Krampus (2015)

Directed by: Michael Doherty

Starring: Adam Scott, Toni Collette, David Koechner, Allison Tolman, Conchata Ferrill, Emjay Anthony and Krista Stadler

Rated: PG-13

Genre: Horror / Horror-Comedy

A disillusioned young boy, fed up with his dysfunctional family, loses his faith in the spirit of Christmas. He gives up hope that he will ever have another enjoyable Christmas with his family and turns his back on the season. In doing so, he unwittingly unleashes the demonic evil spirit Krampus upon himself and his family. Krampus arrives to take from and punish those who don't believe.

I didn't know what to expect going into this film. I knew that I liked the cast, enjoyed the trailer and thought the subject matter would be interesting. I was hesitant due to the PG-13 rating, as that often tends to water down what could be a great film. Fortunately, that was not the case with Krampus.

The film opens to a satirical, but sadly, not that exaggerated, Black Friday mob scene to the tune of "It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas" and continues at a upbeat pace, combining horror and comedy, until the credits roll. This film has a lot to say about the modern family's view of the Christmas season and doesn't try to sugar coat it. The people in this film have lost the aspect of enjoying the company of loved ones during the Holidays to a consumer-driven, resent-filled feeling of obligation to buy numerous gifts and put on perfect celebrations for family and friends. Krampus comes to town to remind everyone of what really matters this time of year.

I really cared about Max, the boy who finally gives up on having a happy holiday. He loves the season and tries to keep the magic alive, even though he knows he's too old to believe in Santa. His only friend is his Omi, who communicates with him in German. His cousins either tease and torture him or do not speak to him at all. It is after his cousins Jordan and Stevie humiliate him at dinner that he finally loses all hope and love for the Christmas season.

My next favorite character was Omi. She has a true affection for Max and does what she can to comfort him when his parents cannot or will not do so. She is wise and willing to sacrifice herself to protect her family.

The only other standout character was Tom, Max's father, who seems a little weak and tied to his job at the beginning of the film, but really comes through as the terror of Krampus begins to unfold. He never second guesses the need to protect his family and will stop at nothing to keep them safe - even the family members he doesn't like very much.

The rest of the characters weren't very likable and really had to work for me to want them to survive. Max's mother, Sarah, is the stereotypical yuppie perfectionist Mom that keeps her house perfect and serves gourmet dinners every night. Her sister, Linda, and brother-in-law, Howard are the exact opposite - beer guzzling, junk food loving, gun toting, football worshiping rednecks with a brood of misbehaving children. Howard favors his son, Howie, Jr., and seems to wish his daughters were also born boys.  Stevie and Jordan, Howard and Linda's older daughters, are bratty little jerks and I wanted so badly to reach through the screen and knock their heads together. Howie Jr. did nothing but sit around, eat and look dumb - a useless lump that Howard has placed on a pedestal. Rounding out the herd of children is Max's sister Beth, who isn't in the movie much, but is the only other decent child over the age of two. Lastly we have Aunt Dorothy, the bitter, alcohol swigging spinster, who appears just to be at the festivities to antagonize everyone. She does have some great lines and a moment of badassery, however.

The film was very well-acted and well-cast. Everyone fit their roles well, with standout performances by Krista Stadler as Omi and Conchata Ferrill as Aunt Dorothy. The entire cast managed to play the film straight, even in the more darkly comedic scenes, making them more believable despite the ridiculous level the film reached in places.

There isn't much for blood and gore, but that is made up for by a great creepy atmosphere and an assorted array of horrific looking villains. The horror begins during a blizzard with white-out conditions. The characters can barely see a foot in front of them and have to cling to each other when outside so no one gets lost in the snow. The vehicles on the road and neighboring houses are found abandoned and iced over, the rest of the population seeming to have disappeared overnight. There is no power in the home or phone service due to the storm, so the house is lit by the fire in the hearth and candles or flashlights. Lastly, more and more menacing-looking snowmen keep popping up in the yard in front of the house. This isolated, creepy atmosphere creates a tense backdrop for the initial chase sequence, adding a foreboding feeling to an already suspenseful scene.

Krampus may be the main antagonist, but he is far from alone in his reign of terror on Max's family. What were once harmless children's toys become twisted, vicious killers that attack, and in some cases, eat, members of the family. Gingerbread cookies are probably the most darkly comedic as they come to life and lure family members to their doom. Then there's the unseen monster under the snow that will gobble up a person in seconds and the demented looking elves that act as soldiers for Krampus himself.  Krampus is disturbing to look at, but ultimately doesn't get much screen time. Still, the scenes involving him are the most suspenseful and dark, all comedy lost in favor of the darker, horrific elements.

Then ending is left open to interpretation, which has caused confusion among viewers, but is something I liked. I enjoy when a film leaves me thinking after it ends, and Krampus succeeded in doing just that.

Overall, an enjoyable Christmas Horror-Comedy that manages to both bring the laughs and the suspense. Dark humor, an intimidating, strong central monster with multiple disturbing minions, a strong cast and a tense, foreboding atmosphere make for a fun, entertaining movie watching experience.

7/10

Moving Alan (2003)

Directed by: Christopher Shelton

Starring: Marley Shelton, Samantha Shelton, Misha Collins, Mark Pellegrino and Leslie Jordan

Genre: Independent, Comedy, Dark Comedy

Rated: Unrated

Emily Manning arrives at her estranged sister, Melissa’s home after an emergency phone call. Melissa’s husband is dead and she believes she’ll be blamed for killing him. Emily agrees to help Melissa hide the body, and the two embark on a journey of rediscovering their lost relationship and finding themselves.

This is definitely a strange film. I have watched it twice now, and I’m still not quite sure how I feel about it. I wanted to like the sisters, but I just couldn’t. Melissa is both incredibly selfish and helpless, and I can understand why Emily becomes so irritated with her. At the same time, Emily has been holding a grudge against Melissa for three years, and that is the reason the two haven’t spoken for so long. What is the grudge about? Melissa moving in on Alan when he was spending time with Emily and marrying him. The fact that Alan was abusive to Melissa, leaving her with a black eye and bruises up and down her back, doesn’t seem to ease this grudge Emily carries; not until Melissa’s neighbor tells her to let it go – and even then, she doesn’t let it go entirely. I was sitting there grumbling at the screen, “You were never even DATING Alan! Melissa’s moving in on him may have been a bitchy thing to do, but it’s not like you two were in a relationship! Get over it!”

It is obvious that Melissa doesn’t like the competition of her little sister when it comes to men. When the two women encounter Tony wandering in the desert, she becomes jealous when he clearly has eyes for Emily over her. Of course, this is after he gives himself a sexy makeover beside their broken down car, when both women see how attractive he actually is under the dreads and scraggly facial hair. 

Quite the Transformation, eh?

I'd say so...

Then Emily is willing to run off into the hills with him, despite the fact that he’s spouting soap opera lines like a lunatic. 

Although, to be fair, I’d let Misha Collins lead me off into the desert hills as well, no matter how crazy he was acting, so I really can’t judge her on that.

Especially if the results would be anything like this!

...Or This....

Along their journey, Melissa learns to toughen up while Emily learns to lighten up a little, but both of them are still overshadowed by Tony and Alan, whom we mostly see in flashbacks or as a dead body until the end of the film. Collins is absolutely hilarious as the crazy, drug addicted hobo living in the desert, who refuses to stay away from Emily, as he believes her to be his love interest in the soap opera he seems to be perpetually living in. How Pellegrino can captivate as a dead, naked man is unclear, but he does, and he is both sexy and creepy in the flashbacks, as well as a little pitiful in places. The Shelton sisters give okay performances, but if it weren’t for Collins and Pellegrino, the film wouldn’t be much worth watching.

The film is definitely funny, in a twisted way, and you can feel the frustration the sisters are feeling as they are trying to find a place to dump Alan’s body and keep being thwarted. The sisters have their comedic moments, especially Melissa with her slightly ditzy, almost childlike demeanor, but, as mentioned above, the real comic relief is Tony, as he is trapped inside his own head, probably high, and convinced he’s filming a soap opera. The people around him don’t know how to handle his crazy and their reactions to him are half the fun. When he snaps back to reality toward the end of the film, it is almost a little sad to see crazy Tony go, but sexy normal Tony is a welcome replacement.

Overall, this is a strange flick, and it took me a couple viewings to gather my feelings on it. The sisters the story centers around annoy me quite a bit, but the characters of Tony, Alan, and Arthur – Melissa’s neighbor- make up for the irritating squabbling between siblings. The Shelton sisters give okay performances, but Misha Collins steals the show, with Mark Pellegrino close behind. Honestly, without these two, the film would have been far less enjoyable.

5.5/10

For those who are interested, one of the few places you can find the entire film in English is here.

Home Sweet Home (1981)

AKA: "Slasher in the House" 

Directed by: Nettie Peña

Starring: Jake Steinfeld, Peter de Paula, Don Edmonds, Charles Hoyes, David Mielke, Leia Naron, Lisa Rodriguez, Collette Trygg, Sallee Young and Introducing Vinessa Shaw

Genre: Horror / Slasher / B-Movie

Rated: Not Rated

It's Thanksgiving and the Bradleys are planning a large get together with friends. The turkey is in the oven, the veggies on the stove, and the guests are arriving. Little do they know that an uninvited guest will be crashing the party - an escaped mental patient on PCP who plans to kill them one by one.

This flick is definitely one of the weaker entries in the slasher genre - especially from 1981, the peak of the "Golden Age" of slasher films. There is little if anything positive about this movie.

The acting is absolutely atrocious. Jake Steinfeld should stick to selling exercise equipment and stay out of the acting field. He is laughable as the killer, breathing heavy, grunting in an almost sexual manner and laughing maniacally. His performance was extremely over the top and did not match the serious tone of the movie. The rest of the cast was fairly wooden, with the exception of Peter de Paula as Mistake, who, while a bit annoying, was the only cast member who seemed to have an ounce of personality.

The characters were all fairly unlikable as they were so dull. I couldn't bring myself to really care about any of the characters except the little girl as she was innocent. The adults were all stiff and could only seem to think about getting in each other's pants, despite there being children in the house. Many viewers rant about Mistake being incredibly annoying, running around with his mime make up and electric guitar with portable amp - but he seemed to be the most developed character in the entire movie. Sure, he was irritating with his constant guitar playing and sure he liked to barge in on people about to have sex, but he was also great with Angel, his little sister, doing magic to make her smile and looking after her when the adults were ignoring her. It's also clear his father is a jerk who doesn't care about his son at all. I may be reading too much into a B-movie character, but I'd say Mistake's antics were an attempt to get attention - for a lot of kids even negative attention is better than no attention at all.

I began to take a liking to Jennifer and Scott toward the end of the movie, but they became pretty stupid once they realized the danger that lurked outside the home. They both swore to protect Angel, but both forget her in the house when they run outside, then Jennifer forgets her again while running from the killer ten minutes later. Without giving anything away, the ending proves Angel is the most intelligent character in the film.

The kills and gore leave something to be desired as well. This is a very low budget flick so many of the kills are lacking the blood and guts factor. The bloodiest kill is the old woman that the killer hits with his car at the beginning of the movie. The rest are bloodless where they shouldn't be, dull and unmemorable, with the exceptions of the death by electrocution and the character crushed under a car hood while attempting to steal a battery. There are plenty of low budget horror films that have done bloodless kills right and managed to maintain the horror and suspense factor, this flick is certainly not one of them.

The lighting is also very poor. Most of the scenes shot at night are very hard to see as they are almost completely dark. A few of the kills were shot like this, presumably to save on special effects. There are many moments in the final third of the movie where you have to listen to the dialogue to discern what is happening because you cannot see what is happening on the screen. 

Overall, this is a relatively tame, boring slasher flick with a laughable killer, watered down kills, unlikable characters and poor lighting. Unless you are a dedicated slasher fan, I recommend you skip this one.

2.5/10

Unfriended (2015)

A.K.A. Cybernatural

Directed by: Levan Gabriadze (as Leo Gabriadze)

Starring: Heather Sossaman, Courtney Halverson, Shelley Hennig, Moses Jacob Storm, Will Peltz, Renee Olstead and Jacob Wysocki

Genre: Horror, Thriller, Supernatural, Found Footage

Rated: R

It has been exactly one year since Laura Barns committed suicide; over a year since a humiliating video of her was released on the internet, leading to the constant bullying that drove her to such a drastic end. Now, six friends engaged in a video chat with each other are in for a night of terror as an anonymous caller joins their chat and begins tearing them apart. Secrets will be revealed, friends and lovers betrayed, and people will die as the anonymous user seeks the truth behind Laura's suicide.

While this isn't the greatest horror film in the world, I have to give it points for creativity. This film was shot entirely from the point of view of Blaire as we watch her computer screen. The viewer sees everything as Blaire sees it happening and I feel it puts the viewer in her position, feeling her tension, her fear, her helplessness. There is nothing she can do but watch as her friends are slowly picked off one by one.

I also liked that this film tried to be more than just a scary movie. It also tackled the issue of cyberbullying, something we as a society have been debating for the last few years now. I liked the message that if you are someone who would do and say such horrible things to another person over the internet that you should and will be punished. The bullies claim it was "only a joke" but, clearly, it was not a joke to Laura, who took their words very seriously.

While I found the movie tense and enjoyed the idea of it, the characters really brought it down in my opinion. Not a single character, including Laura, is very sympathetic, although Mitch and Ken seem a bit better than the rest. What is revealed about each of these characters as the film rolls on made me  hate the majority of them and I couldn't wait for them to be taken out.

There is very little to no gore, and what gore there is is shown in quick jump cuts so the audience barely sees anything at all. Each kill is accompanied by a loud boom in the score which creates a lame jump scare to accompany minimal gore and abbreviated death sequences. With the creativity that went into the format of the film, I would think that something would have been saved for the kill sequences, but they are relatively tame and a bit of a letdown from all the tension in the rest of the scenes.

Overall, this film is creative and interesting. The format is original and it has a good message against cyberbullying. This film definitely had potential, but unlikable characters, lame jump scares and a lack of gore weigh it down.

6/10

I Spit on Your Grave 2 (2013)

Directed by: Stephen R. Monroe

Starring: Jemma Dallender, Joe Absolom, Yavar Baharov, Aleksandar Aleksiev, and Mary Stockley

Genre: Horror, Slasher, Exploitation, Rape-Revenge

Rated: R

Katie has just moved to New York in hopes of beginning a modeling career. In need of new photos for her portfolio she answers an ad offering a free set for prospective models. However, answering this ad brings her to the attention of some very dangerous men, and soon Katie finds herself trapped in a nightmare of rape and torture – one that the perpetrators will soon regret inflicting upon her.

I’m not really certain why this sequel was made, except to cash in on the success of the remake and cult status of the original film. The filmmakers tried to take it in a different direction this time, tackling the human trafficking issue, but I feel it may have taken on more than it could handle.

I found the plot a lot harder to believe than that of the previous film. Katie is extremely naïve, and I found it foolish of her to think that such an ad could be entirely on the up-and-up. When is something ever given away for free without some kind of catch, especially a photo shoot that typically costs about $2,000? I understand that she’s a country girl, but that doesn’t mean she’s foolhardy enough to walk into something that is obviously shady. (Let me be clear, I am in NO WAY victim blaming. The character did NOT deserve or ask for what happened to her. I simply think she was written as far too naïve for a girl living in a slummy part of town, who is obviously smarter and more resourceful than that. If anything it’s an insult to her character and to the audience.)

The initial attack I did find believable. One of the men from the photo shoot, Georgy, appears at her apartment to drop off a flash drive containing the pictures. He later breaks into her apartment, ties her up, and brutally rapes her – a graphic and honest portrayal of the horrific act. What follows is a bit more far-fetched, as the super catches Georgy in the act, and is stabbed to death in his attempt to rescue Katie. Georgy then calls his brothers to rescue him and Katie is drugged and packed in a crate, only to wake up in Bulgaria, laying naked on a bare mattress in a basement. (How they got her to Bulgaria is anyone’s guess, and has been a topic of much debate on the imdb.com message boards.) There she is brutally raped and tortured by the brothers and one man who paid the brothers for a turn. (This was the point where the flimsy human-trafficking subplot comes in.) Once she has been beaten to near unconsciousness, she is once again drugged, packed into the box, and left for dead. These men underestimate Katie’s strength, and for that, they will pay with their lives.

As in both previous films, Katie comes back with a vengeance and the viewers get to watch these rapists and their conspirators get their just desserts. I did like how Katie twisted the tortures each man inflicted upon her back on them as she was taking her revenge. However, I found it hard to believe that she could manhandle these grown men as easily as she does, as she is more petite than her predecessors, and these men easily ranged from 170 to over 250 pounds. To drag them through the sewers like she does would take greater strength than she looks like she could possess, but maybe she’s running on pure adrenaline.

I didn’t find the performances as convincing as in the remake or the original. Jemma Dallender does well in the first hour of the film as the victim, but when playing the badass revenge seeking heroine of the last portion of the movie, I feel she falls short. Joe Absolom was probably the most convincing as Ivan, the ringleader of the group, and he’s a little scary, but mostly just comes off as an angry older brother trying to clean up another mess Georgy has made. Baharov (Georgy) is really only menacing in the initial rape scene in Katie’s apartment, and Aleksiev’s Nicolay is nothing more than an egotistical drug-addled douche bag.

These actors cannot take the entire blame for these characters not holding up; they were just working with what they had. Georgy appears to be written as almost sympathetic after the initial incident in Katie’s apartment. He comes off as a little mentally and intellectually troubled, and I wonder if he’s a half-hearted homage to Matthew from both the original and remake. It appears that Georgy thinks that he and Katie have some kind of connection, and tries to take care of her – not understanding why she rejects him. In a twisted way he almost becomes sympathetic, except, like Katie, the audience cannot forget that this entire scenario is his fault. Unlike Matthew, Georgy was not coerced or forced into participating, he initiated the attack. His brothers wouldn’t have gotten involved if it weren’t for him. He may be intellectually challenged, but he is also violent and dangerous.  

The character of Nicolay seemed only really good for one thing, and that was supplying the drugs to keep Katie under control. Honestly, he was just there to add to the rape count and further humiliate Katie, and his obnoxious character was not really necessary. I think the film would have worked better if Ivan had the drugs and Nicolay wasn’t even in the picture. His character seemed like an afterthought – like “Oh, we need a fourth man, because the original and remake had a group of four,” and he could have been left out entirely.

To be honest, the human trafficking angle didn’t work, as there was only one paying “customer,” so he could have been left out as well. His entrance into the film wasn’t handled very well, as him being a customer isn’t explicitly made clear. He is just suddenly in the room with Katie with no introduction. The torture he inflicts could have been performed by Ivan, (if it had to be in the film at all) and the human trafficking subplot could have been dropped, as it doesn’t work with this particular formula.

I think this film would have worked better if it the men had left Katie for dead after the apartment incident. That scene was plenty brutal enough; her ordeal did not have to be extended to being transported overseas for continued rape and torture. The human trafficking angle could have been dropped, and the film could have just followed the original formula. It may have been a rehashing of the previous films, but it would have worked better than the contrived plot the filmmakers went with.

The rape, humiliation and torture scenes are very graphic. There is full frontal nudity from Katie and Ivan, as well as genital mutilation performed on both characters. The deaths are relatively slow and seem excruciating, which these men absolutely deserve, but at the same time, they don’t seem like enough after the forty-five minutes to an hour of watching Katie suffer. She is tortured for days, and raped repeatedly, director Monroe obviously ditching his previous less-is-more angle, exposing her completely to her assailants and the audience. As mentioned above, the rape scenes could have been trimmed back to the apartment scene and still been effective.  

Overall, this was an unnecessary sequel that attempted to take on too much while sticking to the original formula. However, it is not terrible for the kind of film that it is, although after watching the heroine be tortured for the majority of the film, having all of the rapists’ deaths crammed into the last half-hour was a little unsatisfying. This film focuses more on shock value than characterization and plot. It will make you cringe, both for the acts committed against Katie, and those she commits against her attackers. Still, I think the film would have worked better if the excess characters and subplots were removed, and there was equal focus on the demise of the rapists as there was on Katie’s ordeal.  

5.5/10

Trailer: 

The Roommate (2011)

Directed by: Christian E. Christiansen

Starring: Leighton Meester, Minka Kelly, Cam Gigandet, Aly Michalka, Danneel Harris Ackles (as Danneel Harris), Frances Fisher and Billy Zane

Genre: horror, thriller, drama

Rated: PG-13

College freshman, Sara Matthews, seems to have everything going her way this year. Despite breaking up with her high school sweetheart, she seems to be getting everything she wants. She’s caught the eye of the cute drummer, Stephen, landed a coveted spot in a specific design class she wanted, gotten to party with her friends and seems to have a pretty cool, if a bit odd, roommate named Rebecca. What Sara doesn’t realize, however, is that Rebecca has developed a psychotic obsession with her, and will stop at nothing to keep their friendship alive.

Hello, Single White Female rip-off! We thought you were done after the 1990s ended, yet here you sit, watering down a classic thriller from its R-rated glory for this new generation of teenyboppers. It took me a long time to bring myself to watch this movie as I knew what it was from the trailer and just sighed at the lack of creativity coming out of Hollywood. I really didn’t want to see talented actresses like Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh replaced by the cream of the CW crop in what was sure to be a far less suspenseful film. It was playing on cable late last night, so, rather than go to bed, I opted to finally give it a watch. The result? About what I had expected.

Many plot points were lifted directly from the obvious source material with only slight changes made – such as the roomies having a pet they share that *SPOILER* eventually meets a bad end (In this film it is a kitten, in SWF it was a puppy); the crazy roommate copying a very personal aspect of the heroine’s appearance and eventually completely disguising herself as the heroine; the heroine dealing with unwanted sexual advances from a man in a position of authority; the heroine dealing with an ex that refuses to give up on their relationship. All of these similar plot devices and the absurdly obvious foreshadowing used early on cause the movie to be incredibly predictable.

The body count is lower than its predecessor, with Rebecca opting for assault and kidnapping over murder. There is little to no blood, even in scenes where there should be, either during the numerous assaults, or when Rebecca finally does resort to killing people. Her weapon is incredibly impractical too – I’m sorry, movie, you have not sold me on the idea that stabbing someone in the back with a 1 inch box cutter blade can fatally wound them.

The performances are okay at best, with Meester’s being the strongest. Leighton Meester is able to bring Rebecca to life and even make her somewhat sympathetic, while at the same time portraying her as crazy and a little creepy. She was the only interesting character, and the only one I felt anything for throughout the entire film. Her victim, Sara, is rather bland, and despite her social life and varying interests, I found her rather dull and boring. I couldn’t understand why Rebecca became so obsessed with Sara, as she could barely hold my interest. Honestly, I found the character of Irene (Harris-Ackles), Sara’s friend and mentor, to be far more interesting than Sara herself, and Irene had maybe ten minutes of total screen time. Billy Zane is charming as always, despite playing a lecherous professor – the man is far too charismatic and talented to be reserved for such a bit role in a flick like this. Cam Gigadet is somewhat charming as Stephen, but I was put off by his character when his first conversation with Sara involved him and his fellow frat brothers having to get women drunk to have sex with them. 

Aside from the performances, the film does have a few other positives going for it. Despite being predictable, it is able to generate some decent suspense in places – such as the shower sequence and when Sara enters Irene’s apartment toward the end of the film. I did like the atmosphere created by the dimmed lighting, dull set coloring, and soundtrack – it gave the film a tenser vibe. Lastly, I liked that the girl-on-girl kiss scene was done well, seductive without being exploitive, which is a rather rare thing these days.

Overall, this is yet another rip-off of the far superior Single White Female from 1992, only this time it’s based in college. The films are incredibly similar to the point where each action Rebecca makes is predictable. Some details have been altered from the original story, but not enough to cover the glaring inspiration. There are some positive aspects to this flick, but nothing to raise it above the mediocre copy cat that it is.

5/10

Bad Milo! (2013)

Directed by: Jacob Vaughan

Starring: Ken Marino, Gillian Jacobs, Patrick Warburton, Mary Kay Place and Peter Stormare

Genre: Horror, Comedy, Horror/Comedy

Rated: R

Duncan is a regular guy with a relatively normal life. He has his own house, a beautiful wife and a decent – if stressful job. However, Duncan also suffers from severe stomach pains and digestive issues. Upon examination, doctors find what is believed to be a polyp which can be removed with surgery. However, Duncan soon learns that this is no ordinary polyp that has set up shop in his intestines. He has a little monster living inside him that comes out to protect him when he is stressed, angry or upset, and often brutally murders the cause of his host’s distress. With the help of his therapist, Duncan realizes that the only way to stop this little monster is to bond with it, learn to control his emotions, and learn to stand up for himself.

While the premise seems silly, this film is more than just a bundle of laughs (which it is that too). On the surface it is a ridiculous flick about a man with a people-eating monster living in his butt, but it also delves into serious issues about stress levels and always being a yes-man. In this film, Duncan lets everyone walk all over him – his domineering mother and her much younger second husband, the fertility doctor his mother insists he needs to see, his boss and his new office mate are all people that treat Duncan poorly and never let him get a word in edgewise. He just sits back and takes it, resulting in Milo – the name he gives his butt monster- coming out to play.

I sympathize with Duncan’s character. I understand how stressful it can be to constantly try to please your boss, only to be given less than you deserve. I understand working a job that stresses you out so badly you find yourself in the bathroom a good part of the day. I also understand how letting anger build inside and never saying anything is never a good idea. While in the movie, when Duncan is stressed, upset or angry Milo comes out and rips someone apart, he is just a metaphor for the angry outburst a person finally has when they’ve let their anger simmer under the surface for far too long.

Ken Marino’s performance as Duncan definitely helps make him a sympathetic character. He plays Duncan as sweet and good-natured with a relatively calm demeanor considering the constant stress his boss throws at him. Patrick Warburton is perfect, as usual, as Duncan’s jerk of a boss – a character type he appears to have mastered. The last performance that really steals the show is Peter Stormare as Duncan’s therapist, Highsmith, who just happens to know everything about how to handle stress-induced butt monsters like Milo.

I found Milo himself to be adorable, despite the fact that he lives in Duncan’s butt. When Milo isn’t murdering the people that threaten Duncan, and he’s outside of Duncan’s body, the two cuddle and spend time together. When Milo was calm, I found myself wanting to cuddle him too. In those moments he looks so innocent and in need of nurturing. 

I mean, come on! Look at that face!

Just look at it. 

I liked the fact that Milo was brought to life entirely through practical effects – he is a puppet, not CGI, and a throwback to the good old days of horror.

The humor in is movie is often on the immature side, delving into the potty realm, but that is to be expected in a movie about a butt monster. There are a lot of poop jokes, and a scene where Milo latches onto a doctor’s face, pulling back inside Duncan so the doctor’s face is trapped between Duncan’s butt cheeks as Milo chews on it. There is also a lot of dark sexual humor relating to his mother’s sexcapades with her much younger second husband and just what they have stored in their basement.

The gore is relatively minimal considering how Milo tears his victims apart. In one particularly graphic scene, Milo bites off his victim’s penis, but you kind of feel like the guy deserved it. 

Honestly, I was rooting Milo on the whole time. I truly didn’t feel sorry for any of the victims – they all had it coming for being such horrible people and making Duncan’s life so miserable. With Milo offing these jerks, Duncan is able to find himself a happier existence.

Overall, this was a hilarious horror-comedy that doesn’t shy away from using bathroom humor to make a good point about personal health. As Milo is an embodiment of Duncan’s stress and anger, he is a part of Duncan, and Duncan must bond with and accept Milo in order to make peace with his inner turmoil. Leaving this stress and anger locked up inside can have serious repercussions on your personal health (digestive problems, for example) and leaving it unaddressed can lead to you saying or doing something drastic that you will regret – such as blowing up, ripping your smug boss a new one and possibly losing your job. While scenarios may not include protective butt monsters murdering those who stress you out or hurt you, they, like Milo, are the results of holding back stress and anger for far too long.

This was a great movie that made me laugh and think at the same time, which is not what I was expecting when I decided to watch a movie about a monster living in a man’s butt.

7/10

Trailer: