The Farm

Other than the absolutely stupid last scene at the table which wasn't needed and the baby death which was also not needed (could have been implied instead) this isn't as bad as others have said. In fact I watched to the end with ease. It's a good premise, see what animals lives are like as they are slaughtered. Sadly it didn't make me not want to eat meat, though I can see why if you were thinking about it you might just stop. Other than the terrible actress who played Nora, I liked that the animal masks didn't speak. It made it much creepier and unnerving. In fact that was what made the film a 5 for me. If you had the usual hillbilly language of ma and pa it would have been one giant cliche. The filming was good and the sets and score were really good for a budget film. Other than a few bad moments this was definitely not the crap film I expected it to be at all. In fact I'd tell you to ignore the other review scores and give it a go.

The Farm is a grisly original little independent horror that certainly isn't for the faint of heart.

It tells the story of a young couple who fall foul of a farm that uses humans in place of traditional livestock.

Gory, unsettling and intentionally shocking it certainly left its mark on me despite me generally not appreciating this type of horror. I'm very impressed with what they accomplished, it's quite remarkable what they've done.

Sure I haven't exactly given it a mind blowingly high rating as it is plenty flawed and isn't material that I exactly seek out.

Despite all this I recognise what they've done here, the idea is highly original, the execution is mostly solid and I'd recommend this to anyone seeking something that little bit different. Certainly only people with strong stomachs though.

The Good:

Well scored

Great finale

Some original ideas

The Bad:

Character development could have been better

Idea doesn't feel fully utilized

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Pet cages are traditionally made of adamantium

Babies just can't catch a break in movies these days

I was expecting this to be a remake of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but directed by PETA. That's kinda what it is and it really feels like a feature length PETA demonstration. The only twist for me was that they ripped off Hostel as well (but even that isn't actually a twist, so no need for spoiler warnings).

So imagine a bunch PETA activists desperately trying to remake Hostel - that's pretty much all it is. All the symbolism is so totally obvious and in your face that it seizes to make any sense as a horror movie and even seizes to have any relatable plot at all and becomes a mere campaign for animal rights. The only problem is that it even fails at that, because we already know that hamburgers don't grow on trees, so for the movie to be effective as an animal rights campaign it's not enough to simply shove the facts about how cows are treated down our throat, because most of us already know that and we don't care because we don't really relate to their suffering. Now the movie tries to do exactly that, but fails at exactly that, because in order for us to relate to the suffering on an emotional level, the movie would need a relatable plot and relatable - or even remotely likable characters and it just doesn't have any of that...

The plot itself is quite original and the concept is good but it's poorly executed. It tries to educate the viewers about the way humans treat animals like food, but the lack of dialogue throughout the movie and underdeveloped lead characters makes it rather a splatter film with no substance despite having a deep rooted message. it has a friendly runtime but it felt long due to drawn out scenes that serve no purpose at all. There's only little tension generated even when the protagonists are apparently in danger. The ending is shocking but a bit ridiculous.

However, the movie managed to create a creepy atmosphere, thanks to the good production design. The gore effects are realistic and very disturbing to watch to some extent. The score is hard-hitting and the acting is pretty decent. Overall, the farm had the potential and concept to be a good movie but fails at execution.

I thought that sayings like "I lost a few brain cells after that" or "watching that gave me cancer" were just that - sayings. But now I understand that something as bad as this movie can actually make you feel stupider after watching it and I actually got a headache which makes me think I've got a brain tumor. Please heed my warning and do NOT waste your time on this p.o.s. movie. You'll get more entertainment from watching paint dry and that is not an exaggeration.