Sex and Slashings

[heslopian]

Torture porn for me is below the lowest common demoninator. It's an insult to the lowest common demoninator. It makes the lowest common demoninator look like Ingmar Bergman's Cries and Whispers. Even the old splatter movies like Blood Feast had a certain camp joy to the proceedings. But stuff like Hostel Parts 1 and 2 and the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake are just plotless, artless excuses for scene after scene after depressing bloody scene of teenagers being ripped apart. They're not scary because the stories have no connection to reality and use only the most basic formula elements to propel them from the opening shot to the gore. And they're not entertaining (unless you're a psychopath or someone who's never seen a movie before) for much the same reasons. Here's an interesting discussion of slasher films from the eighties between famed Chicago film critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. The quality's shit but you should be able to see and hear it okay:
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Anyway, sorry for the rant Addy Thanks for the kind words and feedback.