Fantasia 2011: MORITURIS Review
~Possible spoilers ahead~
"Morituris", directed by Raffaele Picchio, will always
be remembered as the first slasher film to cast a crew of gladiators to do its
choppings.
For a moment there the director makes us believe that the gladiators are the heroes of this slasher tale: saviours of the human kind. But, this feeling lasts only for a second or two, just until we catch a glimpse of what has been done to the poor little girl.
This deranged film belongs to the crazy section of
movie-goers and its mean spirit is dedicated to the demented souls (present
company included) who can appriciate a brutal and gut wrenching film, when they
stumble upon one.
After this intense prologue the film changes its rhythm and
tone. Suddenly we're strolling along the more familiar territory of the slasher
film. Three italian young men pick up two beautiful romanian women for a ride.
They really seem to enjoy each other's company, but then they start breaking
the genre rules, one by one. They drink alcohol, they snort cocaine and worst
of all: the women compliment the men about their good manners.
A female hitch-hiker should never whisper the following
words in the ears of three complete strangers: "You guys are so kind, unlike
all the other men who just try to get into our pants" (I'm paraphrasing here,
but you get the idea).
And indeed from this moment on "Morituris" turns into a
totally gruesome and provocative horror fantasy. This movie is so provocative
and unrelenting it made dozens of viewers fled from its world premiere at
Fantasia International Film Festival. And that, my friends, is no small feat.
This is a sign of true video-nasty.
Truth be told, there's a distinct moment in this film which makes the viewing experience almost unbarable: the long and detailed rape sequence.
P.S
The legendary Sergio Stivaletti (Demon, Opera) is
responsible for the great make up effects for this film.
