I came across this film while randomly looking over IMDb and was intrigued by it (not by the title, I had no idea what a donkey punch was before watching). I thought it was pretty good and entertaining.
In my opinion, I thought the players did a good job with their characters, particularly the lead actress. I thought the gentleman who played Josh was also very deft. I enjoyed his portrayal of the seemingly-naive law student who ends up executing the most damage and using his knowledge of the legal system (maritime law is really awesome) to create fear and tension among the rest of the group. Generally, I thought the switch the characters made between sanity and crazy was compelling and interesting.
I was a little disappointed with the gore, as I was hoping for a lot more. In my humble opinion, I wouldn't call it a slasher flick, no categorize it as horror. It was really a thriller and nothing more. The killings were not really all that ingenious or clever in my mind, only one, maybe two, made my eyebrows rise.
Other reviewers have made negative comments about the setting, but I thought the luxury yacht was really wonderful. No doubt, it's most likely been over-used, but killing is so much more exciting and cool when it's executed on a fancy boat, don't you think? The maritime setting also added the great, claustrophobic element to the story. In all honesty, I thought the boat and the Mediterranean combined to make a great setting because it fought against the later-ensuing madness. Things were just lovely and marvelous on this fancy boat in the middle of the world's most beautiful body of water, good booze, sex with hot people, good drugs (if you like that sort of thing), gorgeous weather . . . and then all of a sudden it's the complete opposite. I liked how the desirable turned into the unwanted.
I thought the sexual content was actually quite well placed and appropriate. For sure, it is pretty explicit (whoever said it was tame is probably addicted to porn), but to me it didn't feel gratuitous or out of place, i.e. meant to get heterosexual males in the theater seats. It really brought out the nasty, hedonistic feel the story needed. I think it also was an appropriate way to introduce the turning point in the film, as the nudity and sexual activity introduced a vulnerability to the characters that made the shocking act seem all the more bizarre and horrific. Plus, the sex scenes were pretty hot.
One last item I would note is the apt use of instrumental underscore. I think this was one film that made excellent use of music. The instrumental scores well fit the action and matched the mood precisely. For whatever reason, that really made my viewing experience much greater.
I also thought the lighting and cinematography was pretty decent for such a low budget film.
Overall, I liked it. I thought the acting was above average, the setting compelling, and the story worth one's time. I would recommend it, but you probably will be fine with one viewing.
In my opinion, I thought the players did a good job with their characters, particularly the lead actress. I thought the gentleman who played Josh was also very deft. I enjoyed his portrayal of the seemingly-naive law student who ends up executing the most damage and using his knowledge of the legal system (maritime law is really awesome) to create fear and tension among the rest of the group. Generally, I thought the switch the characters made between sanity and crazy was compelling and interesting.
I was a little disappointed with the gore, as I was hoping for a lot more. In my humble opinion, I wouldn't call it a slasher flick, no categorize it as horror. It was really a thriller and nothing more. The killings were not really all that ingenious or clever in my mind, only one, maybe two, made my eyebrows rise.
Other reviewers have made negative comments about the setting, but I thought the luxury yacht was really wonderful. No doubt, it's most likely been over-used, but killing is so much more exciting and cool when it's executed on a fancy boat, don't you think? The maritime setting also added the great, claustrophobic element to the story. In all honesty, I thought the boat and the Mediterranean combined to make a great setting because it fought against the later-ensuing madness. Things were just lovely and marvelous on this fancy boat in the middle of the world's most beautiful body of water, good booze, sex with hot people, good drugs (if you like that sort of thing), gorgeous weather . . . and then all of a sudden it's the complete opposite. I liked how the desirable turned into the unwanted.
I thought the sexual content was actually quite well placed and appropriate. For sure, it is pretty explicit (whoever said it was tame is probably addicted to porn), but to me it didn't feel gratuitous or out of place, i.e. meant to get heterosexual males in the theater seats. It really brought out the nasty, hedonistic feel the story needed. I think it also was an appropriate way to introduce the turning point in the film, as the nudity and sexual activity introduced a vulnerability to the characters that made the shocking act seem all the more bizarre and horrific. Plus, the sex scenes were pretty hot.
One last item I would note is the apt use of instrumental underscore. I think this was one film that made excellent use of music. The instrumental scores well fit the action and matched the mood precisely. For whatever reason, that really made my viewing experience much greater.
I also thought the lighting and cinematography was pretty decent for such a low budget film.
Overall, I liked it. I thought the acting was above average, the setting compelling, and the story worth one's time. I would recommend it, but you probably will be fine with one viewing.