time.  A fractured marriage, pedophilia, desperation, and self-mutilation all figure into the central characters' spiral.  It's harrowing to watch for sure, but there's something so organic and pure about what's being portrayed, that you almost can't help but dig at your own wrists in agony.

Dard Divorce

Year:  2007

Director:  Olaf Ittenbach

Subversiveness:  7

Why It Hurts To Watch:

This movie kind of sucks.  Olaf Ittenbach kind of sucks.  But ya know what?  The guy can bring the grue.  Yes, there are disturbing narrative elements to be found here.  However, with all of his films, what you come for is the carnage.  And DARD DIVORCE does not disappoint in that respect.  Broken bones, blooded bodies, and lots of open wounds with stuff falling out.  Enter at your own risk indeed.

Flower Of Flesh and Blood

Year:  1985

Director:  Hideshi Hino

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Ah, yes:  The GUINEA PIG films.  This is perhaps the most well known, as a freak in a Samurai helmet hacks and whacks away at a young woman turning her into his own FLOWER OF FLESH AND BLOOD.  Much of it's notoriety comes from Charlie Sheen reporting it as a REAL snuff film or pulling all the tape out of the VHS case and trying to smoking it; I can't really remember which.

Grotesque

Year:  2009

Director:  Koji Shiraishi

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch:

This one feels a lot like a modern FLOWER OF FLESH AND BLOOD.  Except, instead of a woman:  you get a man and a woman.  Instead of a horizontal torture table:  you get two vertical ones!  Nevertheless, this thing is vile, sexually repugnant, and has one of the most odd-ball, out of place, totally "what the horse-balls???" decapitation scenes in splatter film history.

Happiness

Year:  1998

Director:  Todd Solondz

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch:

If ever there was a more dysfunctional collection of characters brought together for one film:  PLEASE SHOW ME!  Todd Solondz navigates some pretty nasty themes with this one, which presses on through it's disparaging narrative with the blackest of glee.  If you want to take a little "look see" at the type of monsters that call middle class suburbia home (at least in Solondz's mind), here's your chance.  Not for the faint of constitution.

Holy Mountain, The

Year:  1973

Director:  Alejandro Jodorowski

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Yes, THE HOLY MOUNTAIN contains lots of heady religious and sacrilegious themes, just don't mistake it's (or Jodorowski's) message with complacency.  This film is brutal, extremely graphic, and has some of the most emotionally and visually scarring imagery you'll ever see.  If you're uncomfortable walking into a room filled with jarred testicles, then stay clear.

Irreversible

Year:  2002

Director:  Gaspar Noe

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch: 

There are plenty of rape revenge movies out there.  None told out of sequence to confuse and alter the mind's perception of and reaction to said events.  With the greatest head smashing ever committed to film and a painfully prolonged, single take, rape scene that will charbroil even the most grizzled genre film vet's soul; IRREVERSIBLE has no equal in it's sub-genre.

I Stand Alone

Year:  1998

Director:  Gaspar Noe

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Gaspar Noe could easily be the most subversive filmmaker on this list.  His movies delve fearlessly into areas of the human "being" that we are all too uncomfortable exploring.  I STAND ALONE is no exception as we are privy to a man's inability to figure out just what the hell he is meant for.  With moments of horrific loathing and jarring violence, the protagonist (?) of this one really embodies the dangerous "sad-sack" lurking in each of us.  Perhaps if just one tiny detail had been different, there would've been no need to inflict such suffering; but it wasn't, so he did.

Ken Park

Year:  2002

Directors:  Larry Clark, Edward Lachman

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:  

There's not much to say about this one except that it shatters every single pedophilia taboo, and then some.  After KIDS, Larry Clark does more than just dip his feet in the "wow that's really inappropriate to involve very young adults in activities like that" sub-genre.  KEN PARK is a brutal watch and quite simply:  just not right.  Children and adults should NOT live like this.

Late Bloomer

Year:  2004

Director:  Go Shibata

Subversiveness:  7

Why It Hurts To Watch:

LATE BLOOMER is such a disturbing and harrowing watch not so much because there's a serial killer on the "loose" and stuff gets gooey, but because the film tips the formula on it's side.  It presents a cold, calculated, and soulless antagonist who is severely physically handicapped.  Barely able to walk or gain firm control of his reflexes, the viewer truly doesn't know whether to pity the man or revel in the difficulty he has slicing his next victim's throat.

Little Deaths

Year:  2011

Directors:  Sean Hogan, Andrew Parkinson, Simon Rumley

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:  

Three short genre films, three gruesome and sexually subversive takes on obsession, objectification, and loss, three directors stretching their twisted visions to the point of bursting.  LITTLE DEATHS is actually as much fun as it is disturbing; but it's still certainly not for the faint of heart, the weak of stomach, or the narrow of mind.  If you're looking for a truly eclectic take on the monster movie, you've found it here.

Men Behind The Sun

Year:  1988

Director:

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

If you've never heard of UNIT 731, do yourself a favor (or an extreme disservice) and "Wiki" that sucker.  Focusing on the Japanese torture of Chinese and Russian prisoners of war, it's as much a harrowing tale of extreme human suffering, as it is a clear commentary on man as monster.  Another depiction of this horrible chapter in our world's history finds itself on this list as well.  Never mind films claiming they are BASED ON TRUE EVENTS, MEN BEHIND THE SUN really is too real.

Mordum

Year:  2003

Director:  Fred Vogel (Among Others)

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

What's to say about a film that finds itself at (or near) the top of everyone's "most disturbing movies ever" list?  Nothing really.  This "movie" is profoundly disgusting, undeniably unbalanced, and knows absolutely no boundaries.  It seems as if no taboo or despicable action is off limits as we follow three real sickos on a vile journey of rape, murder, sadistic torture, etc... etc...  

No Reason

Year:  2010

Director:  Olaf Ittenbach

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Another Olaf Ittenbach "joint," another film void of all narrative.  Who knows what the hell's going on here.  For that matter, I don't really know WHY the hell anything is happening.  A women falls asleep, wakes up covered in blood, and then is subjected to some kind of trip through the 87 circles of said hell.  Regardless, it's another chance for Ittenbach to unleash even more gruesome imagery and showcase his incredibly deft gift when it comes to REALLY nasty practical gore effects.

Philosophy of A Knife

Year:  2008

Director:  Andrey Iskanov

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Although filmed in stark black and white, Andrey Iskanov's take on UNIT 731 is no less emotionally and visually destructive than MEN BEHIND THE SUN.  It's a LONG film (249 minutes!!!), split in half, and peppered with discussion about the actual events.  There's moments where it truly feels as if the movie was made to shine light on the tragedy itself; however, it's not long before the whole thing descends into a barrage of hideous imagery that simply isn't meant to do anything but horrify the viewer.

Requiem For A Dream

Year:  2000

Director:  Darren Aronofsky

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

For me, this 2000 film is one of the most powerful and utterly depressing depictions of the toll drug addiction takes on the individual, the family, and society in general.  Aronofsky directs with a hyperactive flourish that not only accentuates the performances, but also keeps the audience more than a little disoriented.  Equal parts sexy, silly, sad, and soul-scorching; REQUIEM FOR A DREAM is a truly subversive genre film both visually and thematically.  It also contains THE SINGLE MOST disturbing closing montage of ANY "mainstream" film EVER released theatrically.  

Salo, Or The 120 Days of Sodom

Year:  1975

Director:  Pier Paolo Pasolini

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

With four fascists, 9 boys and girls, 120 days of extreme physical, mental, and emotional torture, and a brutal and unrelenting pace; SALO is not any easy watch.  Based on The Marquis De Sade's sadistic 18th century novel, the film carries with it as much controversy today as it did (upon it's release) 37 years ago.  I'm not all together sure what type of person would take pleasure in it's content.  I can say in all confidence that if you haven't seen Pasolini's masterpiece (?) by now, you probably don't want (or need) to.

Slaughtered Vomit Dolls

Year:  2006

Director:  Lucifer Valentine

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

The first part of THE VOMIT GORE TRILOGY really defies description.  Watched by this guy out of pure curiosity, I have regretted it from day one.  Although I've read plenty from Valentine about his intent and the deeper meaning behind his "creation," the only thing that matters to me is the images that have been branded onto my retinas.  Blood, guts, poop, pee, puke, blah, Blah, BLAH!!!  Part of the issue here is that visually, it's all done pretty well.  It certainly doesn't hurt that a good bit of the goo is real (I'll let you guess which parts).  And just think:  There's two more in the series!

Un Chien Andalou

Year:  1929

Director:  Luis Bunuel

Subversiveness:  7

Why It Hurts To Watch:

A 16 minute short film that consists of random, seemingly unrelated images meant to convey... What?  This early example of set piece "experimentation," is most notable for the scene pictured above.  Yes, that's an eyeball and a straight razor.  UN CHIEN ANDALOU is certainly subversive when viewed in context and related to it's date of production.  However, it's also quite impressive in the way it masterfully holds it's audience's attention by simultaneously attracting and repulsing.  It most certainly won't have the same effect on everyone, but it most definitely can induce a wince.

Visitor Q

Year:  2001

Director:  Takashi Miike 

Subversiveness:  9

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Takashi Miike puts out a lot of films.  By a lot, I mean like 88 films in 20 years.  No, I haven't seen them all, but I have made an effort to seek out and view those I felt drawn to.  With that being said, VISITOR Q is one that had me running away as quickly as I found it.  There's a deeply disturbing comedic thread that runs through this tale of a dreadfully perverted family in need of redemption.  More an exercise in throwing it's audience for a loop than anything else, it's also been known to bring on that cliched "now I've seen it all" reaction from those with the gumption to endure it's run time.

Wedding Trough

Year:  1975

Director:  Thierry Zeno

Subversiveness:  10

Why It Hurts To Watch:

Man falls in love with pig, man marries pig, man impregnates pig, pig has piglet-thingys, man gets jealous of piglet-thingys' lack of interest in him, man kills pig and piglet-thingys.  It's an unmitigated disaster, and because of the previously written (more than a little grammatically incorrect) run-on sentence; truly one of the sickest entries on this list.  The a fore mentioned actions are all shown in graphic detail and once again:  this film is only recommended for that special individual who truly desires to venture out and "see it all."

Wound

Year:  2010

Director:  David Blyth

Subversiveness:  8

Why It Hurts To Watch:

In 2010, David Blyth harnessed that rare cinematic beast when he masterfully balanced the grotesque with the sublime.  A beautifully troubling depiction of a fractured woman's mind, as she takes revenge on her family and her own psyche.  WOUND possesses no shortage of genuine "what the fuck" moments, but it also transcends it's subversiveness by projecting it's lead's emotional pain onto the viewer.  You're never quite sure what is real or imagined.  However, as it turns out, that distinction becomes quite irrelevant in the way the film ultimately settles in your gut.

The Divide Review

It's always a bit strange when you sit on a review and then come back weeks (sometimes even months) later and start writing it up.  Actually, that time away can be a very good indication as to how you really felt (and feel) about a film.  For me, I've either forgotten a good bit of the story or have revisited it in my head several times pouring over plot points and how they sit with me.  You can guess which type of film (pretty darn good or super shitty) lends itself to which type of scenario.  So, I suppose in a way, some time in between viewing and writing can lead to a more honest discussion (in my own head) of said film.  THE DIVIDE was one I had anticipated for a good while.  Populated by a very odd amalgamation of actors (Michael Biehn, Rosanna Arquette, Courtney B. Vance, Lauren German, and Milo Ventimiglia), a French director trying to find his footing in American films (Xavier Gens), and a sub-genre beaten unmercifully to death (apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic); the movie had all the makings of a magnificent disaster.  Combine with that stories of the cast literally trying to tear each other's throats out during filming (tight quarters, long hours, and personality conflicts apparently fueling that fire) and I approached the experience with equal parts curiosity and trepidation.

Picking up at the very moment of impact (nuclear attack?), THE DIVIDE takes place almost exclusively in a high rise apartment complex.  As it's tenants scramble downstairs, with no discernible direction, guided by panic; the viewer is taken along for the wild ride as the building shakes, rattles, and almost rolls.  Just as a metal basement door is about to be slammed closed, a small group of survivors (?) force their way in and out of harm's way.  Furnished and occupied by Mickey:  the building's super (Biehn), it would appear the basement has been prepared specifically with this type of catastrophic event in mind.  Although Mickey is more than a little reluctant to have visitors, he soon begrudgingly accepts that things are what they are and gives his guests a tour of their new home, shares his rations, and lays down the law.  He's absolutely positive that the shit has (and will continue to) hit the fan and orders that, no matter what, no one open the basement's door unless HE says so.  Of course, as time passes (and with the help of some VERY unwelcomed visitors) tempers flare, tensions run high, and each individual's mental, physical, and emotional fabric begins to tear at the seams.  THE DIVIDE really does go from bad to worse in ways I was not only not expecting, but was wholly unprepared for.

After (in my opinion) a so-so effort in FRONTIER(S) and a BIG miss with HITMAN, Gens shows a strong grasp of the cinematic with THE DIVIDE.  Being that I'm not privy to the details of the rumored on-set tensions, who knows if this final product REFLECTS Gens' ultimate vision.  What is presented here (along with some rather chilling and nihilistic performances from the cast) sets a tone and pace that can only be described as horrifying.  Although it's German who ultimately is cast as the protagonist and the person the audience is asked to align themselves with; Biehn's cigar chomping Mickey anchors a good bit of the story and it's tension.  A survivor of 9-11 who has lost essentially everything, his gruff exterior lapses with some fairly intense moments of pathos.  That emotion is important to the bigger picture because the survivors (along with the viewer) are kept guessing as to what lies beyond the basement door.  There are glimpses:  armed men in weird hazmat suits, bald children (eyes bandaged) kept in some sort of Jetson era sleep tubes, and rubber tunnels (think E.T.) leading to makeshift military (?) medical labs.  It's haunting, confusing, unnerving, and a bit aggravating in it's lack of revealing exposition.  But then again, isn't that how the characters are supposed to feel, thus (and in return) the viewer?  Enjoying a film like THE DIVIDE requires that you come to grips with, and accept, it's hopeless tone.  It also requires that you watch a doting mother (Arquette) crumble into an unsanitary, bound and abused, doe-eyed sex slave.  It asks you to forget Ventimiglia's turn as one of those guys from that show HEROES and watch in horror as he transforms himself into some sort of grotesque, demented, and sadistic judge, jury, and executioner.  I think most of all, THE DIVIDE invites you to abandon all hope and bask in the awful ugliness that isolation, mass hysteria, and disease can visit upon people with nowhere to go and nothing left to go to.

2011

Director:  Xavier Gens

Starring:  Lauren German, Michael Biehn, and Milo Ventimiglia

8/10

Remy Couture: Art Is Not A Crime... Or Is It?

Recently, a story three years in the making has begun popping up again on the "interwebs."  It's a story that you may have heard bits and pieces of as it danced around your periphery while settling in with the latest news regarding Snooki's pregnancy or one of Rihanna's most recent yacht adventures; it's a bit heady and serious for some of us, but exists none the less.  The person at the heart of the issue is a 34 year old Canadian special effects artist and short film writer/director named Remy Couture.  Couture has been formally charged with several counts of corrupting morals through the possession, production, and distribution of materials deemed obscene.  Although a two week trial date has now been set (after being bumped back once again) for December 10, 2012; the reality of his situation is that for the past three years, Couture has been living in a sort of legal and creative limbo.  You're welcome to read a more complete account of his story HERE, for now, I'll move on.  Primarily in question are the man's two short films:  INNER DEPRAVITY VOL 1 and INNER DEPRAVITY VOL 2.  

The two movies play as equal parts "snapshot of a madman" and special effects reel.  There's no dialogue, just still images and moving pictures chronicling the before, during, and aftermath of one (clearly disturbed) man's murderous rampage.  A kinda, sorta death metal/ambient soundtrack underscores the whole thing while the viewer is privy to the blood and guts, dismembering and disemboweling, and murder and rape (yes, in that order) of his latest victims.  Ultimately how you react to or feel about these works depends on a "butt load" of variables.  As I still live in (what is continually "reported" as being) a free country, I'll leave that to you to figure out.  However, before I turn you loose, I'll give you this:  I've seen it all (some out of curiosity, others out of want and need), that is truth.  Because of this fact I fall into a very small percentage of genre film fanatic that is not offended, shocked, scarred, or irreparably harmed by art.  What follows are the two shorts that drive Couture's legal battle.  They are graphic, may shock and offend some, may be boring and pointless to others.  None of what you'll see is real.  In my heart, I support Couture's right to create.  I also support your right to choose whether or not you'll watch one, both, or neither of the INNER DEPRAVITY shorts below.  Whether it's out of want, need, or curiosity:  you still have a choice.  And isn't that the point?

INNER DEPRAVITY VOL 1


INNER DEPRAVITY VOL 2

Terrifier Review

Last year, I discovered a full on appreciation for the short film.  I've said it before, but I think it merits repeating:  too often filmmakers try in vein to stretch narratively thin ideas into feature length presentations.  Let's say for argument's sake that the industry standard is as follows:  one page of script equals one minute of screen time (which is true when a screenplay is initially structured).  Why then, would someone attempt to turn 56 pages into a 90 minute movie?  Trim it back, consolidate, strengthen the core.  I would much rather watch a 20-30 minute film, enjoy the hell out of it, and be wanting more of the same.  It's a far more pleasurable experience to have the meal of the century and still be thinking about it fondly, rather than be force fed slop to the point of nausea and bursting.  Don't misunderstand me:  it's also quite common (with the rise of YouTube) to find short films that are beyond sparse, who's narrative goes no farther than a dirty napkin from TGIFriday, and comes from people who genuinely believe that having the ability to hoist a camera (any camera) shoulder high amounts to the skill-set necessary to make a movie.  Good short films are not few and far between in my experience.  However, the landscape is littered with such tripe that the medium is (by the general public) often grossly misunderstood or even unknown.  Take a late night stroll through the previously mentioned YouTube and you'll see what I'm talking about.  That just so happens to be what I was doing when after "leafing" through several turds (and ready to call it a night) I decided to give one more a chance.

TERRIFIER is the story of a young woman's Halloween eve road trip straight into hell.  Played by Marie Maser, she's a costume designer working on the independent film circuit who finds herself lost on a back road looking for the interstate and running on empty.  Gratefully finding a gas station nestled in between 20 miles of nothing, she pulls in.  When the attendant finally arrives, it's on the tail end of him chasing off a man (in a pretty freaky clown costume) who apparently has just painted the public restroom's walls with his own shit.  After getting directions back to the highway and one terrifically gory set piece, our heroine sets off on the run from the clearly (now positively identified) horrifically "nutso" the clown.  A cat and mouse chase engulfs the rest of the run time with the whole thing culminating in the knowledge that no matter how hard she tries; there's just no avoiding one final (and I do mean final) head to head encounter with this maniac.

 

The 20 minute short film TERRIFIER comes from the mind (and lens) of Damien Leone.  A special effects guy who also has one other short under his belt (THE 9TH CIRCLE), Leone is quite simply:  gifted.  What he has crafted here is everything the short genre film SHOULD be.  The duration- perfect, The atmosphere- tense, The pacing- break neck, and The writing- gleefully nihilistic.  For what seems like forever, clowns have been the source of both joy and horror in our culture.  Stephen King's Pennywise has absolutely nothing on TERRIFIER's "Art The Clown."  He's (Giannelli) visually, well... terrifying, clearly deranged, and (dare I say) the most frightening portrayal of an evil clown.  EVER.  Every performance is absolutely brilliant, especially Maser who takes the tried and true stereotypical "final girl" scenario and breathes palpable life, fear, and panic into every frame.  There's a ton of gore and grue, handled expertly by Leone and his special effects background.  And although the "film" is "aged" to give the viewer that "grind house" look, it doesn't at all take away from the project.  Where Rodriguez and Tarantino went to extremes to beat us all over the head with the aesthetic; Leone's use of the "grain" is subtle and effective.  One minor gripe:  even though clearly set in modern day America, the presence and use of a cellphone by Maser's character was the only thing that pulled me ever so slightly out of the experience.  Overall, I can't think of a better way to spend 20 minutes on Halloween than with TERRIFIER.  I know (from now on) it will positively be part of that night's movie watching tradition for me.  One more quick note:  a fair warning that this is not all played for nostalgic giggles.  The final moments of TERRIFIER are brutal, shocking, and most certainly NOT for the faint of heart.

2011

Director:  Damien Leone

Starring:  Marie Maser and Mike Giannelli

9/10

WATCH THE FULL SHORT BELOW

Alyce Review

The human psyche is a fragile thing.  Sometimes the smallest hiccup in life's path can lead to an all out emotional implosion.  Other times the darker moments of our existence can be stored away, biding their time, finally festering, until they erupt into chaos and horror.  When void:  things like love, acceptance, friendship, and kindness can be the catalyst for some pretty heavy emotional and/or physical outbursts.  In film, there's nothing more compelling than a well executed downward spiral.  Much like the deformed glass, plastic, vinyl, and rubber of a six car pileup on the interstate; the real horror is in the screeching brakes, the loss of control, the moment of impact.  Sure, the aftermath and carnage can be downright traumatizing; but I would argue that in life, and film, the "getting there" is the most frightening bit.  Movies like ALYCE take just as much time with the unraveling as they do with the unraveled.  Whether or not they succeed ultimately depends on just how deeply they tap their audiences' fear of the power of man's inhumanity toward man.  

With Alyce and Carroll reconnecting after some time apart, the viewer gets the necessary background info.  Seems these two needed a bit of space, when (according to Carroll) Alyce went all "single white female" on her.  A night on the town, a few drinks, some dancing, and innocent enough flirting leads to darker delicacies.  Carroll has a hankering for something "harder" so the girls head to a much seedier place to score some "real" drugs.  After a brief encounter with a filthy wretch of a drug dealer, our principles head to the roof of Alyce's building to giggle, pout, reminisce, and lick their wounds over life's losses.  After a bit of horsing around, Alyce (quite accidentally) knocks Carroll off the roof, causing her to go SPLAT.  What follows is the a fore mentioned demolition (brick by brick) of Alyce's mind.  Suddenly, nothing seems off limits as the young women tries to come to terms with her actions, her life, and her (finally) uninhibited desires.  Coincidence or not; Alyce's name is quite apt as she ventures far too deeply into the darkest and dankest of "rabbit holes."  To say things get out of hand would be grossly underselling just how mad this "hatter" goes.

Jay Lee (of ZOMBIE STRIPPERS! fame) should be commended for a few things here.  First and foremost,  taking his time.  Everything that comes to pass in ALYCE's final act is more substantial because of just how well paced and patient the initial narrative is.  Secondly:  once the shit hits the fan, the gloves really do come off, and nothing is out of bounds (which is a VERY, VERY good thing).  And finally:  for his conscious ability to make the emotional and physical depravity that unfolds downright sickening.  Neither element becomes more brutal or important than the other.  As Alyce, Dornfeld is pathetic, lovely, cute as a button, and ridiculously unhinged.  There are moments when the viewer may very well want to wrap his arms around her, rocking back and forth, telling the poor girl everything will be alright.  At other times, you couldn't be blamed for unleashing a blood curdling scream and heading straight for the hills (yes, she goes THAT bat-shit crazy).  Feldman is magnetic, sexy, sad, and painfully stereotyped while on screen.  I would've loved to have seen more of her Carroll.  However, this is a one woman show, and Carroll becomes more of a narrative spark that sets the final two acts in motion.  Assorted funk and filth pepper the rest of Alyce's journey which makes for an extremely creepy, sometimes silly, and consistently brutal experience.  If you can immerse yourself in a good bit of character development and accept that there is joy to be found in the car ride to the amusement park, ALYCE turns into one hell of a grue filled adventure.  Too bad for Alyce that HER fairy tale doesn't end in rainbows and lollipops.  Then again (and now that I really think about it) she did seem quite pleased with herself right before we fade to black.

2011

Director:  Jay Lee

Starring:  Jade Dornfeld and Tamara Feldman

9/10

It's In The Blood Review

There's a certain type of genre film that I am genuinely and instinctively drawn to.  I think most of us who really enjoy "movies" are like that.  We always have our fall-back.  Sometimes we're in the mood to be scared.  Once in a while we need a really good laugh.  Perhaps there are times when you just gotta shed a tear.  However, when you love film, and just can't really put your finger on what's in your gut; you have an old standby.  Mine is in the darkness, the evil that man does, the shadows hiding behind the corners deep in the recesses of the human psyche.  That preference is indeed painted with a broad stroke, but does (in fact) exist; and tickles my genre loving pickle each and every time.  What endears a truly great genre film to me even further, is when the darkness inside somehow manages to escape.  When the consequence on character becomes important and meaningful to the viewer.  When things get personal and several people can watch the same film and draw wholly different conclusions as to what was just seen, heard, and felt.  Written by Scooter Downey and Sean Elliot (who also stars) and Directed by Downey:  IT'S IN THE BLOOD teased (very early in it's run time) the possibility of ticking every box I needed it to.

Lance Henriksen and Sean Elliot play father and son Russell and October respectfully.  October is something of a prodigal son, returning home to reconnect with his "small town sheriff" dad.  Both men are emotionally gutted, estranged from one another, and battling their own demons.  Via a series of flashbacks, spaced out and structured meticulously through the film's duration, the viewer is privy to the events that led to the eventual geographic and emotional distance between the two.  A drive out to the forest, an isolated opportunity to reconnect, and a tragically unfortunate accident involving Russell, his rifle, and a cliff; quickly pull the narrative into deeply sinister territory.  As October puts his photographic memory to good use managing one disaster after another and Russell slips farther "away," their opportunity to reconcile becomes a serious struggle to survive.  Not only are they physically hobbled (unable to make their way back to civilization), but they're also being hunted and haunted.  Haunted by a past tragedy that still very much defines the voids within both men and hunted by a creature (of some kind) that literally would put a humiliating brown mark in ANY young man's UNDEROOS.  

Let's get the formalities out of the way right now.  IT'S IN THE BLOOD is a phenomenal film.  The sound design is a wonderfully twisted marriage of the sublime, intimate, quiet, and terrifying.  Sometimes you're not quite sure if you really heard what you thought you heard.  There are moments where the horror on screen becomes so punctuated by the audio that it's almost unbearable in it's dread and glee.  Downey has a control of the visual aesthetic that is genuinely uncanny.  The setting, lighting, cuts, and transitions are so deeply connected to the emotional gravitas that the whole thing becomes a really overwhelming (in a very good way) experience.  And then you have the five "players":  Henriksen's RUSSELL, Elliot's OCTOBER, IRIS, MICHAEL, and THE MONSTER (You'll just have to wait and see what  IRIS and MICHAEL's roles are AND become).  Henriksen IS Russell:  the lines on his embattled face, the low growl of his voice, the presence of an actor wise beyond even his years settled into a character that couldn't have been FELT by any other artist.  Elliot (who seemingly co-wrote the film in his own blood and bile) IS October:  distant, shattered, a young man refusing to release himself from horrors that are so traumatic they seem to run septic inside of him.  If you don't get it by now, it can't be spelled out any more clearly:  IT'S IN THE BLOOD truly is the "perfect genre storm."  It's written, directed, acted, and structured with reverence and a palpable seriousness.  It's downright moving in it's emotional weight and it's also frightening as Hell.  It's frightening because it gives it's characters and it's viewer no escape.  Just as Russell, October, Iris, Michael, and The Monster become some kind of grotesque and tragic mass of suffering; the viewer (because of all those involved here) becomes helpless in their fight to avoid suffering with them.

2012

Director:  Scooter Downey

Starring:  Lance Henriksen and Sean Elliot

10/10

God Bless America Review

I try (I really do) not to feel hopeless.  I make a conscious effort to be a better person than those who came before me.  I work tirelessly to instill my son with the confidence, empathy, and respect necessary to become a better person than I.  Yet no matter how long and hard I swim against the tide trying to help (in any small way possible) to make this world a better place; I can't help feeling consumed by the knowledge that we are all (yes everyone) slowly and hopelessly circling the proverbial drain.  The Kardashian Family, The Jersey Shore, American Idol, TMZ, The View, Infommercials, Right Wing, Left Wing, etc., etc., etc...  It often feels as if our entire way of life has spun so far out of control, slid so grossly off the rails, that there is absolutely no coming back.  Perhaps some of you floating about the "interwebs" exist in a superficial space where children scream at and disrespect their parents regularly.  Maybe you see no need to hold the door open or smile and say thank you.  You might even find yourself knelt down, knees bloodied, worshipping mindlessly at the alter of photoshop, liposuction, auto-tune, and the like.  If you do, and 1993's FALLING DOWN (a cautionary tale of a man thoroughly fed up and finally popping didn't pry your lids) than Bobcat Goldthwait's most recent directorial affair may be just the pile driver you need to be shaken and stirred back into a reality where 7 year olds don't call each other cunts, pimple faced prepubescents don't drive "Beamers," and 4th graders don't have iPhones (let alone unlimited and unsupervised texting privileges).

Dropping in on Frank (Murray) as he slouches numbly on his couch channel surfing through miles of tripe, we're immediately at one with his dismay and distain at the world around him.  A divorced father living in Buffalo, NY with typically inconsiderate neighbors and a JOE VS THE VOLCANO cubicle career, he's already entertaining homicidal fantasies.  Fantasies with a ROBIN HOOD-ish motive, yet homicidal all the same.  Pushed to excruciating limits by his shit of a young daughter, her fully enabling mother, an office full of media fed zombies, and a terminal brain tumor diagnosis; the switch gets flipped.  Eventually, and somewhat reluctantly, he teams up with Roxy (Barr as a teen who shares his hatred for "the machine") and all Hell breaks loose.  Throw BONNIE & CLYDE, NATURAL BORN KILLERS, FALLING DOWN, and something else wholly it's own animal into a blender; and what pours out is an attack on today's celebrity driven society so murky, obscene, and darkly comedic that the violence and the people who give and receive it become something of a testament to the age old idea of cleansing the Earth and starting over.  Clearly written and directed by Goldthwait in autobiographical fashion (he's also a divorced father of one, hailing from Buffalo, NY, and has been inside said "machine" for decades) once the hits come, they don't stop until an AMERICAN IDOL inspired finale puts Frank and Roxy's rage center stage.

I can't say for sure if you'll have quite the same reaction I had initially while watching GOD BLESS AMERICA.  The film had me nodding my head and wringing my hands throughout.  It most likely all depends on just how apathetically you view not only our "society" as a whole, but also the instant celebrity with which our media driven world seems to wobble around.  There's certainly a lot being said, and strangely enough it's all played for a delicate balance of genuine humor, cringe inducing giggles, and straight up brutality.  As Frank, Joel Murray finds that career defining role that so many "character actors" stumble upon from time to time.  This will certainly not catapult the bit part vet into any greater artistic stratosphere, but wouldn't it be ironic if it did?  Playing the psychopathic hound dog suits him well and Barr does a wondrous job of pulling off Roxy's teenage angst and disdain toward the generation she (through no fault of her own) exists within.  As writer/director, Goldthwait let's it all hang out.  He delivers a narrative that at it's core is not only depressing, but also really doesn't give any of us old grumps hope for the future.  I imagine depending on the viewer's frame of mind, current reflection on our "state of the union," and love or hatred for the ridiculous; reaction to this one will be divisive at the very least.  All things being equal, and aside from some very minor expositional hiccups, GOD BLESS AMERICA is a steel-toed shot to the center of our motherland's vagina.  The fact that it ultimately won't change a damn thing is much more a commentary on all of us, than the ultimate truth behind the filmmaker's message.

2011

Director:  Bobcat Goldthwait

Starring:  Joel Murray and Tara Lynne Barr

8/10

Into The Heart Land

Not too long ago, I had the opportunity to bring you some info regarding CENTER MASS STUDIO's upcoming film HEART LAND.  Feel free to go back and read up on the movie HERE.  There you'll find a very detailed synopsis as well as my thoughts on where I think this project could ultimately go.  However, if you'd like a bit of a shock to the "system," go into the trailer below blind.  HEART LAND sounded like a chillingly bleak coming of age story upon inception.  After watching the first trailer, I'm quite sure it's going to add significant dimension to a well-worn sub genre.  ENJOY!

Pretty Dead Review

There's a sinister silence that permeates the zombie sub-genre.  Long ago, these undead minions were the stuff of curses, witch doctors, and acts of slavery and revenge.  In 1932, WHITE ZOMBIE brought to the forefront a being that existed to do it's master's bidding.  This "style" persisted, however (as is the case throughout all history, cinematically and otherwise) the idea was built upon and expanded.  George Romero (father of the modern zombie) took the movie-going masses by surprise in 1968 by introducing a new zombie AND mythology.  This creature was never intended to do man's bidding.  This creature was of unexplained origin, still quite mindless, yet with a taste for human flesh and a drive matched only by it's appetite for the "other" white meat.  Over the last 15 or so years, the zombie sub-genre has been the focus of legendary bickering and fan-boy outrage.  Were the infected in 28 DAYS LATER zombies?  Was Jason Voorhees part of the undead army?  How dare Zack Snyder put a spring in their step!  Since Romero's original was caught in public domain hell; remakes, re-imaginings, and expansions on his zombie narrative have exploded and infected "filmdom" from the multiplex all the way down to fan-made, completely abhorrent YouTube tripe.  The zombie movie has now become little more than an annoyance and a punchline to what was once one of the most terrifying and unsettling monsters committed to celluloid.  THE WALKING DEAD books and TV series have brought on a resurgence of late.  Their mainstream success and "palatability" (I would argue) brought on by the focus being placed firmly on the living's emotional plight rather than solely relying on the horror of uprightly mobile rotting flesh.  Since fictional explanations for zombie apocalypses and HOW it all began continue to be played with; there are more than a few avenues that have (and continue to be) explored.  Yet, it's not the "why" or "how" that's so terrifying when it comes to being caught in an undead uprising.  It's the consequence and tragedy that faces brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, parents and children when a loved one succumbs to the "disease."  Once you realize THAT, you've got a good foundation.  But let's not kid ourselves:  filmmakers can (and will) still fuck it up.  It takes a nimble team to handle such a tired, mercilessly abused, and currently (for the most part) laughable movie monster.  A team like writer/producer Joe Cook and writer/director Benjamin Wilkins of PRETTY DEAD.

Doctor- Regina (Oates) and EMT- Ryan (Shogren) are "live in" lovers.  Soon to be engaged, young, intelligent, fun-loving folk ready to "become" adults.  One last night of mischief at a karaoke bar and Regina's (symbolic farewell to irresponsibility) bump of cocaine changes all of this.  After a horrible reaction to the powder (and being resuscitated by Ryan) Regina begins to change.  At first, nothing to be super alarmed about:  headaches, insomnia, loss of appetite, etc.  However, when Ryan opens their fridge to find bio hazard bags full of human tissue (mostly fat) we have a problem.  Hardly handled for laughs a la Tyler Durden's soap-making enterprise in FIGHT CLUB; this revelation begins a rapid unraveling of Regina's life, her mind, her body, and her soul; not to mention her relationship with friends, family, and especially her now fiance Ryan.  At first supportive and concerned, Ryan begins to slowly (and understandably) crumble under the weight of these new and hideous developments.  With their medical background in tow:  Regina and Ryan set out to identify, study, and cure the cause of her intense cravings for human flesh, inability to sleep, lack of a pulse, and deteriorating epidermis.  Filmed and presented as a compilation of personal video diaries and security camera footage; PRETTY DEAD pulls aside the curtain on the days leading up to, and those that followed Regina Stevens' cannibalizing of four men; and how the "system" dealt with a woman convinced she was already dead. 

For years I've rolled my eyes at the debate regarding how the "living dead" should behave.  Run, shuffle, talk, growl, be mindless or thoughtful.  I've always kind of liked the idea of a person dying and functioning normally initially, only to slow down and deteriorate as the death process progresses.  So, if in fact, Regina truly is "zombified," this one's right in my wheelhouse.  Found footage approach aside (which at this point I could take or leave) Cook and Wilkins have narratively constructed a zombie movie that stands firmly on it's rotting head.  PRETTY DEAD is not a horror film.  It's not a romance, a drama, a dark comedy, a monster movie, or a tragic love story.  It's the sum of all those parts and much more.  A true genre film that cris-crosses themes and uses this technique to build a genuinely heartbreaking tale of a young woman's journey as she "circles the drain."  As Regina, Carly Oates so adeptly navigates and carries the story, she leaves the viewer with no choice other than to be pulled deeper into her mess.  Played with fear, anger, confusion, acceptance, denial, and even a splash of joy and whimsy; Oates (it would appear) had more than a little passion for the project.  Shogren (as EMT fiance Ryan) nimbly plays off Oates and unfurls his loving, sweet cheeked, guy next door persona allowing his emotional fall from grace to be that much more painful when complete.  It's not a perfect film, however, it's subject matter is handled deftly and with real emotional gravitas.  It feels as real as something like this can and Wilkins and Cook introduce a wonderfully dense amalgamation of ideas that might just make them the "grand kids" of the modern zombie movie.  Again, if this WERE a zombie movie.  I choose to tread lightly here because PRETTY DEAD was a joy to watch in real time, with no preconceived notion of what I was getting myself into.  Watch the trailer, keep your eyes open for it's inevitable release, and remember:  sometimes it's not just the blood and guts that make a monster movie a MONSTER MOVIE.  Sometimes it's about the transformative power of watching and experiencing one of our own (unwillingly, painfully, and fearfully) become that monster.  

2012

Director:  Benjamin Wilkins

Starring:  Carly Oates and Ryan Shogren

8/10