Swallowed

I was thinking this would be a really gross or a horrific body horror film and it wasn't anything that was really great. The body horror was barely there, it wasn't really scary. I would not call this horror. I kept waiting for something to happen, for it to get truly gruesome because I really felt from what people were saying that I would end up profoundly disturbed, but it never happened. Acting was good, I would call this a thriller but not horror, no way. It's a good story but it needed more to be considered a really disturbing body horror movie. I was thinking it might have some elements of Shivers or Rabid, but it never really went for it.

What a letdown. I rented this film expecting a horror movie. What I got was a weird drama thriller that barely falls under those categories either.

It's a thin script that's stretched out way too long for how little actually happens. No big twists, no big surprises, and moves like molasses.

Which is a shame because it starts off strong, establishing the characters, their relationship, and the intrigue of the plot set up, but doesn't do much of interest for the rest of it.

It is well acted though. From the two leads who are sympathetic, human, and believable, which gives the thin material more weight, to the female drug dealer who is intimidating while not crossing the line into completely unlikable. The one weak performance comes from Mark Patton, who's all over the place. But it feels like no one involved knew how his character was supposed to be portrayed.

Overall not very good.

... come out right? Well no pun intended here, but as the title suggests ... well if you only know the title, you may be in for quite the ride, like I was. Just the beginning was quite something - you get the feeling for our two main characters and what they are about.

Of course only as the movie progresses we get to see how deep their friendship goes ... almost literally and no pun intended. There are scenes here that are not easy to watch - even if they are not explicitly shown. On the other hand, this has quite a lot of male nudity in it. If you have issues with that - well you have been "warned" (I too am more fond of the female body, just saying).

On another note, the movie has Mark Patton in it. If you do not know him: he was in one of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies. And his character was quite prominent - also in how he changed perception in male leads. Not just for the time this was made.

He really goes all out with his character here. Even more fun when you have met him in real life and know what a sweetheart he is - the character he portrays is anything but. But that is acting - the slow burn on the other hand may not be everyones cup of tea ... suspend your disbelief and go with the flow ...

Benjamin is set to move to LA, for life as a male porn star, on his last night, he and his best friend Dom have a job to do, to get a package of drugs from A to B, but an encounter with a redneck thug at a public toilet changes the course of events.

From the title, you may think you're about to watch a porno, and judging by the amount of full frontline nudity, you may just be closer to that than you think.

Overall, it's better than I expected, and better than some of the scathing review would have you believe.

I think the actual plot, and the ideas in general are fantastic, it's so imaginative, I thought the earlier part of the film was terrific, unfortunately the latter stages didn't quite work as well, when Mark Patton is introduced it gets a little silly.

Not a conventional horror in the sense, but some nice ideas nonetheless, they could have upped the ante in terms of horror, they easily have gone in a few directions.

On the plus side, I'll refer back to an earlier point, female nudity has been synonymous with horror films since the 1970's, so I guess it's good to see them flip the tables somewhat.

Overall, it's a decent watch.

6/10.

"Swallowed" is a new release that had the potential to be a horror movie, but it falls short of expectations. The film was decently acted, but the plot is more of a thriller than a horror movie, and it lacks the blood, gore, and jump scares that we expect from a horror film.

While the movie has some intriguing ideas, it fails to explore them in depth. The bugs that appear in the movie are not explained, and we never really find out what they do to the human brain. Additionally, the lack of any real insight into the trip that they induce makes the plot seem rushed and underdeveloped.

One thing that stands out about the movie is the excessive full frontal male nudity, which may make some viewers uncomfortable. While it is not unusual for horror movies to include some nudity, it is overdone in "Swallowed" and seems unnecessary to the plot.

Overall, I would not recommend this movie to fans of the horror genre. It fails to deliver on its potential, and the lack of character development and plot twists makes it a dull and forgettable watch. I would give "Swallowed" a 4/10 rating for its decent acting but failure to deliver on its potential.