It's alimentary Dr. Watson

[@meric@nwom@n]

I, having a unwholesomely curious streak in me, actually watched the trailer for a move called The Human Centipede.

I am not going to link to it because it really quite disturbed me. If you want to find it to view it it's on you.

I will say that I cannot fathom how sick a mind has to be to think this sort of thing up.

It makes me weep for the future.

[Big RR]

Think it up? I would think Megele was the inspiration.

[@meric@nwom@n]

OK RR, I read up on Mengele and am now more creeped out then ever. Loads of thanks.

[Daisy]

Ick!

Just read the wikip entry for it.... I don't like

[The Hen]

Thanks for the heads up on the Wiki entry Daisy. I am definitely NOT watching that trailer.

Wow.

[kristina]

I only got about three sentences into the Wiki entry, and nearly lost my lunch.

[Gob]

Oh, come on. It's a gross out comedy, isn't it?

Christ they are desperate these days, if it's not ruining classic movies by "remaking" them, it's how shitty (literally) they can make them.

Another sad blip on mankind's downwards spiral...

And it's not even new, "Divine" ate a freshly laid dog turd in "Pink Flamingos" in 1972.

No effects used.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_Flamingos

[Big RR]

Goss out comedy Gob? Certainly, but it could be much more. It may well be a black comedy on the excesses of "Dr." Menele, a way of the director (who I believe is German) coming to terms with pure, unadulterated evil. the Italian film Salo (which is very hard to watch) took on the excesses of fascism in a similar way. Even Pink Flamingos was much more than just an attempt to gross out people (although it clearly did that quite well), it was a satire on the idea of fame and what lengths people would go to in order to become famous--this decades before our current crop of reality shows proved the film was exactly right.

Knowing this doesn't necessarily make the films any more watchable (or even technically "better"), but much himor, even at its lowest forms, is just a grasp to come to terms with something that cannot be fully conprehended. Come on, how far is it from the "scientific experiments" Megele conducted to the "human centipede"? Not really all that much

[Miles]

Up to now I have always felt that I could not be grossed out. I WAS WRONG

[Gob]

BiggRR, horror like porn movies have to find ways of "pushing the envelope", unfortunately this usually ends up in laughable or disgusting ideas. Horror audiences are normally spotty teenagers, they soon grow out of it.

Remember how shocking some of the movies we saw as spotty adolescents were ? "The Exorcist" was banned in many Welsh towns.

[dales]

Should've just banned The Welsh.

[Gob]

OY!!

[Big RR]

BiggRR, horror like porn movies have to find ways of "pushing the envelope", unfortunately this usually ends up in laughable or disgusting ideas. Horror audiences are normally spotty teenagers, they soon grow out of it.

Remember how shocking some of the movies we saw as spotty adolescents were ? "The Exorcist" was banned in many Welsh towns.

Absolutely, I especially recall being completely shocked by two films, Night of the Living dead (with the scenes of the undead eating their victims (in the late 60s) and the death of the hero at the end) and Last House on the Left (which ushed the envelope in a lot of ways for 1971 or 72, I forget which). These (and a few others) spawned the genre of splatter films that ran through the 70s and some of the 80s. IMHO, the ultimate splatter film was an Italian (at least the director was) film called Cannibal Holocaust, which was so poorly filmed authrities in many countries thought it was a badly filmed documentary and it was banned in many of them--the director was even jailed in Italy until he could produce the actors and show they weren't killed (although I always wondered if this was a publicity stunt). Personally, I find it interesting to see what people can dream up and then reduce to film, so I'll still watch the occasional horror film in this genre, although I detest the modern convention (not all that modern, it was used during the 80s) that injects humor as part of the film, as almost a wink and a nod which somehow makes the mayhem OK.

However, there are also some very serious films that use horror and violence to make a point. The Night Porter was a good example of that, with graphic S&M scens used to show how the holocaust screwed up some people badly. And the Italian film I mentioned earlier, Salo, uses that and more to illustrate the utter depravity that some in authroity will sink to when left unrestrained (and please note, this is a difficult film to sit through and not one I'd recommend). Where this film falls is not certain. Is the lead character a modern-day Mengele who justifies torture in and depravity the name of "science"? Or is this merely a schlock/shock film? Or is it something in between? The trailer seems to indicate it may be more toward the sclock end, but as I'm unlikely to see it, I guess I'll never know.

[Gob]

I'll never forget John Cleese being called onto Panorama, which was then the UK's premier highbrow news programme, to discuss "Life of Brian" with a top COE Bishop.

Cleese's first question to the Bishop, following the Bish's opening remarks, was; "Have you actually seen the film?" The reply; "No."

So Cleese said nothing for the rest of the programme.

[Big RR]

I have a lot of respect for Cleese for doing that.