sbrazie

Stop watching, rating and reviewing horror films unless you are a fan of the genre! As a general rule, I always assume a horror film is good if it gets at least a five on IMDb. That's because you can assume most of the people rating it don't like horror, so the low ratings from the anti-horror raters are balanced out by the higher ratings from those of us who appreciate it. This is a wonderful turn on the psycho-killer sub-genre. Alyce is an attractive, somewhat withdrawn young woman who pretty much leads her life as an extension of her best friend with whom she obviously has more than a "friendly" attraction. After an evening of partying and drug use, she accidentally pushes her best friend off of a roof prompting her descent into depravity. She is obviously unbalanced from the first scene, so it is extremely believable that she is pushed over the edge herself after losing her best friend at her own hand. The rest is grisly, morbid fun. Jade Dornfeld is excellent, sexy, and extremely plausible as the crazy girl who is suddenly a drug addict, prostitute, necrophiliac, and killer all at once while developing a new sense of self-confidence. Definitely a 7 out of 10 - a must for horror fans.

After seeing the low scores on this film, I was encouraged to write a review as this film is worthy of a Seven, not the Four or lower most viewers have given it. The film has an excellent cast including Nick Stahl (Of Terminator Fame), Rose McGowan, and Amy Smart (both extremely under-rated actresses who can do comedy, drama, horror, thrillers, you name it and extremely attractive without being model gorgeous at the same time) as well as two lesser known actors playing the Irish "parent substitutes" for Nick Stahl's character, Dylan.

The film is basically a thriller that leaves you guessing as to Dylan's fate. Is he alive or dead? Is he talking to ghosts? This has been compared by other reviewers to "Sixth Sense" and I would agree. In essence, Dylan still hasn't come to terms with the death of his parents and assisting a crack addict, Charlie (Rose McGowan) finds redemption as does she. Meanwhile, with Charlies guidance, he rediscovers his old high school sweetheart, Natalie (Amy Smart), and is able to rekindle a romance that should never have ended.

So what does this film offer? It keeps you guessing as an excellent thriller should; the presence of the ?undead? and the fact Dylan works in a funeral home lend an element of fantasy, mystery, and eeriness; the rekindled relationship and flashbacks with Natalie provide romance; and most of all, all of the three main characters achieve some form of redemption. Seven Stars, would recommend to anyone and would watch again.

If there is one thing I cannot take, it is anyone who gives an opinion, review, etc. of something that involves "insulting" those of a different opinion. Take Author: zarakian_58 from United Kingdom's Review: "badly directed garbage. a mediocre nihilist sadistic gorefest ... if you are the sort of person who likes that ... see a shrink". So, I LOVED this movie, hence perhaps I should skip the shrink and move into the asylum. Stay off the review pages unless you can review objectively AND subjectively without insulting those of a different ilk.

Back to the movie. While this is a horror movie, without a doubt, it is also a crime thriller involving the search for the serial killer, "Seed", the search led by the detective Matt Bishop played by the under-rated Michael Pare'. He is caught early in the movie, but after surviving two attempts in the electric chair, he is buried alive to avoid a third attempt that if survived would give him his freedom. He escapes the grave, begins a new killing rampage, exacts revenge on the prison employees who oversaw his "death" and burial, and the investigation for the "copycat killer" begins.

This film is brutal, but Seed himself is no worse than a Jeffrey Dahmer, who ate his victims. Seed tortures and kills his victims over and over. These scenes are some of the goriest and most shocking I have ever seen.

This is everything a horror film should be: Horrifying, shocking, scary, terrible antagonist, sympathetic protagonist, and with great special effects thrown in. Solid acting and plot for a low budget effort (Don't forget-classics like Halloween and Night of the Living Dead were also extremely low budget). Eight Stars-One of the best torture horror films I have seen in a while.

Back to Michael Pare': I have always thought that Michael Pare' has never gotten the respect he deserved. Watch "Eddie and the Cruisers", "The Philadelphia Experiment" or even "Streets of Fire" (Not a good film, but great performances by a young Willem Dafoe and Diane Lane). While earlier in his career, he shows emotion, drama ability, can handle action scenes, and just has overall screen presence. Somehow he has gotten stuck in smaller supporting roles and in B movies. Another example of his B movie prowess, Pare is excellent as the detective hunting for the serial killer in this film.

One last note: I recommend skipping the first few minutes of this film which show real footage of animal torture taken from PETA. While this footage helps the Director, Boll, to get his point on "human nature" across along with the rest of the film, I find it unbearable to watch.