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By
NICK ZEGARAC
I am not a cynic, but every
once in a while I go to the movies with the
expectation that I'll be disappointed. On that
account, Gabriel Bartalos' "Skinned Deep" (2004)
certainly does not disappoint. The film has been
described as "the most original and surreal horror
film you'll ever see." I have just one question
for that critic -- was he on drugs at the hospital
when he wrote that review? A schlock-ish rehash of
everything you've seen before in a slasher movie
-- only not necessarily in this order -- the
experience of watching lead, Forrest J. Ackerman
(whose name is never given) and his motley crew of
co-stars, (Eric Bennett, Karoline Brandt, Linda
Weinrib) have their intestines turned into
coleslaw by the demonic local yokel -- who, no
kidding, just happens to be a serial killer --
treads familiar territory in very familiar ways.
What is particularly impressive about this film --
if the word impressive should at all be used -- is
its special effects. Not surprising, since
Bartalos was an effects man before turning
director, everything in his film from severed
limbs to exploding heads get the A-list treatment.
Nothing in the vein of mass murder ever looks fake
or contrived, though both words amply describe
everything else in the film, from its utterly
painful acting to the narrative thread of
circumstances that John Q. Public and sons into a
raw sushi patter at Denny's. Note to Bartalos:
grotesqueness alone does not a horror film make…
oh, and don't quit your day job.
Hart Sharp Video, which, I must confess, I've
never heard of before, have done an
uncharacteristically bad job of transferring
"Skinned Deep" to DVD. Colors are muddy and bleed
into one another. Fine detail is completely lost.
Pixelization breaks up background information
throughout, and there's more than a subtle hint of
edge enhancement. Contrast levels seem much too
pasty for day scene, and incredibly too pale for
night. Blacks are more tonal gray, with a
disturbing line of video noise that will easily be
detected on larger monitors, about two thirds of
the way down the screen. Overall, the image
quality has the consistency of a television
broadcast during a windstorm. The audio is stereo,
but it's not anything to write home about -- more
like something you'd rather cover your ears to.
This is a bare bones DVD release, and if I'm any
judge of film art, you won't be seeing a deluxe
four disc special edition any time soon. |
