5.3 | / 10 |
Users | 3.3 | |
Reviewer | 1.5 | |
Overall | 3.1 |
During a stopover in Germany in the middle of a carefree roadtrip through Europe, two girls from the US find themselves alone at night when their car breaks down in the woods. Searching for help at a nearby villa, they are wooed into the clutches of a deranged retired surgeon who explains his mad scientific vision to his captives’ utter horror. They are to be the subjects of his sick lifetime fantasy: to be the first to connect people, one to the next, via their gastric system, and in doing so bring to life 'the human centipede'.
Starring: Dieter Laser, Winter Williams, Ashlynn Yennie, Akihiro Kitamura, Peter BlankensteinHorror | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English, English SDH, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 1.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 1.5 |
The Human Centipede, the most recent attempt to up the ante of torture-porn extremity, was a moderate international success—if not in box office sales, at least in general awareness—solely because of its stomach-churning, internet-hype-building premise. I won’t belabor the gruesome details: a misanthropic German surgeon sews three living, terrified people together, mouth to anus on their hands and knees, to form one long digestive tract—a human centipede. If you’re repulsed by the idea of watching something so inherently disgusting, you can stop reading here. Beyond shock value, the movie has no artistic merit, no sociological subtext, no philosophical foundation or moral imperative. It is what it is—a gross-out test of endurance—and that’s all it is.
The German Tourism Board Presents: The Human Centipede
IFC brings The Human Centipede to Blu-ray with a 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer—if imdb.com is correct, upscaled from 720p source footage— that looks quite strong. The movie was shot on high definition digital video, and while the overall appearance is definitely that of a low budget horror production, the film's fans—and you know who you are—should be pleased by the clarity on display here. Aside from a few errant soft shots, most of the movie is clear and sharp, without ever verging into overly edgy territory. Close-ups are particularly resolved, letting us make out every nuance of the surgeon's pallid, sickly face and see the results of his grotesque handiwork—like the stitches that connect the, um, butt flaps of the Japanese tourist to the cheeks of the first hapless American ditz. There are moments of vivid color—blueish surgical scrubs, green grass, warm skin tones in certain scenes— but in general, the film's palette is intentionally bleak, with a gray/blue cast that dominates the last half of the film. Black levels are capably deep, and while contrast is good, there's little depth to the picture. The footage is very nearly noiseless, though, and beyond some blown highlights—typical when shooting on video—there are no real distractions.
Oddly enough, the film forgoes a full-on 5.1 surround sound treatment—pretty much the standard for contemporary productions—in favor of a somewhat limiting Linear PCM 2.0 track. I really don't get this choice. There are numerous scenes when a surround sound presentation would definitely benefit the film's mood. You can easily imagine rain pouring down all around during the storm, screams from the rears, and directional gunshots when the cops finally show up, but all of these sounds have been sequestered to the front channels, with little attempt at discernable separation. As a result, the track feels too compact and uninvolving, as if there's no room for individual sounds to breathe. This sometimes affects the dialogue, which can sound a bit low in the mix. (Although, there's not much talking going on in the last half of the film, if you catch my drift.) The track also seems slightly compressed dynamically—there is some low-end action due to thunder and the like, but without the .1 LFE channel, it never really rumbles. All of which is to say, The Human Centipede is no sonic showpiece, but it doesn't suffer any fatal audio-related errors either.
Audio Commentary with Director Tom Six
Six spends a lot of time in the pursuit of over-obviously pointing out what's going on onscreen, but it's at least interesting to hear his
thoughts on the more controversial aspects of the film.
Behind the Scenes (SD, 9:03)
Straight-up on-set footage, with no talking heads or commentary aside from a brief interview with Dieter Laser, who explains his character's
motivations.
Director Interview (SD, 5:17)
I kid you not, Tom Six says his inspiration for the film was seeing a child molester on television and joking to a friend that "they should stitch his
mouth to the ass of a big truck driver."
Casting Tapes (SD, 2:04)
If you thought the girls couldn't act in the film, wait until you see their casting tapes.
Foley Session (SD, 4:53)
A behind the scenes look at the making of the film's sound effects, which involves lots of raw meat.
Deleted Scene (SD, 1:31)
Yes, a single deleted scene, of the surgeon doing a silly dance after successfully creating his centipede.
Alternate Posters (1080p)
Click through five poster designs that are all, pretty much, variations on a theme.
Trailer (1080p, 2:23)
Basically, and not to be too crude, director Tom Six does to us what he does to his characters in The Human Centipede: he serves up a cinematic shit-sandwich and tries to make us swallow it. For most, the ass-to-mouth premise will engage a natural gag reflex, but there are others who, for reasons unknown, eat this torture-porn stuff up. I just don't see the point—it's far from filling. Gross-out enthusiasts will be pleased with IFC's Blu-ray release of the film, but all others should steer clear.
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