Fleisch

The opening scenes of this film are pure cheesecake with soul music, people frolicking through the street and dogs trying to grab wedding bouquets. There's some cheesy dubbing as well. It eventually settles down into a more serious affair after a sinister ambulance abducts one half of a honeymooning couple. The girl, Monica, gets away and eventually garners the help of trucker Bill and his trucking buddies in finding out where the ambulance took her husband.

This is a pretty good film which kept me on edge throughout, as the characters were really likable. Good cinematography and a moody score help it along, and the story here is intriguing... certainly a hell of a lot moreso than the somewhat similar 1980 piece of garbage, Cardiac Arrest. If you find a copy, give it a look.

In yet another case of 'great idea, shame about the execution' this drama/thriller about secret organ dealers kidnapping unsuspecting people to harvest their body parts might've been much better with a more cohesive plot, much less filler (like, for instance, a five minute run through New York for some reason) and well-developed characters.

Oh, and the dubbing is TERRIBLE. Sheesh. 4/10

Going by the title, you would be forgiven for thinking this film would be some sort of grisly slasher; but actually (and disappointingly) it's a subdued made-for-TV thriller that bears more than just a passing similarity to Michael Crichton's 1978 film, Coma. The film is directed by Rainer Erler and is a German made film; although it takes place in Texas, USA. Being a TV film, you've got to expect it not to be heavy on the gore and special effects; and this is the case. Spare Parts relies on the plot and its characters to remain thrilling...and unfortunately it doesn't really pull it off effectively. The plot focuses on a newlywed couple having their honeymoon in Texas. They stop at a motel and meet the friendly proprietor; shortly before an ambulance swings by and abducts the husband. The girl goes back to the motel for help; but the proprietor insists she's never seen her before. The woman ends up getting a lift with a trucker, who helps her get to the bottom of the mystery.

This plot has been done several times; not only in the aforementioned Coma, but also in later efforts such as Larry Clark's The Ambulance. The film feels very cheap throughout, and never manages to get past its TV movie status. At one hundred and five minutes, it really has to be said that the film is too long also; and it becomes less than interesting before the end. The central character; a young German woman is fairly likable, although despite the long running time; we don't really get to know a great deal about her. The plot certainly could have been very interesting, but not a great deal is made of it. There's very little suspense in the film either and that doesn't exactly help the film when it comes to the excitement stakes. To its credit, however, the plot does at least make sense throughout and the film does feature an ending that wraps everything up nicely. Spare Parts is not an easy film to find and to be honest I wouldn't recommend anyone bothers to track it down - Coma is (slightly) better anyway!

The title made me cringe thinking this would be a gory mess of a movie with a gory mess of a plot. I decided to give it a try and was pleasantly surprised by it.

The story is about newlyweds, both grad students so they're broke and end up staying at a cheap motel because they can afford it. Not long after that, the husband is abducted in an ambulance, the wife flees in terror and ends up with a truck driver who picks her up. The two try to find answers.

This is a long movie for the genre but it moves pretty good. The story is entirely from the perspective of Monica, the newlywed wife and we are wondering about the other characters, their motives and who to dare trust under the circumstances.

There are some plot holes like why didn't she go to the police immediately the two times just about anyone else would have. After thinking about it I don't feel like those were major plot holes under the circumstances in the story. No one would believe what she was claiming about people being abducted and the motel owner would just lie about seeing them. The movie flat out acknowledges the plot hole of why Bill, the truck driver does as much as he did when she asks him why he was doing this. He had no reply to her question and we don't know why either.

A good movie. I never saw a good print of it but I enjoy it anyway. You will be disappointed if you expect this to be a gory horror flick. It really isn't a horror movie as much as it is a psychological thriller.

For those that wonder, the longer version of this movie adds one detail which is implied anyway in the shorter version. You get to see Monica and Bill go to New York as part of Bill's initial delivery when they first meet. He picked her up while she was fleeing her captors and he continuesd to do his truck driving job but with her along for the ride. The shorter version omits just that one trip so you don't miss much beyond some character development.

Saw this in the horror section of video store and it looked worth a rental. It was. A poor young German chick and her newlywed husband go on their honeymoon in New Mexico. The lady innkeeper is way too friendly, so you sort of suspect something is up with her. Later, an ambulance appears out of nowhere and kidnaps the hubby away. The wife pleads to the innkeeper for help, but now the innkeeper claims she doesn't know the wife, even though she just rented her a room! In a bizarre twist (yet it works well), the wife ends up hitching a ride with Sierra Bill, a good ol' boy trucker. So you got this redneck Texan helping a German student who's looking for her Princeton husband. Anyway, they come up with a pretty cool plan. It gets suspenseful and a bit confusing, but all is explained in the end. Jutta Spiedel surprised me as a really good actress, considering I did not know her work before this film. Good stuff