Director: Eric Falardeau
Starring: Kayden Rose, Roch-Denis Gagnon, Emile Beaudry
Certificate: 18
Running Time: 100 minutes
Synopsis: Discovering several bruises on her body after a night of rough sex, a young women is shocked as, rather than heal itself, her body begins rotting from the inside out. She faces a gory descent into a living death, as her putrifying body begins to literally fall off the bone.
The sub genre of body horror has always been contentious subject in the world of film. The likes of David Cronenberg and Brian Yuzna (RE-ANIMATOR, SOCIETY) have had varying success with the putrid disintegration or change in the human condition. Writer/director Eric Falardeau is obviously a fan as his stomach-churning debut THANATOMORPHOSE certainly recalls early Cronenberg, just as he was finding his filmmaking feet with cult titles RABID and THE BROOD. He’s not the only one with a few others on the way. Eric England’s similarly-themed CONTRACTED especially.
THANTOMORPHOSE is certainly not one you should watch after eating. In fact, you’ll probably find it’s more than just a loss of appetite as your sex life may even take a hit after viewing this little indie effort with cute pretty girl Mia finding a night of vigorous rumpy pumpy may have had a rancid adverse effect on her anatomy.
The film is a fairly simple shocker in terms of plot as we witness the decomposition of Mia’s stunning waif-like figure in all its gory glory. Impressively seeping vile puss and fluids better than a well greased teenage Doctor Who fan squeezing his face in front of a mirror before school. The tag line of the cover art pretty much sums up proceedings as we literally watch her rot from beauty to disgusting beast in the (un)comfort of her new apartment. Physically, emotionally and psychologically. All before she’s even had the chance to unpack. It’s disturbing to watch helplessly on, with her oafish and abusive boyfriend as much to blame as the diseased maggots crawling around and feasting on her flesh. Did his fondness for rough penetrative passion (that is obviously more than a just a touch of slap and tickle) really lead to her bodily breakdown or is something else gnawing away inside our poor protagonist?
I’d like to say it’s not all doom and gloom but sadly it is. There is no miracle cure and it’s a film that will be difficult to like. However, lead Kayden Rose carries the entire film on her own shoulders. Giving a committed and sympathetic performance, which much like her character is “lean” on the dialogue, while the haunting orchestral soundtrack to sure to up the queasiness. Rose is most definitely the star of this nauseating show, well, along with the revolting make-up effects that really do push boundaries of taste and decency… and endurance. Even the most staunch of genre fans are sure to struggle.
If you can stomach the film, you’ll appreciate its content of a person literally wasting away before our very eyes, albeit not an enjoyable experience. It is however, skilfully put together. Now, who’s for a full English fry up?
THANATOMORPHOSE is released on DVD from the 25th November via Monster Pictures.
