Little Deaths

One of the directors described it as a deliberate attempt to "cross the line" in horror and make you say, "What was that!?" In that respect, Little Deaths (2011) does what was intended. This trio of short films, born in the UK, is pretty strange at times. While the underlying theme is vague, as one of the directors commented as well, each of these unique films features dark, bizarre, and sexual fantasies. Now the shorts will be reviewed individually:***SPOILERS***The anthology opens with House & Home, which writer/director Sean Hogan said was an attack on torture porn, which literally occurs in this short. It's unclear exactly what the creatures were supposed to be. In one scene, one of these creatures growls and prowls like a feline, but shortly after is more canine-like with its guttural sounds. Honestly, it would have been more horrific if these creatures, or scavengers as described by Hogan, simply maintained their human appearance when carnivorous acts ensued. Nevertheless, House & Home made the most sense and, arguably, was the best of the three.Next, Mutant Tool was extremely grotesque in featuring a giant, grafted penis perpetually oozing pails of fluid. This short provided the most shocks, but made the least sense. But hey, just say it's based on a Nazi experiment, and then it doesn't have to make much sense. The cinematography--perhaps due to awesome sets, costumes, and special effects makeup--in Mutant Tool was outstanding in comparison to the other two films. The acting was strong also, but honestly, acting was never a problem in this anthology--just the story telling.Closing the anthology, Bitch comes on the scene--a story about a very odd couple. It's never clear just who the bitch is, and perhaps that was intended. The word actually has different meanings when applied to males or females and, of course, another meaning when dogs are referenced. Perhaps the term was meant to be manifest in all its forms in this short. But the bigger question is what the hell happened in the end? Was the beef stew an aphrodisiac, was it meant to provoke feasting, or both? And, can love really make someone as stupid as the main bloke in Bitch? How pathetic!***END OF SPOILERS***Little Deaths is an anthology worth seeing. And be aware, the coverart depicting a females back that's been punctured with several sharp shards is not something that will be seen on screen. Nevertheless, there are much more disturbing images. Image Entertainment's 2011 release of Little Deaths on DVD contains widescreen formatting (1.85:1), subtitles, great audio/video quality, an excellent featurette about making the films, and the trailer, which should NOT be watched prior to seeing the movie. Stay away from reviews and synopses too for the ultimate, blank-slate experience.If Little Deaths was enjoyable, these horror anthologies are in the same vein:German Angst (2015)México Barbaro (2015)The Theatre Bizarre (2012)

More about sick sexual themes than horror or death, this anthology presents a perverse trio of unlinked shorts that I hesitate to recommend to anyone other than fans of the torture-porn or Tokyo Gore Shock subgenres. It's just for people who want to be shocked by the appalling.The French word for orgasm translates into "little death," clearly the etymology of this title.This British anthology is about the most perverted I've seen. Not for gore, torture or murderous means, but such from the darkest and most sexually depraved recesses of the fragmented mind. These tales feature rape, masturbation, psychological abuse and BDSM...and images of full frontal nudity (male and female), urination, mutant genitals, vaginal bleeding, ejaculation and semen, with many of these themes and elements present in more than one of the shorts. The "horror" themes seem minor; rarely supernatural and serving more to "end" the short stories instead or drive them. This is clearly an inappropriate film which should not be taken lightly, not be presented to minors (or even most adults), or really recommended at all lest you be someone with cinematic tastes favoring shocking extremes.Unlike more thoughtful anthologies, the three short films of this movie are not linked by an over-arching concept or storyteller. They are simply presented one after another, each of them with shock-value-driven themes and lousy endings. Below, I present a synopsis and critique of each short film.House and Home-- Richard and Victoria Gull are an upper-middle class British couple that appear equal parts caring and cold. Posing as religious do-gooders they lure homeless people into their homes for a kind meal, a bath and a night in a warm bed. After luring a young woman (intriguingly named Sorrow) to their home for dinner, they drug her and take turns doing, ummmm, things to her. MY CALL: Sure, it opens and endures with a solid, sick but well-done, shock-schlock cinema appeal. But it's ending degenerates into something overly simplistic as if the writers, or perhaps the director, got lazy and dumped some gaudy scene on us that relied on gore as a crutch rather than a cinematic device. [B-/C+]Mutant Tool-- Jen is an ex-prostitute, a drug dealer and an addict looking to kick her bad habits--all of them. She seeks medical assistance from a shady doctor who prescribes a new, very promising drug that has its share of side effects including hallucinations and increased "sexuality." However, the doctor is more concerned with experimenting on his patients than helping them. MY CALL: After a quick, cheap opening shock, this story really doesn't go anywhere until the very end, when an inanely ridiculous twist ending is shoved in our face. Depending on your taste, you might even get a laugh out of it. [C-]B!+@#--Pete and Claire share an interesting relationship. Claire is a psychologically abusive domme who weaponizes her sexuality against Pete. Claire also has an irrational fear of dogs even though she has Pete behave, live and "dress" as a dog for her domination pleasure. MY CALL: The ending is quite sick and was likely intended to represent some manner of poetic justice. I would suggest that, outside of a little shock value, this venture failed while still being the best ending of the anthology's shorts. However, a fine job was done setting a depressed mood (from Pete's perspective) using blue-tone soft lighting and gritty film. Their relationship was depicted very effectively and, beyond the aim of this film, told an interesting story on its own. [C+]

Recurring themes in the three shorts are abusive female characters, bad relationships, and detestable characters. While this approach is unique in comparison to the cliched male abuser, it doesn't save this anthology. The first short was watchable and had some redeemable qualities. It had a somewhat satisfying plot twist, though predictable and poorly executed. The second one was just a mess in every sense of the term; sheer absurdity. The third had some plausible relationship dynamics mixed with ridiculous moments. The tie in (dog fear) to the conclusion was again a unique element in this show, but the manner of presentation made it rather unsatisfying. The montage was dragged out so badly (unnecessary shot after shot) that it made this short film feel like an eternity. The music was an ear rattling, poorly mixed cacophony (reminded me of "Manos: Hands of Fate"). Followed by the most gratuitous, prolonged, and annoying screaming I have ever heard. This one wasn't just aurally hideous, it was visually so as well. Plagued with a dull and depressing blue hue that looked like a filter on a Windows 98 video editor.The acting and some of the aforementioned positive elements saved this from a 1-star, but this was undoubtedly a bad show.

This single disc is difficult to review without giving too much away as it features three 25 minute short films, each entirely individual in content.House and home -Husband and wife [Richard and Lee] have a bizarre relationship in which they get their jollies by taking in homeless girls for the night so they can indulge their fantasies. The result is a little obvious but the acting is good especially that of the victim. ***Mutant tool -Drug dealer and part-time prostitute Jen gets mugged after selling her supply but its where that supply comes from that forms the core of the story as its all mixed up with psychologists using old Nazi research. **Bitch Claire -has a phobia of dogs and is in a dysfunctional fetish relationship with her s&m boyfriend. This is the most sexually explicit and would have been called a sexploitation featurette in the 70’s. Quite slow to start and seemingly going nowhere this builds to an obvious climax, and that’s the point, its seeing the build up you know is coming that makes this eventually the best film of all. Terrifyingly disturbed. ****None of the films are particularly outstanding, but they are watchable in an adult ‘Tales of the Unexpected’ kind of way. Mostly the scares are low key with your imagination filling in the gaps and although there is gore and some horror its not a slasher or blood spatter shocker.The disc has limited features, film selection, theatrical trailer, Directors commentary and 5 trailers. Not everyone's cup of tea but there are a few ideas floating around in this that provide interest. If you want something different, try it, but the cover is completely misleading. Try and get it for under a fiver [including postage] and you won’t be disappointed

Not for the sexually squeamish.

Good

Good

Great purchase & Delivery