There is something to be said about controversial film making. For the most part, I enjoy it because I'm glad that somebody out there is willing to push the limits on an art form that is notoriously 'made to please a wide audience'. So I'll watch a lot of controversial films just because someone had the balls to make it. Which is one of the reasons I watched "Deadgirl" - the critical hype from the Horror fans was pretty astounding and yet I've read reviews from film goers that claimed this to be 'just an excuse for porn' or 'sick people would only like this movie'. So of course, I had to watch it.
To say this film is disturbing is an understatement. Honest to God, I was disturbed greatly by this film and it takes quite a bit to do that. It did though. But it was also riveting and one of the best made independent examinations of the human nature I've seen in film this year.
On the surface to those who can't get past the premise, this is a movie about two outcast kids whom while exploring an abandoned mental institution find a 'deadgirl' in a sealed room of the basement. One quickly becomes grotesquely obsessed with the girl while the other is repulsed and their friendship comes to breaking point as the obsessed teen starts to use her as a 'sex slave' for his amusement and the amusement of his other friends. Shit hits the fan and all comes to a head, when things start to unravel and get out of control as they discover their own dark and light sides of humanity. So if you have pretty strong morals, or are just easily disgusted to think that any human could do these things, then check that at the door otherwise you cannot handle this film.
Story wise, this is the most original and compelling zombie movie I've seen in a long time. This does to zombies what "Let The Right One In" did for vampires earlier this year...it turns it on its fucking head. Bravo...Sarmiento and Harel took an over cliche and overly poor sub-genre of Horror and made it socially relevant again. Bravo.
And all the other technical aspects of the film are superior. The directors come across as young Cronenbergians of the genre, the acting is decent and Mr. Obsessed spiral into the darkness is brilliant to watch, the special effects are superb, and the editing is only to match. As a fan of independent Horror, this is some of the best there is on a technical side.
So if there is one zombie film to see so far this year, I'm still going to have to see how "Zombieland" does, then I'm going to have to recommend this one. This is not a treat of the cinema though and it will have you sitting in a state of shock for most of the film as these people sink to all new lows, so if you have a weak stomach for gore or just dark subject matter you might want to skip it. I, for one, was both disgusted and completely riveted by "Deadgirl".
Written By Matt Reifschneider
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