Murder-Set-Pieces

The good: So much hate and disgust amongst reviews and comments. The quality of this film's gore is beautiful, so much so it's actually unrealistic. To truly cause trauma you must be more realistic, this film got so carried away (I've been a Paramedic for most my life, believe me nobody bleeds this much). The acting was sound, camera quality was great, lighting did justice in all aspects, clearly the "quality" of the film was excellent.

Where the film fell short There is literally no plot. In 5 sentences (or less) I could explain everything that the film depicts / offers. When a film goes through the effort to cross as many lines as this, and dares to approach certain taboos, a purpose is quite necessary. After an hour I found myself checking how much time was left becusae I was bored. (Though I am left wondering, did the director actually expose an infant to the graphic scenery/treatment that was depicted? Movie or not, those cries seemed quite authentic.) Also the music production team couldn't have done a worse job.

If you went through the trouble of seeking this out, as I did, you must be a fan of extreme horror. Which this film certainly is. If this isn't your style, go back to your Hollywood horror or another genre you can stomach. But really, with the cover artwork and plot as described, what did you expect?

6/10

You know you're in trouble when the DVD opens with the director proudly announcing that multiple production studios rejected his project and that members of both cast and crew were arrested several times because the explicit nature of the footage bordered on being illegal. There's only one thing worse than an untalented horror director, and that's an untalented horror director suffering from a gigantic ego. Even though the introduction is only a couple minutes long, you can clearly tell that Nick Palumbo worships himself and that he's a little bit too proud of his own work. Referring to "Murder-Set-Pieces" as simply a bad film would be too easy, because it actually doesn't even qualify as being a film. In order to make a film, and yes that even includes a mindless horror film, you require character drawings, continuity and something that at least remotely resembles a storyline. "M-S-P" features none of the above. Palumbo's precious life work is nothing more than an overlong compilation of vile and ultra-sadistic images that are edited together without the slightest attempt to build up a plot and/or tension. I'll be the first to admit that the violence, gore and raw sex easily rank among the most disgusting and sickest footage ever captured on film, but it's all very pointless and leading nowhere and thus it automatically loses all of its shocking impact. Ravishing young women are briefly introduced, usually whilst performing a strip-act, and only moments later they end up nailed against the walls of a torture chamber, screaming and begging for their lives in vain. The maniac responsible is a nameless German immigrant who lives in Las Vegas and severely suffers from sociopath tendencies. His granddaddy was a prominent Nazi (maybe even Hitler himself, as the script even fails to properly explain that) and apparently that's his only excuse for butchering and sexually abusing young girls. The whole thing simply doesn't make any sense. If he's a Nazi, then why doesn't he aim his anger at Jews or other religious groups? If he's simply a woman-hater, then why do the pointless childhood flashbacks exclusively revolve on him walking across a railroad? This photographer dude just is the dumbest, most random serial killer in the history of horror cinema and even though he leaves behind thousands of obvious clues at each crime scene, there doesn't seem to a single cop working in Las Vegas. There's a negligible 'sub plot' about the 10-year-old sister of one of the his victims investigating the habits of the killer herself, but the elaboration of this is totally implausible and actually just too stupid for words.

"Murder-Set-Pieces" desperately wants to be disturbing and controversial, but it never surpasses the quality level of infantile amateur rubbish due to the lack of logic and incompetent plotting. Whenever there isn't any filthy rape or torture going on, "M-S-P" is dreadfully boring and nearly impossible to sit through. Heck, even when there is filthy rape and torture going on it gets boring after a while. The make-up effects on the girl's bodies may be very graphic, but still most of the actual murders are committed off screen. That's just lame and even a bit hypocrite considering the self-assurance of the director. One thing I can't possibly deny is that Mr. Palumbo has a great taste in women and he's clearly also able to talk them into playing humiliating and degrading roles. Okay, most of them are first-time actresses and professional strippers, but still I think they imagined their film debuts to be slightly different. Lead performer Sven Garrett terribly overacts, especially when he shouts out his lines in German, and the guest appearances of veteran horror icons Gunnar Hansen and Tony Todd are hardly even worth mentioning. Hansen briefly appears as mechanic who has a Third Reich flag in his living room (wow, how courageous!) and, judging by his facial expressions, Todd didn't even seem to be very interested in playing the clerk of an adult bookstore. For the record, in the sequence at the bookstore, the German killer dude refers to Nick Palumbo's previous film "Nutbag" as a real snuff film. Yeah right, talk about gigantic egos. In short, "Murder-Set-Pieces" certainly isn't worthy of all the internet-hype and it honestly isn't half as shocking as it wants to be. This film is nothing more than the overactive imagination of a wannabe artist and real horror fans won't be the least bit impressed.

I've read the hype. I've anticipated checking it out for myself. I was even a little hopeful that the negative feedback about this flick (both here on IMDb and EVERYWHERE ELSE on the web) was just backlash. I guess I should have known.

The fact of the matter is, MURDER SET-PIECES is a giant steaming pile of crap. Unimaginative crap. Boring crap. Poorly acted crap. Unbelievabley BAD crap. An acquaintance of mine had ordered the unrated/original cut off the MSP website, and knowing that the R-rated Lions Gate version was about to drop, I asked to borrow his to check out this so-called "masterpiece of horror". What a joke. I'm so glad I haven't bothered to try and buy a copy myself. Here's a few takes on this gigantic misfire:

THE ACTING - horrid. The lead is a joke, a hulking boring one-dimensional lug who looks like he was dragged out of the gym - unwillingly - to mutter poor dialogue. When he slipped into German, I couldn't help but stifle laughter.

THE DIALOGUE - atrocious. Come on Nick, give us SOMETHING. I'll say this, the dialogue matches the acting-- flat and poorly done.

THE GORE - well you'd think that at least the film's saving grace would be the gore fx, right? WELLLLLL... sorry to say, no. In fact, there is VERY LITTLE GORE in this film. I have to think that the Lion's Gate cut version must have concentrated more on cutting-out nudity than gore. Sure, there's blood. Whoop-dee-doo. Guess what, I can go to a costume shop and get a gallon of fake blood too. So if you're anxious to see splats of blood hitting walls/floors, this movie is for you. If you actually want GORE EFFECTS, look elsewhere. The ToeTag team have done much better work in the A.Underground films (which I wasn't too keen on, but have to admit the FX were stunningly well conceived).

THE NUDITY - yeah, there's a great number of nekkid ladies in this film. If you're under 15 years old and don't have an internet connection, than this movie will really pop your corn. Otherwise... *yawn*. When there's NO CONTEXT, then naked bloody ladies just don't have any affect on the viewer (especially a seasoned horror fan). It's pointless... just like this whole film. Oh, speaking of pointless...

THE 9/11 FOOTAGE - tacky, tasteless and downright unnecessary. Just like this whole film.

It's downright hilarious that the director thinks he's made a masterpiece here. I suggest he start watching the horror-titles he constantly throws-around and take some lessons from REAL film-makers, because he just isn't anywhere CLOSE to their league or level of talent.

The only "disturbing!" thing about this film is the giant waste of money and resources this poor-excuse-for-a-horror-flick represents. Apparently the budget was approx. 2-million, and it was (as the director will quickly point-out) shot on 35mm. Big bloody deal. It still ends-up being a giant wasteful dump of a movie with no characterization, no plot, no FX, and no reason for existing. Some of the best horror-films were shot on a shoestring budget on 16mm. Go figure.

Avoid this at all costs.

I love horror movies and this was just terrible. It was ridiculous and an insult to the genre (and the audience). There weren't any good "jumpy" moments and the laughs we had were because of the things we whispered to each other because it was so bad. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't expecting this movie to change my life but I didn't think it would be awful- and it really was. I know reading a bad review of a horror movie wouldn't stop me from seeing one but after seeing this, I feel compelled to try. It was pretty bloody, but you didn't see a lot of the murders. There was a lot of badly implied violence and a lot of blood. I can't write a real critique about the movie because I don't really think of it as a real movie. The plot holes were enormous, the acting was terrible, blah blah, blah. I guess there is something to say about the fact that this managed to be a monotonous, boring slasher film. I have seen stupid slasher films- but not one that was so repetitive and yes- boring. I also agree with the other review that it was gross for it's own sake and shocking as well. Some of the things that I am sure are controversial (people murdered and images in his dreams)seem to just be there because they can be or to try and prove something. I don't think they worked at all and I was mad that he would use them in such a cheap way. Normally, I think any film that makes you feel anything this strongly has to have something redeeming in it. Not this one, it was 2 hours of my life completely wasted.

Here's my review of the "controversial" MURDER SET PIECES:

Story: beefy German-speaking serial killer murders tons of naked women in Las Vegas. For 90 minutes, we see various naked women getting killed by the serial killer. The women are tortured, sliced, diced, chainsawed, etc, to death.

That's it.

There's very little attempt to create suspense or understanding into the few characters populating this claustrophobic flick. It's all surface. No depth whatsoever. And any level of realism in MSP was thrown out of the window because the abysmal acting, certainly from all the bimbos. I mean, we are talking HG Lewis level of acting here.

The main actor, Sven Garrett, was OK but he's definitely not a seasoned pro. He looked more like he belonged in the WWE than a horror film. The lack of coaching or practice, which is standard in low budget films, was evident with Garrett. For instance, he was totally unconvincing as a photographer. I'm sure he never held a 35mm camera in his entire life before making the film. He should have spent a bit more time researching for his role than doing weights at the gym. Oddly enough though, the casting of Garrett is one of the few "original" aspects about MSP. Garrett is a somewhat good-looking, somewhat Neantherdal looking (depending on which angle he's shot from). Unlike MANIAC or DON'T GO IN THE HOUSE type of films, where the psycho is always homely, the director probably thought having a hunky serial killer would make sense due to the humongous amount of women murdered in MSP. His presence and the director's intent to show off his physique are the only things that contrast with the plethora of naked girls in the film. This includes the pointless scene with Garrett in a swimsuit and having visions of 9/11.

The serial killer's psychosis is confused and, like the rest of the movie, hopelessly muddled and badly written. Why does he kill all these women? Because is grandfather was a Nazi? In one scene, you see him chew on a corpse. Is he a cannibal? Is he a Neo-Nazi cannibal? He also has sex with his victims while he kills and tortures them. Does this mean he can't get it up without blood or violence? Is he a an impotent Neo-Nazi cannibal?

If it wasn't for the really bad acting on the women's part, the movie and the level of violence towards women seen in it would have been impossible to watch. The ONLY truly "disturbing" aspect of MSP is the unrelenting violence made towards women, which is numbing. The women all blend together and I couldn't tell who he was killing after a while. Just look at the film's credit to see the number of anonymously named women written for this flick: Basement Girl #2, Hooker #3, High Chair Girl #1, Tree Girl #2, Dildo Girl #1, etc. Because the violence made towards women is so unrelenting (I've lost count after 20 minutes into the movie...) but also because of what is left out of the landscape: we basically only see the beefy psycho killing naked, screaming women. We see almost nothing else. Are there any other people out there? Whatever happened to the scene with the medium/card reader seen in the trailer? This somewhat minimalist approach to the "story", more to do with the director's complete inability to come up with any other idea than killing naked women, accidentally creates the film's only distinctive quality, and indirectly, the film's unrelenting violence shown towards women became more and more disturbing as it went along. Disturbing because I suddenly realized that what I was watching was something clearly made by people with, hmmm, a *lot* of issues.

The direction is stilted and awkward. You can really see that the director was "influenced" by films like "Texas chainsaw Massacre" (the film starts with flashbulbs illuminating a corpse of a naked woman...) or HALLOWEEN, and a lot of nights spent at strip clubs trying to woo investors. Oddly enough, the look and direction of MSP reminded me more of THE BOOGEYMAN (1980), Ulli Lommel's horror opus. The filmmaker has no vision or understanding of what horror is. He just used clichéd aspects of horror movies (gore, naked girls, Nazies, chainsaws, naked girls, Halloween, etc) and tried to make something shocking. The director's inexperienced is obvious throughout the film and seeing him try to combine heavy subjects like serial killings, sex, violence and 9/11 was the only true entertaining aspect of MSP. Watching all these missteps was fascinating, to say the least, and the reason I gave this 3 stars instead of 1.

Here's a question I have for the director: Would the film have been more effective if, let's say, the women actually had kept their clothes on? Probably. Because the nudity is so gratuitous (and, in the end, unrealistic) that the only thing I got out of watching MSP is the number of "actresses" out there who are willing to take their clothes off for a few bucks for roles in a low-budget film; how many of them actually had sex with the producers; and how "interesting" the casting sessions must have been ("Can you scream but with your clothes off?"). Scenes of the Photographer taking pictures of two naked 'playmate' women against a tree were included only to titillate the male audience. It's eye candy, for sure, but in the end it's more of a disservice to the film's 'realism' than anything else.

MURDER SET PIECES suffers from the fact that it's too trashy to be seen as a serious "shocking" portrait of a killer and it's not fun enough to be seen as great exploitation.