I've just finished watching August Underground after reading some of the reviews here. I am a fan of extreme film and go out of my way to hunt down and watch movies which are not quite the norm....only to see for myself what the BBFC here in the UK deem as so bad that they won't allow me to watch it by banning a film or censoring it.
It's hard to pinpoint exactly what the makers of this film were going for. Yes it's brutal, yes it's shocking but there had to be a point to it. Such films as Guinea Pig 1 & 2 would have us believe they are real 'snuff'. Such films as 'I spit on your on corpse, I p**s on your grave' and 'Scrapbook' go for cheap realistic looks and shock tactics whilst trying to form some kind of storyline. Apart from proving that the 'actors' and makers of this film are extremely twisted and disturbed, i think 'August Underground' succeeds in being the most realistic portrayal of what an actual real 'snuff' film might be.
There are no opening credits, we are just plonked straight into some guy with a camcorder and what he and his two sick friends get up to. There is no story, no plot (bar what things they get up to), no numerous camera angles, no cuts in scenes. Everything about it screams 'This is real!' This is where 'August Underground' exceeds all other extreme films of it's genre. The special makeup effects in it are highly convincing but they had to be otherwise this film would have lost it's shock value. The raw edge of everything being on camcorder just adds to the realism...we only see what the camera sees.
I don't have any problem watching such films as this, i know they're not real and it's hard to shock me. There were times during this though where i found it hard to keep watching. There was one part where our protagonists were forcing two women to vomit whilst the female lead in the film was herself vomiting on them. The fact that i don't think this bit was faked at all made my stomach churn.
What really sets this film apart is that some elements of the film were real. The above mentioned along with the humiliation and degradation that were portrayed. Did some of the people in this film really know what they were getting in to? because they really look scared and uncomfortable in parts.
'August Underground' did it's job well. I rate it as the most extreme film i have witnessed and yes it did truly shock and disgust me. I would only recommend to the hardened movie watcher as i'm sure you won't of seen anything along the same unique style it has.
I would have to give this film 10 stars for being the most shocking thing i have watched but would have to take 5 away as i think the actors and makers and everyone involved are extremely disturbed and portrayed their enjoyment a bit too well.
It's hard to pinpoint exactly what the makers of this film were going for. Yes it's brutal, yes it's shocking but there had to be a point to it. Such films as Guinea Pig 1 & 2 would have us believe they are real 'snuff'. Such films as 'I spit on your on corpse, I p**s on your grave' and 'Scrapbook' go for cheap realistic looks and shock tactics whilst trying to form some kind of storyline. Apart from proving that the 'actors' and makers of this film are extremely twisted and disturbed, i think 'August Underground' succeeds in being the most realistic portrayal of what an actual real 'snuff' film might be.
There are no opening credits, we are just plonked straight into some guy with a camcorder and what he and his two sick friends get up to. There is no story, no plot (bar what things they get up to), no numerous camera angles, no cuts in scenes. Everything about it screams 'This is real!' This is where 'August Underground' exceeds all other extreme films of it's genre. The special makeup effects in it are highly convincing but they had to be otherwise this film would have lost it's shock value. The raw edge of everything being on camcorder just adds to the realism...we only see what the camera sees.
I don't have any problem watching such films as this, i know they're not real and it's hard to shock me. There were times during this though where i found it hard to keep watching. There was one part where our protagonists were forcing two women to vomit whilst the female lead in the film was herself vomiting on them. The fact that i don't think this bit was faked at all made my stomach churn.
What really sets this film apart is that some elements of the film were real. The above mentioned along with the humiliation and degradation that were portrayed. Did some of the people in this film really know what they were getting in to? because they really look scared and uncomfortable in parts.
'August Underground' did it's job well. I rate it as the most extreme film i have witnessed and yes it did truly shock and disgust me. I would only recommend to the hardened movie watcher as i'm sure you won't of seen anything along the same unique style it has.
I would have to give this film 10 stars for being the most shocking thing i have watched but would have to take 5 away as i think the actors and makers and everyone involved are extremely disturbed and portrayed their enjoyment a bit too well.