Victim

It is a low budget, badly acted, poorly executed movie. The plot is good copied somewhat from a french novel , which in 2011 adapted by Great spanish director Pedro Almodovar. Watch The Skin I live in if you have not seen. If you have already seen it, then don't watch it because there is nothing new here.

The entire plot is ridiculous and funny. It's a good movie to watch if you have a sense of humor and like the horror genre. Anybody else will probably think it's trash.

A young man (Stephen Weigand) finds himself held captive by a mysterious doctor (Bob Bancroft) and his brutish henchman (Brendan Kelly).

The opening scene uses the POV camera that, frankly, never works in any film and comes across just as annoying here. Luckily, it is brief. And even more luckily, it never really comes back. (The opening is referenced later, but it is less obnoxious.)

This film has aspects of "Human Centipede", or really any mad scientist movie. Like "Centipede", the doctor has an unwilling victim whom he wishes to transform into something superior. I would dare say the centipede is more disturbing, but the transformation here is more drastic. (I cannot actually say what it is without giving away the plot, but I will say once you catch on the film gets a lot more interesting.)

Overall, I give this a modest recommendation. Certainly not among the best films out there, but it is well produced and the acting is above average (the mad doctor is spot on). If you have other things to see, see them first... but this is better than you might expect.

This movie was subpar. It started off with a seemingly (at least possibly) interesting plot and ended up with a dull dud. I won't spoil it for anyone who wants to see it (honestly, don't waste your time), but the ending of the movie wrecked any climax it was trying to build. There is no satisfaction in the way the plot line plays out or even in the cinematic effect the film is trying to create. The movie was pseudo-engaging until the climax (aka - last 10 minutes) which was, frankly, trite and made me want to punch myself in the face for watching. The "shock" ending was predictable. I absolutely don't enjoy films like "Hostel" as I think they're a waste of time and brain energy, and this falls in that category - although much less gory. If you want something that engages your brain, look elsewhere.

...the content is pretty horrific, but you can't look away. I knew very little about this film going into it, and I think that's the best way to approach it. So I won't tell you too many details. It's better if you find it all out for yourself.

I will tell you that I don't consider this to be a "good film" because I necessarily enjoyed watching it. In fact, it was almost painful. "Victim" is probably one of the most vicious films I've ever seen. But there's something about it, so much purpose in its cruelty, that I believe it was well worth watching.

I will also tell you who this movie isn't for. First off, gore-hounds might be disappointed with it unless they're armed with the right information going in: There is definite violence, but this isn't Hostel. Although, I have to say I was surprised (impressed, actually) that a movie could be this dark and sadistic without excessive gore. So people who are into dark films in general will probably get a kick out of it. On that same note, this film is not for the faint of heart. It throws some pretty hefty stuff at you.

All that being said, like I mentioned previously, this is a film that is disturbing, but effective. And I believe it is most effective if you don't know the details going in--but prepare yourself for something quite a bit out of the ordinary. My vote is: take a chance with this movie. If you don't like it, you don't have to complete it. But especially for those of us who love a good detour into the dark side of Psychology, "Victim" is a well-made (and very thought-provoking) way to spend a couple hours.