BY ALEX DAVIS
Japan, 81 mins
First up, I’ll just say don’t feel a need to go scrambling back through the old reviews for the Film Gutter take on Red Room. I’ve not seen it yet, but I figured it wouldn’t do a great deal of harm to watch this loosely-linked duology in reverse order. Besides, watching things in order is overrated anyway… Red Room 2 was one of a swathe of splatter films to be emerging from Japan and the surrounds in the late 90s/early 200s, and to be honest these balls-to-the-wall gore films are not always my bag. But the concept of Red Room had always interested me immensely as a sort of Saw-esque concept, so I thought it was about time to get stuck in and check at least one of these films out. The story centres on four characters thrust into the ‘King Game’ – there are four cards to draw, one of which is a king, and the player with the king in their hand gets to choose a forfeit for any other player – or players – to do. Although we start of relatively mild with the tasks being set, it’s not too long until things take a much more extreme twist, with one man having a toothbrush shoved deep into his nose being just a precursor. I must say what surprised me somewhat is how many of the tasks were more based on psychological than physical torture – one of the female characters has to stay silent while one of the male characters does what he wants in one tense scene, while there are two ‘timed’ sexual tasks that lend another unexpected slant on things. From what I know of the original, it was heavy on the gore and the brutality, but this one comes across less so. Sure, it’s uncomfortable viewing in several places, but I was certainly prepared for worse. The main interest of the film for me comes from the cast of characters and the guessing and second guessing of who will win, who will form allegiances, who will win each hand, what will they do. Each character has a decent motivation – ostensibly a large amount of money, although each basically wants to be involved in the game for a different reason, which does give it a fascinating dynamic. I changed my bet a few times throughout the movie, which I certainly took as a good sign – I wouldn’t have given you a prediction with any confidence at any stage really. So far that all sounds mighty positive, but it’s not a movie without its flaws. Some of the acting is pretty hokey, and the characters are pretty broadly drawn and stereotypical. Sure, there’s fun to be had with that in a number of places, but it might have been nice to get to know them a bit better. The flashbacks are OK but feel a little messy at times, and there’s no doubt that the whole thing is a bit cheaply made – limited sets, small cast – although I think generally it does make the best of that scenario. The ending is certainly very… interesting as well. What this movie does have for all those flaws – and a word I often use – is a bit of verve. Everything is done whole-heartedly, no matter, how weird and wonderful, and while it might not necessarily live long in the memory as a masterpiece of extreme horror I was certainly entertained all the way through – and it’s hard to ask much more than that from any movie you put on. RATING: 7.5/10. Most certainly more fun than I would have anticipated, with plenty of macabre humour and some pretty WTF moment features. While the acting may not be perfect, and the sets and camerawork is a bit limited, it does well within those limitations to create a story that is if not engrossing then at least engaging, and kept me wondering all the way through just how it was all going to play out. It’s certainly superior to several films in the subgenre that I could name – but of course won’t, because that would be rather mealy-mouthed – and has a little splash of panache that makes it a really enjoyable experience. Not likely one I’ll be revisiting but a perfectly fine way to while away about 90 minutes. 
BOOK REVIEW: TEETH BY KELLI OWEN |
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