A Serbian Film (2010) Dir: Srdjan Spasojevic

I think most people familiar with me, either through website, blog or real life, would safely assume that I am not easily rattled by controversial works of art, be it visual or aural. I can sit through the most stomach-churning gore the horror meisters have to offer with nerry a flinch, can listen to NSBM bands banging out their anti-Zionist, anti-Semitic nonsense without so much as a pause, can cast a curious eye over Marcus Harvey's remarkable piece, Myra, untainted by the vitriolic opinions of the naysayers.
So it was, with a confidence borne of experience, that I settled in for A Serbian Film, described variously as 'odious pornography' 'tragic, sickening, disturbing' and pure shock/novelty/boundary-pushing.'
Yeah, yeah, thought I.
Heard it all before.
Wasn't The Human Centipede meant to be so disgusting as to be barely watchable?
Well, watched that, found it be a surprisingly campy slice of nastiness.
What about Cronenberg's Crash from a few years back? Sickening, apparently. I rather liked it!
So the credits rolled and, as clichéd as it may sound, nothing could have prepared me for what was to follow.
The plot: Milos, a faded porn star, is reluctantly hired by a reclusive, yet highly regarded porn director. Not really sure what he is being hired for, but eager for the money, Milos is driven to the location for his scenes and is disturbed by the imagery being used: un-simulated violence, suggestions of rape, children in scenes.
Understandably Milos wants out, and attempts to flee, but is drugged and awakens covered in blood.
The director reveals that he has been 'unaware' for three days, during which time footage has been shot of Milos engaging in all manner of deviant acts; beating a woman to death as he is penetrating her; being anally raped, all carried out in a drug-infused rage.
In a miasma of confusion and revulsion, Milos pieces together the clues, filling in the missing days, leading to a finale so mind-bendingly shocking it genuinely left me reeling.
As powerful as cinema gets, this is profoundly disturbing and affecting.
Though the subject matter is repugnant, and some of the material put on screen veering into the obscene - a newborn baby being raped, a father raping his own young son, a mid-coital decapitation - this is nevertheless an important movie and, as promised, is truly boundary pushing.
Fans of extreme cinema only need apply, believe me, but those with the stomach will have to wait a long time for a movie as challenging as this.
Wow.

5 out of 5

Machete (2010) Dir: Ethan Maniquis, Robert Rodriguez

Robert Rodriguez's full length version of the Grindhouse trailer by the same name is as testosterone laden as the first day on set of Big Boys in Boots 4.
Danny Trujo plays the titular character, an ex-federale (Mexican FBI, I presume) turned mercenary, hired by a crime organisation to assassinate a politician running for office on the back of an anti-immigration campaign. Betrayed by those that hired him, Machete goes on a violent and bloody killing spree, intent on sinking his vicious blade into the belly of the man at the top.
With a host of semi-cameo appearances, including Don Johnson, Steven Seagal and the woeful Robert de Niro - seriously, this is one of the worst performances I have ever seen from a 'proper' actor - this is something of a fanboys wet dream, Rodriguez clearly pandering to the macho inclinations of his core audience.
With a comic tone, set pretty early on as Machete guts someone then uses the entrails to swing from a window to the storey below, this is also pretty damn violent, gaining the movie an 18 certificate here in the UK, something it is increasingly hard for a film to be labeled with.
Blood gushes, throats are slashed, men are disemboweled, eyes are blasted from their sockets, but it's all done with tongue very firmly in cheek.
If you are looking for a 'real' movie, I'd steer well clear of this, but if excessive gore to the point of black comedy floats your boat, check it out.