Nutbag

Nick Palumbo's debut film NUTBAG provides a peek inside the world of an of a serial killer. The film basically just follows the "killer" around while documenting both his crimes and his thought process.

The "killer" whom is played by Mack Hail (whom is also the director of SWITCH KILLER) is an excellent character. Mack Hail totally brings this guy to life and deserves MUCH credit for his performance. He really keeps your attention at ALL times and hopefully we'll see him resume the role in the rumored NUTBAG 2.

NUTBAG is a loving tribute to films such as MANIAC (without coming off like some fan-boy tribute film) and I think it's an excellent debut for Mr. Palumbo. Their are some areas that are lacking (mainly some of the obvious filler) but ANYTIME Mack Hail is on screen it's great stuff. The dialogue is fantastic, the locations are great..... The actress's are beautiful.... The story is very cool and the directing is top notch... Miles ahead of most no budget underground films.

Anyway...... As mentioned, it's a very solid debut film for Nick Palumbo! He's a director who's looking to get horror BACK to what it once was and I think NUTBAG is an excellent 1st step towards accomplishing that goal. He did a LOT of things right in this film and casting was probably his BEST move as Mack Hail REALLY gets the job done as the KILLER! The character is a total psycho but ya still can't help but root for him!

I viewed Nick Palumbo's "Nutbag" around 12 months after the much maligned "Murder-Set-Pieces". As a result, my appreciation of "Nutbag" is perhaps not as great as it would have been had I watched the two films the other way 'round.

"Nutbag" is in many ways a prototype of the excellent "Murder-Set-Pieces". Shot on a zero budget with video, "Nutbag" lacks the visual flair and pace of its successor, not to mention the audacious effects by the Toe Tag crew. This is not to say "Nutbag" is a bad film, that simply isn't the case. It's just missing the "x" factor that makes "M-S-P" such a powerful and taboo-shattering experience.

What "Nutbag" has going for it are some simple but impressive scenes, a riveting and convincing portrayal of the killer and a decent score.

Mack Hail is excellent as the lead role. His physical presence and self-assured movements are chilling on screen - this is a man who is believable as a cold-blooded killer. Hail portrays the anguish of his character brilliantly. In a scene where he starts to lose it within the claustrophobic quarters of his rented accommodation, you can see the character's sanity slipping. His monologues (where he talks to his spider, Heinrich) reveal an insight into how the Killer has turned out the way he has.

As with "M-S-P", Palumbo's film contains a cast of lovely actresses. He's also able to extract from some of his cast terrific and terrifying performances. There are members of the cast who truly give 100% here and it's not surprising that some wish to remain nameless. There is a real sense of vulnerability and gritty peril in this film.

One thing that interested me was the references to other movies in this film. Among the pornography adorning his walls, The Killer has memorabilia from "Texas Chainsaw Massacre", "The Burning" and "Psycho" is his home. Although not inspired by such characters, it's a sign that perhaps he uses them to justify his actions.

While not a masterpiece by any means, "Nutbag" shows that Nick Palumbo is a talented director. Only the budget lets him down in this film.

Worthy of a rental, "Nutbag" won't be to everybody's taste. It's a relatively short film and is quite episodic in nature. For those with an interest in zero-budget film-making, this is an interesting film and one that rises above its limitations.

I made the mistake of watching this at a friend's apt. His wife saw us watching it and therefore had a huge fight with my friend. This movie is about a wierdo in Vegas who wants to kill people for no reason. He hangs out at graveyards and gets mad when he sees people having a good time. He gets so mad that he acts out his rage by pulling grass. He always talks to himself and at one point he confides all his secrets to a stupid spider. There are many rape scenes and lots of nudity. The killer walks around vegas and just get's more and more upset. A majority of this movie was just of him talking. It was all shot on a cheap video camera. Worst movie I have ever seen.

Let me preface this review by stating that I am much more forgiving than most reviewers. I have a high tolerance for trash, and I often find myself enjoying movies that have been poorly reviewed by most. That being said, I can say without reservation that this is one of the worst movies I have seen in quite awhile...

Lately I have been off on a tangent exploring the dark world of shot-on-video horror/exploitation films. In the last week I have seen quite a few ('Scrapbook', 'August Mordum's Underground', 'Murder-Set-Pieces (Director's Cut), 'Devil's Bloody Plaything'). Of all of the above mentioned movies (and others), this was by far the worst, and least entertaining of the lot...

Perhaps it was the unconvincing Mack Hail as the lead. He just didn't work for me. He appeared empty and vacant. He didn't have the fire and desire necessary to portray a believable on screen serial killer. This film seemed like a grade-Z, poorly acted remake of 'Maniac'. Mack Hail and Joe Spinell are not even in the same universe....

The killings did not really work for me either. The gore effects were decent, but there just wasn't any fire or emotion behind Mack Hail's murderings. He seemed to be going through the motions. There just wasn't very much emotion behind his physical actions...

In addition, there were some going-ons in this movie (not a film) that made absolutely no sense. For example, you see him approaching a very large African-American male and woman at the park. The camera cuts away, and then you see both of them bound and in the Nutbag's hotel room. OK, how did our serial killer manage to abduct a strong full-grown man and a woman by himself? This makes no sense at all as I do not recall Hail having any superhuman powers...

The voice-over internal dialogue provided by Hail got on my nerves early and often. It sounded as if he was reading (and not very well) from an angry 12 year old's diary. His readings contained zero emotion and not an inkling of believability. Perhaps this movie would've been better if these infernal narratives has been omitted...

All in all, there is no way I can recommend this movie. The most important criteria I consider when offering a recommendation is whether or not I was entertained. In the case of 'Nutbag' I was most definitely not entertained. It was quite possibly the most boring slasher movie I have ever witnessed. I can think of many other serial killer films (yes, actual films) that are much better. Off the top of my head,'Maniac', 'Schramm', 'Man Bites Dog', and 'Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer'). Hell, even 'New York Ripper'was better than this tripe. Do yourself a favor and seek out another DVD to fulfill your cinematic bloodlust. If curiosity compels you to see this little mess, please rent before you buy...

This movie should have been called "NIGHT OF THE SLOPE WALKER." Mack Hail plays the SLOPE WALKER, and he is good at walking at a slope! Nobody walks at a slope like Mack Hail. If you notice when you watch this movie, Mack Hail is walking at a slope and that adds to the creepiness of his character. I really liked his friend, the spider. The Slope Walker confides all his secrets to the spider. That spider was a good actor! I liked the way he laid out his silk while the Slope Walker told him secrets. I have a friend who tells all his secrets to his pet cat, Charlie. He even has a picture of himself whispering in to Charlie's ear, and he put a little cartoon dialogue bubble with words in it.

The Slope Walker is nice to the spider, who survives the whole movie. But he is not nice to other people and to grass! He kills lots of people and when he gets mad, he throws himself on the ground and tears out the grass. That's pretty scary, to think somebody is walking around here in Vegas at a sloped angle and killing people. Now, when I walk around on the strip and everything, I always keep my eye out for whoever is not walking straight up and down. If people are walking tilted over at an angle, I am careful to avoid them. If they are crazy, I will avoid them like crazy! I don't want to get "sloped," if you know what I mean.

Slope for slope, this movie delivered the goods! I hope they make a sequal to this movie. They could call it, "THE SLOPES OF FIRE." Or maybe, they could combine Mack Hail's character with something like the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and call it, "SLOPAZOIDS FROM THE DEEP." And if they could get Vin Diesel to co-star in it with Mack, they could call it, "THE SLOPEAROUND GUYS." That would be cool! Vin Diesel could walk at a slope! Or, they could put a sci-fi edge to the movie and call it, "THE SLOPE FROM OUTERSPACE." This movie concept has so many possibilities!

If you like movies about murders, people who get angry, naked women, spiders, knives, and slopes, then you will like this movie! All five of my thumbs are up!