The Human Centipede An Exercise in Team Building

The Human Centipede (First Sequence)

The Human Centipede is a film that I actually had a chance to see on the big screen when. I was covering the 2010 Toronto After Dark Film Festival. It was the closing night film that played after the killer-tire film, Rubber. At the time my cousin, who had taken in Rubber with me, was adamant that he had no desire to Centipede. Based on the disturbing trailer, I really could not argue the point as horror is not everyone’s cup of tea. Even I had reservations about whether I would be able to stomach the film on the big screen. So instead of seeing the film, we opted head over early to the festival’s closing night party and grab a few drinks.

Although I passed on the film at the festival, The Human Centipede is a film that I knew I would get to eventually. I just had to work my way up to a little slower than other horror films. The premise of the film is essentially summed up in the film’s title. The story centers around two American tourist in Germany, Lindsay (Ashley C. Williams) and Jenny (Ashlynn Yennie), whose car breaks down one night in the middle of woods. Seeking help the women come across the home of Dr. Heiter (Dieter Laser), a mad surgeon with a knack for stitching things together. Unbeknownst to Lindsay and Jenny, they are about to become part of Dr. Heiter’s most ambitious experiment to date, the first ever living human centipede.

After finally viewing the film, I can honestly say that the most startling aspect of The Human Centipede is that it is not as graphic as you would expect. This is not to say that the film does not feature some disturbing moments, it does, but it is not as gory as you think it would be. Hearing Dr. Heiter proclaiming “I know definitely you are the middle piece!” is scarier than actually seeing the centipede in action. In many ways the most chilling aspect about the film is idea itself of a human centipede. Just thinking about the logistics of it still makes me squirm.

The performances in the film tend to fall into two groups, extremely over-the-top or adequate enough for the confines of the film. In the first group is Dieter Laser who completely reveals in the absurdity of the premise. Laser plays Dr. Heiter very large and gives the film an almost comedic tone. At the other end of the spectrum, the rest of the cast. Yennie and Williams do everything required to maintain the unsettling tone of the film. Granted their characters are rather one dimensional and, due to how events unfold, their performances rely more on the physical rather than the verbal.

The actor who best transcended the two different performance styles was Akihiro Kitamura. Although his character, Katsuro, does not speak any English in the film, Kitamura gives a performance that makes you actually care about what happens to his character more than the others. The Human Centipede is not the type of film that asks for the viewer’s to care about the characters all. It is more concerned with making the viewer as uncomfortable as possible. To which the film succeeds to a certain extent.

Director Tom Six does have some solid ideas, but do not always come together smoothly. The Human Centipede would have benefitted more had Six played up the cerebral chills. Also, a toned down performance by Laser would have helped in making the film scarier. In the end, The Human Centipede is a film whose premise is far more chilling than what actually appears on screen. I must admit though, after viewing the film, I am very curious to see how the sequel will unfold?





The Human Centipede is part of our "The Must See List" series.

TADFF: Daily Picks August 20, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available at the Bloor Cinema for Rubber):

7:00 pm – Rubber. Easily one of the most buzzed about films at the fest. Tickets are selling fast for this one.



9:45 pm - The Human Centipede. Tickets are sold out online. Rush line is the only way you can score last minute tickets.

TADFF Review: Centurion

Centurion

Set in Britain in AD 117, The Roman Empire is at war with savages known as Picts. The Picts refuse to submit to Roman rule, and plan to destroy any Roman that crosses their path. Quintus Dias (Michael Fassbender), the sole survivor of a Picts’ raid on a Roman frontier fort, finds himself leading a small group Ninth Legion soldiers. The Ninth Legion was once a fearsome band of Roman soldiers until they were ambushed by the Picts. After their general (Dominic West) was captured, and the majority of the men slaughter, Dias was entrusted with the task of leading and six remaining Ninth Legion soldiers home. Yet their quest home is riddled with danger as the Picts’ leader, Gorlacon (Ulrich Thomsen), has made it his personal mission to hunt down the remaining members of the Ninth Legion at all cost. Dias and his band of soldiers must navigate through unfamiliar terrain, and evade the Picts’ expert tracker Etain (Olga Kurylenko), in order to reach Roman soil before it is too late.

Normally a film with this much blood and carnage would hold my interest on the most basic, and primal, level. Unfortunately the relentless amount of decapitations was not enough to keep my eyelids from closing down a few times throughout Centurion. Now I am fully aware that the unusually large amount of softball that I have played in the last couple of days may have factored into my weary state. Yet Centurion, of all the films at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival, should have been the jolt of adrenaline that my body needed. Sadly, the repetitive nature of the film only added to the dullness of the overall production. The film pretty much follows the same formula throughout: The Romans talk a big game, get their asses handed to them by the Picts, then run into the woods looking for a safe place to hide. Add in some beautiful scenery and that is pretty much the film in a nutshell,

Centurion was high on my “to see list” as it stars Michael Fassbender and was directed by Neil Marshall. After his brilliant work in films such as Hunger and Fish Tank (my review to come soon), not to mention his role in Inglourious Basterds, Michel Fassbender is quickly becoming one of my favourite actors. He brings so much vigor to every role he plays. Fassbender’s talents are wasted in this film. He is not giving much to work with at all as Neil Marshall spends more time on the action scenes than he does crafting a solid plot. Although Marshall’s previous films Dog Soldiers and Doomsday were entertaining, neither really showcased his talents fully the way The Descent did. I was hoping that Centurion would be Marshall’s best film yet but it ended up being his weakest one to date. The only thing I will say in Neil Marshall’s favour is that he always incorporates strong female characters into his film. Olga Kurylenko, who you may remember from Quantum of Solace, is the real bright spot of the film. Not only is she a fearsome warrior but she is also one of the few characters who actually has an interesting back-story. Granted, her life is summarized in two or three lines but at least it is something. Most of the other characters are rather indistinguishable from each other.

Since the bloody action is always at the forefront, Marshall never provides enough character development to bring any depth to all the carnage. At the beginning the Romans are portrayed as good and the Picts are viewed as bad…but is really the case? Both sides have committed great sins against each other. As the film goes on, it becomes increasingly tough to care for either side. Centurion tries hard to follow in the footsteps of the many sword and sandal films that came before it. Yet, at the end of the day, Centurion is nothing more than a mindless action film that is fairly easy to fall asleep to.

Grade: D

TADFF: Daily Picks August 19, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available online, or at the Bloor Cinema):

7:00 pm - Black Death (featuring Sean Bean)



9: 45 pm - I Spit on Your Grave (tickets are selling fast, may be sold out by the afternoon. Arrive to the theatre early if you want to get last minute tickets)

TADFF Review: The Last Exorcism

The Last Exorcism

During question and answer period of The Last Exorcism screening director Eli Roth, who produced the film, stated that he is drawn to films where the real discussion begins once the films ends. This perfectly encapsulates The Last Exorcism. The film may not make you jump out of your seats, but you will be thinking about The Last Exorcism long after it is over.

Cotton Marcus (Patrick Fabian) has been preaching the gospel since the age of 10. Immensely charismatic, Cotton knows all the right things to say to both his congregation and the various people he encounters on the street. Despite not believing the religious jargon he spews, Cotton continues to preach in order to take care of his wife and child. After a young boy is killed during an exorcism procedure, Cotton Marcus becomes determined to expose just how fake exorcisms really are. Cotton enlists a documentary film crew to follow him while he “performs” one last exorcism. Picking a letter at random, Cotton heads to a small town in Louisiana to conduct an exorcism on Nell Sweetzer (Ashley Bell). Nell’s father Louis (Louis Herthum) is convinced his daughter is possessed but Cotton is not so easily swayed. The deeper Cotton delves into Nell’s predicament the more dangerous things become for Cotton and his film crew. Is Nell really possessed by evil forces? Or is there a greater mystery afoot?

Similar to The Blair Witch Project, The Last Exorcism is all about the audience creating the horror in their minds. The film does not aim to shock via excessive gore or elaborate deaths. This type of film spends time creating the right atmosphere, which impacts the viewer much more than merely splashing the screen with blood. Telling the tale through the eyes of the documentary camera man is both a benefit and a disadvantage for the film’s director, Daniel Stamm. On one hand Stamm is able to create the claustrophobic and creepy atmosphere that only having viewpoint provides. Unfortunately, the fact that some of the moments are “edited” takes the audience out of the story at the wrong moments. For example, when Cotton is conducting his exorcism the film constantly jumps back and forth between scenes of the exorcism and scenes where Cotton is explaining the tricks of the trade. While the section is very amusing, the audience cannot help but question when did the documentary crew have time to splice those scenes together? Especially since the audience is led to believe that the events are being documented as they happen.

Still, despite the minor flaws, there is a lot to likeabout The Last Exorcism. The performances from both Patrick Fabian and Ashley Bell are outstanding. While Cotton is as fraudulent as the exorcisms he wants to expose, Fabian’s portrayal of Cotton is by no means a gimmick. Fabian brings a nicely layered performance that will have you laughing along with Cotton just as much as you fear for his safety. Cotton’s scenes with Nell go from sweet to chilling in a blink of an eye. Ashley Bell does a great job of making Nell both the victim and the aggressor. There is a great scene in the film where Nell is sitting on the bed all innocent looking while Cotton checks up on her. Then, just before the door closes, she delivers this slow evil grin to the camera that sends shivers down the audience’s spine. It should also be noted that there were no special effects used for Nell’s scenes. Every disturbing body contortion is 100% Bell. The Last Exorcism is a film that succeeds because it harkens back to more minimalist horror films. The type of tales where the scariest aspects are the things that the audience creates in their own mind.

Grade: A-

Stars in attendance: Producer Eli Roth and actors Patrick Fabian and Ashley Bell held a question and answer session after the screening.

TADFF: Daily Picks August 18, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available online, or at the Bloor Cinema):


7:00 pm - Centurion




9:45 pm – Heartless

TADFF Review: High School

High School

Henry (Matt Bush) is an honour roll student who has always played by the rules. His pal Travis (Sean Marquette), on the other hand, is a stoner whose future is as cloudy as the marijuana he enhales. Travis convinces Henry to let loose and try some weed just one time. Unfortunately for the boys, they get high the night before the school principle, Gordon (Michael Chiklis), announces that he will be taken a harsh stance on drugs. On the day of the final exams, every student will have to take part in mandatory drug testing. Anyone student who fails the test will be immediately expelled. Fearing that his application to MIT is in jeopardy, Henry decides to go along with Travis’ crazy plan to get the whole school high via the PTA bake sale. If the whole school fails the drug screening than the results will be deemed inadmissible. In order to get enough drugs to affect the students and staff, Travis and Henry must steal some of the most potent marijuana on earth from a local drug dealer, the unstable Psycho Ed (Adrien Brody).

At the time of screening, High School still did not have a distributor attached. Which I find rather odd since this is a film that will appeal to both stoners and non-stoners alike. High School is a blend of Superbad mixed with Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, and sprinkled with a dash of Ferris Buellers Day Off. I understand that some people may fear that their children will get “bad ideas” from the film, but the film does not break any new ground. Director John Stalberg’s film is more of a buddy comedy than it is a pro-marijuana film. In fact, it shows the horrors of marijuana more than anything else. Henry and Travis’ plan gets increasing complicated as everything spirals out of control.

The fun in High School comes from watch Henry and Travis trying to outsmart everyone from Principle Gordon to rival straight “A” student Sebastain (Adhir Kaylan), while having Psycho Ed breathing down their necks. Matt Bush does a wonderful job as Henry, he really holds his own against the star-studded supporting cast. Both Bush and Marquette, who is like a young John Belushi, help to keep the pacing brisk and the laughs flowing. Credit must be given to the exceptional supporting cast. Michael Chiklis, who is unrecognizable in the film, is hilarious as the school principle who is determined to cleanse the school of drugs at all cost. It is Chiklis’ Gordon and Brody’s Psycho Ed who have some of the best lines in the film. The rest of the supporting players, including Colin Hanks, Yeardley Smith, Andrew Wilson, Mykelti Williamson, and Michael Vartan provide enough additional laughs that none of the characters ever feel out of place. While High School may not bring anything unique to the teen comedy genre, it offers up enough laughs that makes it well worth the trip back to school.

Grade: B

TADFF: Daily Picks August 17, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available online or at the Bloor Cinema):

7:00 pm - Phobia 2



9:45 pm – All About Evil (starring Natasha Lyonne)

TADFF Review: RoboGeisha

RoboGeisha

Noboru Iguchi’s RoboGeshia focuses on two sisters whose feud is played out to epic proportions. Yoshie (Aya Kiguchi) has always look up to her older sister, Kikue (Hitomi Hasebe), with loving affection. The same cannot be said for Kikue, a beautiful Geisha who wishes that life had brought her a different baby sister. When a young wealthy industrialist, Hikaru Kageno (Takumi Saitô), takes an interest in Yoshie, the tension between the sisters intensifies. Neither sister knows what dangers await them in Kageno’s factory. Hikaru Kageno is quietly building an army of robot geishas to take over the world.

Rarely has sibling rivalry been taken to such over-the-top extremes. If you are looking for a gripping story with a coherent plot, let me take this opportunity to remind you that the film is called RoboGeisha! This is film is by no means a good, from a plot point of view, but you will have a great time watching it. RoboGeisha is one of those films that you need to see with a group of people, preferably with a few beers in hand. RoboGeisha has so many hilarious, and often head-scratching moments, that all you can do is sit back and watch the madness unfold. Characters will often state the obvious to situartions where no verbalization is really need. For example, a man may yell: ”I have been cut in by a hand” right after...you guessed it...being sliced by RoboGeisha’s hand.

RoboGeisha is the type of film where a person can fire off eighty rounds from a gun and still not hit their target. Everything in the film is gleefully outrages. Weapons are stored in the most unorthodox places. Chances are good you will have never seen a film that incorporates the 80’s “robot” style of dance into a fight scene. Nor will you have viewed a film where characters have an “ass sword fight.” RoboGeisha is B-movie absurdity at its finest. Again, RoboGeisha will not play well if you view it alone; this is the type of film that you really need an audience to share in the outlandishness of it all.

Grade: C+

TADFF: Daily Picks August 16, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available online or at the Bloor Cinema for Alien vs Ninja):


7:00 pm - The Last Exorcism. The film’s producer, horror director Eli Roth, will be in attendance for the screening. Roth will apparently be holding a question and answer session.  The screening is currently sold out but a rush line (i.e. your chance to get last minute tickets) will be conducted at the theatre. You will need to arrive early in order to get into the rust line.





9:45 pm – Alien vs Ninja

TADFF Review: Cargo

Cargo

In the 23rd Century Earth is uninhabitable and the majority of civilians live in space stations. With both disease and terrorism running rampant, it seems the only safe place left to live is the planet Rhea. Laura Portmann (Anna Katharina Schwabroh), a young medic, longs to go to Rhea so that she can be reunited with her sister. In order to save up enough money to travel to Rhea, Laura takes an 8-month position on a ship that is transporting construction material to Sector 42. Laura and the rest of the ship’s small crew soon realize that they are not alone, and whatever lurks in the shadows is killing them off one by one.

Cargo is the first feature length science fiction film to be made in Switzerland. The film took eight years to make and the budget was a paltry two million dollars. The fascinating thing about Cargo is that, despite the miniscule budget, the film looks far better than a lot of big budget productions. Sure there are scenes here and there that were clearly computer generated, but the overall product is amazingly slick and stylish. While the premise of the film may sound a lot like the film Alien, Cargo is far more a kin to Duncan Jones’ Moon. The film is more of a cerebral thriller that will have you second guessing who the real heroes are in life.

Director Ivan Engler takes his time to build up the tension, by time the film kicks into high gear you have a great grasp of both the character and the world they inhabit. It was very important that Engler found actors who had enough chemistry to convey the uneasy relationship between Laura and Samuel Decker (Martin Rapold), the air marshal assigned to the ship. Schwabroh and Rapold sizzle on screen as they both gave great performances. Their interactions not only raised the romantic tension in the film, but the overall suspense as well. Similar to Portmann, you are not quite sure what Decker’s motives are in the beginning. Even when things begin to unfold you are constantly questioning who Portmann can really trust? For a film that only cost two million dollars to make, Cargo is far more intelligent and suspenseful than most of the more costly films you see in theatres today.

Grade: A-/B+

TADFF: Daily Picks August 15, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available online or at the Bloor Cinema):



4:15 pm - Cargo







7:00 pm - Robogeisha







9:45 pm High School (featuring Adrien Brody)






Check back here in the next few days for mini reviews of each film.

TADFF Review: The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu

The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu

You know that you are in for a fun night when men in zombie makeup are joining the ticket holders line and the audience receives cardboard "sea monster" masks to wear on their way into the theatre. Welcome to the Toronto After Dark Film Festival folks...and it's only the first night! As I mentioned in an earlier post, the opening featured was Henry Saine's debut film The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu.

The film is the tale of Jeff (Kyle Davis), a bored office worker whose life seems to be going nowhere fast. Upon arriving home one day Jeff discovers that he is the last living decent of the famous H.P. Lovecraft. To his astonishment, Jeff is put in charge of keeping an ancient relic out of the hands of the evil Star Spawn (Ethan Wilde). If Star Spawn succeeds in acquiring the relic, he will unleash the greatest evil the world has ever seen. In order to complete his quest , Jeff, along his comic book loving buddies Charlie (Devin McGinn) and Paul (Barak Hardley), must find the one person who may hold the key to defeating Star Spawn...the reclusive Captain Olaf (Gregg Lawrence).

Using a mix of comic book style flash animation and old-time prosthetics The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu aims to achieve a lot on a rather small budget. Instead of trying to honour H.P. Lovecraft with a true horror film, director Henry Saine and writer Devin McGinn smartly opt for the comedic route. This allows The Last Lovecraft to tackle H.P. Lovecraft without upsetting his dedicated fan base. The film's main goal is to entertain and nothing more, and on that level it succeeds. The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu is a fun romp that will have you laughing out loud on occasion. The film is not as consistently funny as it could have been. Partly due to the sloppiness of the script. Some scenes are left hanging, or are awkwardly insert, for no real reason at all. These moments probably would not have been as noticeable had the editing been much smoother. I understand that the cast and crew did the best they could with the funds available; but more attention to detail would have gone a long way. Also, while I enjoyed the acting work done by Devin McGinn and Barak Hardley, I was slightly disappointed with Klye Davis' performance. Davis never sold the typical loser-turned-hero character the way he should have. Kyle Davis did not show enough range in his delivery of lines and he did not sell the lines when he needed to most (i.e. the heroic moments). He let the supporting players steal the movie at every corner. I will say that the effects and the sea monsters makeup were quite good for this type of film. Especially when you consider how small the budget was for the whole production. The visuals really helped to keep the audience's attention throughout. The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu may not be a great film but, when all is said and done, it is a fun one. I just wish that the jokes had hit the mark more often than they actually did.

Grade: C

Stars in attendance: Director Henry Saine and actors Kyle Davis, Devin McGinn, Martin Starr, and Edmund Lupinski held a question and answer session after the screening.

TADFF: Daily Picks August 14, 2010

Here are your daily picks for today's Toronto After Dark Film Festival screenings (Tickets are still available online or at the Bloor Cinema):


4:15pm - SHORTS AFTER DARK
Shorts After Dark features 10 absolutely mind-blowing new horror, sci-fi, action, and cult short films from around the world, including a number of international award winners. A major highlight is the World Premiere of legendary special effects makeup artist Greg Nicotero’s much anticipated short film the United Monster Talent Agency.


7:00 pm - Doghouse *




9:45 pm - Evil in the Time of Heroes (featuring Billy Zane!) *




* - People who show up to the screenings in Zombie costumes get in at a reduced price of $8

Toronto’s Week of Darkness Starts Tonight!

Just a friendly reminder for all those who will be in the Toronto area this week. The Toronto After Dark Film Festival officially kicks into gear tonight. The festival will run from Friday August 13th to Friday August 20th . 17 films will be featured at the festival; with the opening night film being Henry Saine’s The Last Lovecraft (see trailer below). Ticket information and showtimes are available on the festivals website.





Check back here in the next few days for my mini review of The Last Lovecraft.

Freedom Is Having No Rental Fees

Nothing like free stuff to start the weekend off right! I received an email last night from the folks at Cinema Clock, I believe it is called Movie Clock in the U.S., stating that I won a free DVD copy of Roman Polanski’s film, The Ghost Writer. The film was on my rental list but I will be scratching it off the list shortly. Best of all, I can now put those extra few bucks towards the Toronto After Dark Festival this weekend. To quote The Simpsons “everything is coming up Milhouse!” Now if you will excuse me, I need to go and camp out in front of the mailbox.

Toronto is a Bloody Good Time After Dark

Although TIFF (aka. The Toronto International Film Festival) offered a glimpse into some of the big films they will be showing this September, I would like to highlight another festival announcement that came out this week. The Toronto After Dark Film Festival unveiled its full lineup of cult-tastic films yesterday. Running from August 13 -20, Toronto After Dark features a wide array of over-the-top comedies, blood curdling horror, genre mashing science fiction and all things in between. I recently became aware of the festival thanks to James at Toronto Screen Shots and Bob of Eternal Sunshine of the Logical Mind. While at this month's Toronto Bloggers Pub Night, they were both sharing their experiences at the last year’s festival. I was officially sold on the idea of checking it out this year once I heard a few simple words: “they screened Black Dynamite last year!” That was all I needed to hear to grasp what type of films the festival would be showing. After scanning the complete list of films, this year’s festival seems to be even crazier than I could have ever anticipated. If descriptions like “Killer Tire Horror”, “Cult Stoner Comedy (staring Adrian Brody)”, “Brutal Roman Action”, do not scream cult goodness then maybe some of the following trailers below will get your cult juices going:

Please note some of the following trailers contain strong language and graphic violence.

High School



Rubber



Centurion



Doghouse



Robogeshia



Human Centipede




The full list of Toronto After Dark films, and ticket info, can be found on the festival's website.