The Human Centipede

Is it just me or was I the only person who thought this was a dark humor? To people who thought this was a shock movie I would have to disagree with you. The movie was straight to the point it didn't end with what you expected from the title of the movie. I thought the movie tried to portray a dark humor feel from it from how bizarre the acts were and how some the actors portrayed the characters. At times I laughed and at times felt bad for the people when the nasty scenes occurred. I also didn't find myself bored because of dragged out scenes or unnecessary talking. But in my opinion, I don't believe the movie was too gross and if you have a quite dark humor you will find this movie quite humorous.

This is a disturbingly twisted, absurd yet original movie ... and it is the first of three! Made on a miniscule budget, The Human Centipede gives its audience some truly horrid moments. Two young (and annoying) American girls are in Europe and headed to a club when their rental car blows a tire in the middle of nowhere after dark (in these types of horror films -- surprise, surprise!). Needing assistance, they seek out the nearest shelter ... which just happens to be inhabited by Dr. Crazy-Psycho-Sick-Brained-Bastard. Offering the girls water while he "calls" for help, he has secretly drugged them to get them where he wants them (them along with another unfortunate third).

From the VERY literal and non-misleading title of the movie ... one can pretty much assume what he wants them to become. This is one of the sickest movies I have probably ever come across, and yet ... it is watchable -- highly watchable (as one continually asks themselves WHAT is coming next?!).

German actor Dieter Laser plays the mad doctor (who was world-renowned for separating Siamese twins) very well as he is most-convincing as a warped genius (who has LOST it). He may play for some slight camp ... but in this movie its allowed to work. There are many, many, many plot holes (or craters) here and there throughout the movie, but they can be overlooked because something with a title-like-this is given some liberties.

While this film was titled specifically for the curious-minded, it is not for the feint of heart or queasy. Disturbingly twisted and absurd, The Human Centipede is not a film that one will quickly forget.

I finally got around to seeing this film and frankly I was not shocked; probably because I had read about its grossness far in advance. What I wasn't prepared for was the fact that a large part of the grossness was not actually shown, but rather spoken of and indirectly seen through bandage attachments. At some points it was very Hithcockian in the fear was instilled indirectly. Graphs showed how the surgery would be accomplished; only bits of the surgery were actually shown; the graphic defecation scene was verbalized and intimated. Very Hitchcock were the master of suspense a tad more mad. However, the scariest part of the film was Dieter Laser's performance. I can't recall ever seeing a mad scientist on film that projected madness and insanity as deeply as Mr. Laser……..Every time he was on screen you could feel your skin crawl with fear. Brilliant performance, mainly because it went to the edge of "over the top" but never actually got over the top. I've also read reviews which damned the actresses for not being "good actresses". A bunch of hooey for sure from those observers. I'd like to see them top the girls "tongue in cheek" performances. I never for a moment didn't see fear in their eyes, which btw is also another means of showing more fear than the actually surgery which was done while the cast was under anesthetics. In the beginning of the film you could feel the chemistry of the girls as they giggled about in their hotel room. A definite chemistry; one which would be needed as they got closer to each other at the Dr.'s house. Hats off to this film for sever reasons; suspense, fear and scare without an overload of blood and gore as in other films. Think of the Akitamura's job of convincing us that he was frightened, angry and scared in his native Japanese tongue, while again having tongue in cheek fears to contend with of his own character. Bottom line: An original, at the edge, horror film. Where does on go after that…..kudos to the cast for braving out a fully developed and overly imaginative film………..and to Mr. Six for following through. Can you imagine the sales pitch he had to prepare? Besides, our news media shows more graphic crap than this on their 24/7 newscasts (eg. There was more gore with Kadhafi killing, etc.)

Human Centipede, The (First Sequence) (2009)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A couple dumb American girls (Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie) are on a road trip in Germany when they head out to a party but suffer a flat tire. They decide to get out and walk and soon find themselves inside the home of Dr. Heiter (Dieter Laser) who drugs them and then takes them hostage. He captures another man and starts his dream operation of making a human centipede. There's a lot of hype going around about this film being the most shocking, disturbing and outrageous horror movie in decades but don't believe it. This isn't an exploitation movie so don't expect any gore, shocking violence or disgusting situations based around what actually takes place in the film. For the most part this is a pretty straight-forward film that goes by the "less is more" belief. Yes, what these three people go through is horrific but the film doesn't try to exploit the situation so those just looking for scenes of gross shocks are going to be disappointed. I think, for the most part, the film works because it's simply too original not to. The idea of putting three humans together (butt to mouth) to create a "dog" that can walk around with its master (the doctor) and take orders is a dark matter but it's interesting. The basic idea of this taking place is rather ridiculous and the film knows that and that's why we get some dark humor from time to time. This starts early on when the girls first get stranded as a perverted German man drives up to them talking dirty. The film also falls into some very stupid moments like who and why the girls end up at the house. They are on a road, which they could follow to get back to town or at least find someone yet they decide to walk through the woods where they're bound to get lost. Why would they be dumb enough to walk through the woods? Because if they had done the smart thing the movie would be over. As I said, this movie is rather tame in terms of violence and gore but I found this to be rather refreshing. The director constantly keeps us off guard because there are times when he throws things in that we wouldn't expect. Take for example the scene where the two police come to ask the doctor if he knows about the missing girls. In most movies the person would act innocent and make sure not to raise any suspicion. Not here as our man has a meltdown and makes sure that the police will come back. The visual site of the human centipede is actually pretty good and I give all three actors credit for making it work. I really didn't care for any of them in their "human" roles, especially the two girls, but as one long creature they work. Laser on the other hand is rather brilliant as the coldness he brings to the role really makes it work yet at the same time there's just something about him where you never really hate him. Strange that someone so evil could be so cold that it pretty much numbs you to the horror he's doing. It's certainly a very good performance but don't expect him to be welcomed at next year's Oscars. The movie isn't going to appeal to everyone but I do think the subject matter is going to keep people away who would probably find themselves into the movie more than they'd expect.

This movie is trash. It's a sick fetish-fueler for some weird cult to get off to. The plot is non-existent. If you want to know what this movie is about in a nutshell, here are some key plot points - mouth sewn to anuses, swallowing feces, and humans turned into slaves without dignity. People will say it's an original idea, but OF COURSE IT IS. It's never been done before because NO ONE HAS THOUGHT OF SOMETHING AS SICK AS THIS YET. After watching, I felt like I needed counseling, or something to make me forget the entire concept. On top of that, there is pathetic dialogue, acting, and directing. The movie literally ends without anything resolved and you just think "What was the point of this?" There's no greater idea, or hidden metaphors. The movie is about swallowing feces. DO NOT WATCH IT.