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Subconscious Cruelty (2000)
Starring: Brea Asher, Ivaylo Founey, Eric Levasseur, Sophie
Lauziere, Anne-Marie Belley, Christopher Piggins, Eric Pettigrew, Martine
Viale, Nadia Simaani, Anna Berlyn, Nancy Simard, Mylene Giasson, Sameera Hanif,
Sean Spuruey, Scott Noonan, Mitch Davis
Plot: An anthology of stories all woven around violent
imagery and the aspects of life and death.
My Review and Thoughts:
If Salvador Dali had sex with Lucio Fulci and miraculous
birthed a love child, it would be Subconscious Cruelty.
A brutal disturbing visceral rape of the mind. I love it and was totally floored by its vivid nature. It bleeds a
nightmarish reality. A true insanity of images and actions. If you have not
seen this then that explanation is the best way to describe it, for if you
haven't seen it, it's hard to explain other than it being a living nightmare or
a vortex into an alternate labyrinth of the mind.
This plays with the senses. It plays with the mind and
emotions by showcasing images that are frankly disturbing and special-effects
and make up that is truly brilliant for this odd, weird, strange and
interesting nightmarish film.
Yep I now know what it feels like to drop acid.
I have seen the inner recesses of the mind, it is
Subconscious Cruelty. A brutal, disturbing masterpiece of visual imagery that
clouds all logical thinking. Behold if HELL really does exist then the gates
are open and the pits are burning brightly, for the eyes cannot un-see what has
been seen.
Truly one of the most ungodly original films that I have
ever seen and trust me when I say I have seen a whole hell of a lot of films
that are truly visceral. If you could see inside Charles Manson mind, then this
might be what's within it.
Your first segment is titled: Ovarian Eyeball.
Second Segment is titled: Human Larvae.
A man narrators. A voice over of strange, odd, confusing and
disturbing images. A man obsessed with his sister. A brother who lust after his
sister and fascinated with the un-born child within her. His wish is to create
the mockery of birth.
This film has an amazing soundtrack. The music creates this
brilliantly asinine picture into a crystal clear understanding of visual hell.
The music itself is a tour-de-force of musical mastery. A haunting mix of tunes
that is the equivalent of what fear would sound like. Teruhiko Suzuki original
music score is ear listening perfection. Also the additional songs by David
Kristian and Mike Cerminara are also brilliantly placed and weaved with the
story taking place. David Kristian did a stunning job on the sound department,
giving the film a pulse if you will. The sounds and music truly came to life in
this twisted orgy of imagery and violence.
I also have to say the special make up and effects are just
absolutely gross, visually stunning and brutally realistic. The effects are
magically weaved into makeup perfection. C.J Goldman aced it along with all the
others involved in the make-up department. So real and brutal.
Next Segment is titled: Rebirth.
A group of men and women having sex with the earth. Mother
Nature raped in all her glory. A fornication of earth.
Next segment is titled: Right Brain/Martyrdom
Next your average working class man working a 9-to-5 job
frustrated, isolated, does his work, goes home watches porn and masturbates and
then gets, might I add the ultimate head. This segment spirals into a
Christianity trip into the darkness of Jesus being mutilated, cannibalized and
raped.
I will warn you this is a very graphic film, very brutal.
Disturbing in the violent content and also in the explicit sexual content.
This weaves together a psychosexual depravity, insanity and
moments mixed with religious destruction, religious penetration and an ultimate
destruction of life.
Written, directed and edited by Karim Hussain. I have to say
in all honesty this was a trip of unexplored recesses of total destruction of
the mind and the nightmarish reality that leaves a lasting impression upon your
sub-conscience. He truly took a trip into something so beyond, so far out that
it leaves you breathless and repulsed and yet oddly satisfied with the ultimate
disturbing brutality of the film. It's so unique and dark and disgustingly
shocking that you can't help but watch. You can't help but try to figure out
just what the hell does it mean, for it truly is a trip into the looking glass,
why down into the rabbit hole, as you spiral into a different reality, the
reality of Subconscious Cruelty.
This is a total brutalization of the mind. The beauty of
this visceral movie is not to be looked as a logical reality. As the director
put it, "It's like a fever dream."
The movie makes a statement. It sends you into this void of
the mind, of the dreamlike state of the graphic violence, which really, yes
it's vivid, yes it's disgusting, yes it's visceral but that's not the main
point. It's a thinking movie. This is a movie that makes you think, makes you
use your mind. Just what is really happening or what is the statement? What is
the fever dream? I think each individual that sees this is going to take away
different things from it. Some are going to love it and some are going to
absolutely loathe it and say its trash and others like myself look at it from
an artistic point of view. I look at it as an underground, art-house
avant-garde statement of filming perfection. I absolutely loved this film. It's
not to be taken lightly. It's not for everyone. Most people would not even last
the first few minutes because of its nature, but if you sit through it and
entertain yourself into a thinking reality, then you can truly appreciate it.
It builds that ultimate unexplained dream state that says
something and it becomes a part of the viewer. You have to look at it from a
different point of view. This was made and written and directed by a
19-year-old and produced by 22 year-old and what they did to me is shockingly
stunning and amazingly honest. They made a true statement of emotions and a
deep hatred and an angry rant. 6 and a half years it took to finish this film
and I feel they created film brilliance.