renezelwe

Blake Lively's acting, which is both traditional and physical, is one of the dishes which sells this film, and the star supporting actress is the camera which is her accurate and loving slave. Every muscle she moves is captured on celluloid as if you the viewer were next to her in her adventure. When I was watching this movie I had to convince myself that I was there and the shark was not CG, and that was by no means difficult to do. Several horror films have successfully managed to capture sexy underwater images but none have done it quite as well as this movie. Oh and I forgot about all the thrills and the suspense and the blood, and the music and the involving script and the differing supporting characters within the plot. In terms of longevity it is gore and sexualisation that makes a film memorable and film makers who do not realise that are naïve; as I write the ONLY 7 films to have been released in that category in the last 18 months are Ex Machina, It Follows, Fifty Shades Of Grey, Crimson Peak, Conjuring 2, Neon Demon and The Shallows. As a group beat those if you can.

A distorted 'torture' video is shown to prospective actresses and the interviews take place in a theatre which looks like a multiplex with a circle(my favourite species of multiplex). The video is nearly monochrome with bright red blood. The cinematic story is interesting as are the actresses who make their characters credible. The reality of the story comes to light in the second half where the effects are far more realistic, and this main body of the film is done very well indeed, and even the rough sex does not look ugly. There are three prints to choose from: an Italian print classified 14, which I haven't seen so cannot say if it is cut, a South American print, and a Dutch Eurocult print which impressed me and which is definitely uncut. This isn't quite torture porn perfection like Martyrs and Pernicious, but it is a worthwhile contribution to the subgenre and is presented as a modern Gothic Giallo. This is another film which attracts a lot of unconstructive critiscism, mostly because of its violence. It isn't actually happening, guys.

The writers of most critical reviews of this film don't seem to realise a) that girls with a mental problem may not always shower naked, b) that actresses who play a certain type of girl will not necessarily be acting badly, and c) that blood and body parts will be fake or someone will investigate. What this film does do is make the characters, the effects and the storyline credible, and when you add in the accurate shooting (half of films made don't do this), and the way colours and contrasts are used, you have an intelligent and perfect or near perfect horrorfilm which can be enjoyed as many times as you want. The thing about good horror, and in particular good torture porn, is you have to get the blood colours right and this one does. Three American girls go to Thailand to teach children and become embroiled in local superstitions. That's it, but you will enjoy becoming engrossed in all the different parts of the plot if you just watch the movie with an open mind. People with closed minds hate horror they "think" is in any way sexualised. Thankfully for cinema, adults in democracies such as the U.S. and U.K. are allowed to choose their own entertainment, which is why Psycho exists.