sirarthurstreebgreebling

Released as "Forest of Fear" in the U.K , this little known gem has an undeserved bad reputation. Our action starts with a group of hippies farming our friend "the killer weed" high up in the hills. The Feds are aware of the activities and employ the local crop duster (an alcoholic misogynist (a nice combination)) to go and spray a payload of weed killer on the fields. This is no ordinary weedo thou , its an untested souped up DDT varient that they unleash on the unsuspecting hippies. The crop is sprayed , the hippies run , covered in the dust and vomiting blood , the crop duster stoned on cheap booze gets out of his plane , covered in the dust. And pretty soon the dusters fat wife falls victim , a family in the mountains on a trip and the evil (and now bloodthirsty (as blood is the only thing that can quench their devilish thirst) hippies run amok ! So it has wobbly sets , some we can see the top of, hokey acting , but who cares its an interesting film and a more productive way of spending an afternoon than watching a "Jim Carey" film.

"Short Eyes" is an interesting film, it has many good points but at the end of the day it suffers from being viewed with the experience of 23 years of other films between the viewer and the production.

Even looking at it based on dramas of the time , it would have been dated then and a moral hodge podge of "hippy" sentiment without the real "streetwise" attitude that it needs and wanted to so much. It even has a dreadful prison "sing-a-long" (only included because Curtis Mayfield leads the scene (otherwise it would not have been shot !) , the song itself is so well produced , and without having a wild track added makes you laugh at the pretentiousness of the scene rather than take it seriously.

Having said that thou , it still has one or two scenes that shock , and I did not expect the ending that we got , and I did like it and would recommend it to everyone , but as long as they understand the time it was from , its a good film but time is not being kind to it.

This has to be one of the most brutal films I have seen , regardless of the more well know films along this theme (House by the Edge of The Park , Last House on the Left) , "Forced Entry" by its low production values , obtuse direction that is meant to leave you wondering what the hell went on , and the most bizzare inclusion of hardcore scenes , that were the most unplesant I have seen in years. It stuck out as a little know and heavily derided work. I dont think it could be classed as a "Adult Film" (as in pornography) because you would have to be one sick individual to get aroused watching this. That is where a lot of the contraversy comes from , and I was amazed that it was included in the film , and it would have been better without the hardcore rape scenes. We get the idea of what is going on , but having 8 mins of him forcing a woman to give him oral sex and then cutting her throat (and we do get to see the money shot) , had dubious overtones. But then again the subject matter is not one that should be glossed over , rape is an evil crime and I have never seen it put across so well , if brutally as in this film. So I was in two minds about it, I did like and and thought that it went to places that film makers are rarely brave enough to go , but then on the other hand I could see people taking it the wrong way. But you should make up your own mind and see it .