Cutting Moments

The final segment of the short story collection must be the most psychologically destructive short film I have ever witnessed...I still shudder thinking about it, and it has been 3 weeks since I pushed the DVD into the machine...This is definitely NOT for the faint-of-heart, nor should a child have the unpleasant opportunity of seeing it... The rest of the collection is dreary and unoriginal, and one wonders why they would place such a disturbing masterpiece amongst a pile of wasted junk...But, excluding those, the main event, aptly entitled Cutting Moments, should be witnessed by all afficionados of the horror genre and seems to have been lost in the worldwide DVD/VHS market...I discovered this work of genius in the thriller division of the local Look & Listen megastore, selling at a cheap price....

First thing's first. All of the stories in this classic anthology look like separate short films. Somebody put these together, and, knowing Douglas Buck's title segment was the most shocking, they saved the most effective one for last. I dig the whole anthology. "Crack Dog" is surreal, gory, and downright hilarious. "Don't Nag Me" is less outrageous, but no less clever and darkly funny. "Bowl of Oatmeal" is downright bizarre filmmaking, and (while I consider it the lesser of this collection) I enjoyed it also. "Principles of Karma" was really, really good. It has some good things to say about how unfair things can become for some truly good people when oppression spawns extremists who ruin their own revolution by paving another road to hell with good intentions. "Cutting Moments", the title segment itself, simply blew me away. I have never seen things this grotesque that were as powerfully dramatic as those on display in Douglas Buck's highly effective short film. The sadomasochistic gore and self-mutilation scenes have an inexplicable force behind them so strong that even the sickest scenes take on a feeling of harsh drama. "Cutting Moments" as an anthology is definitely a favorite of mine, a diverse collection of the perverse and, more often than not, hilarious. Still, BE PREPARED for the title segment. If it doesn't make you puke or totally depress the hell out of you (or both), something might be really wrong with you.

This compilation DVD was the most mixed batch of shorts possible. From the dull(Principles of Karma), to the obscure (Bowl of Oatmeal) and the random (Don't Nag me). There are only two out of the five shorts worth watching, for two entirely different reasons. Starting with 'CRACK DOG', the first short on the DVD, this has a running time of just over five minutes, but is pure genius. We were left in stitches, and hopefully this was the intent. Not essentially horror, it's just bizarre, and worth seeing for the poodle alone.

As for 'CUTTING MOMENTS', the title short, but last on the disc, it's the most disturbing thing I have ever seen. Not for the faint of heart. My girlfriend had to leave the room, and my friend and I were screaming at the television. You won't just flinch, you'll be holding your knees up to your chest and covering your eyes(amongst other things). It's pure and simple, SICK!

A great short film. Like many others on here I am fairly desensitised to "shock" films after watching absurd tripe like: August Underground Mordum, A Serbian Film (uncut version), Salo e.t.c and plenty of graphic footage off the internet.

This film is great on so many levels and is not overestimated like some morons on here would have you believe. They moan about it being low budget and crappy special effects and bad actors! Well surprise idiots! It is a low budget and very short film......Duh

The point I am trying to make is that even with the cheapo special effects this film still gets across its message hard and that just the thought of what she was doing was graphic enough for me. Another analogy I have is that a good game does not need good graphics for it to succeed or be enjoyed, the game play is what matters.

It starts off slow and boring for a reason and if you don't get why you really are a lost cause and should go back to watching your run of the mill "shock" films. The lack of dialogue just adds to the suspense and intensiveness of the build up.

All in all a great short film that I rate up there with the best "Horrors". It is funny that the most shocking gut wrenching films that I have ever seen are not horror or shock films but about real events that have happened. No film has ever moved me so emotionally or shocked me or disgusted me than "The Stoning of Soroya M" this is no horror film but the most "Horrific" film I have ever seen.

This film is extremely hard to review and to give a score for, but I'll try.

This is a short which clocks in at 24 minutes, and boy does it use every one of those minutes to full effect. The actor who played the wife was incredible in my mind, as she portray volumes her of character through simple gestures. Nothing much can be said about the other two actors, except the husband pulls one of the most horrid faces in the ending part of the film.

The gore isn't too intense, but two scenes towards the end will definitely stick out in your mind long after the viewing. They WILL make you flinch, and cry out in disgust, you can be assured off that.

So, I would recommend a watch. It certainly doesn't break any barriers, but it does give an unflinching portrayal of what tedious suburban living can possibly lead to.