When i first read about this film on the unearthed films coming soon page i was interested to say the least. The description said and i quote" Make Salo 120 days of Sodom look tame in comparison". That being said i was more nervous than anything during my first viewing, thats a bold statement and to back it up is a task in and of itself. Anyways i did my homework and the film was based on the Armin Weiwes case, the cannibal who found a willing victim. Anyways i had to sit through this film three times to fully get a grasp on just what it was that bothered me. I can say it wasn't the gore, or even the homosexual content although on most blogs referring this film that was one of the biggest complaints.
anyways what really got me above all things was how realistic everything was and not just effective special effects. The film was cast perfectly. Carsten Frank was frighteningly believable as Armin, He had this incredibly dark way about him you could almost believe he was a real deviant. The actor as the victim he came off as a very slow and easily suggestible with the same sense of deviancy as the latter. The two really feed off each other...no pun intended.
All this cycles an incredibly troubling court ship complete with a scene of homosexuality that could only be topped by hard core gay porn, honestly having seen Dora's other work and seeing what they did in those i wouldn't be surprised if Carsten Frank and the other actor actually had sex. This all leads to some absolutely vicious series of gore scenes including castration, gutting and finally cannibalism. Personally the castration scene made me curl into a ball. Finally the actual death scene has to be the most disturbing part. The way the body was being carried, everything seemed to be in place, there was small puddles of chunky vomit, bowels were voided...all in detail. All in all this film once really taken in and processed is so much more than whats taken at face value. It felt to me almost like and mind you this is all based on actual events, i was watching some perverse tragedy, there was something not only grotesque, but dark, sad,and perverse. Couple that with the minimalist piano score, which is almost become Hallmark to extreme German cinema.
If you like horror films think twice about this film, however if you are a gore hound, or have a serious interest in true crime stories than go ahead. Be forewarned.
anyways what really got me above all things was how realistic everything was and not just effective special effects. The film was cast perfectly. Carsten Frank was frighteningly believable as Armin, He had this incredibly dark way about him you could almost believe he was a real deviant. The actor as the victim he came off as a very slow and easily suggestible with the same sense of deviancy as the latter. The two really feed off each other...no pun intended.
All this cycles an incredibly troubling court ship complete with a scene of homosexuality that could only be topped by hard core gay porn, honestly having seen Dora's other work and seeing what they did in those i wouldn't be surprised if Carsten Frank and the other actor actually had sex. This all leads to some absolutely vicious series of gore scenes including castration, gutting and finally cannibalism. Personally the castration scene made me curl into a ball. Finally the actual death scene has to be the most disturbing part. The way the body was being carried, everything seemed to be in place, there was small puddles of chunky vomit, bowels were voided...all in detail. All in all this film once really taken in and processed is so much more than whats taken at face value. It felt to me almost like and mind you this is all based on actual events, i was watching some perverse tragedy, there was something not only grotesque, but dark, sad,and perverse. Couple that with the minimalist piano score, which is almost become Hallmark to extreme German cinema.
If you like horror films think twice about this film, however if you are a gore hound, or have a serious interest in true crime stories than go ahead. Be forewarned.