The Killing Gene (2007) User Reviews

Nice original Thriller, not Horror (not scary at all).

[nitzanhavoc · 7/10 · 26 November 2012]

Being a Horror freak, I usually give a chance to pretty much any Horror sub-genre and type. The Killing Gene is one of these Thrillers that I personally don't really consider Horror, as it's not scary or frightening in any way. It does revolve around some pretty terrible things, but I personally like films that are scarier.

Having said that, I think The Killing Gene was a very nice thriller. Stellan Skarsgård, unlike his role in Thor (and The Avengers) was dark and charismatic, and Melissa George was as great as always. The story idea was nice and original, and made it a little hard to pick sides. The twist towards the end did manage to surprise me, and the ending itself was a very nice closure. Notice most of the times I used an adjective, it was "nice". Not more, nor less.

As for criticism? The twist was very original, but I was kinda hoping for something a little deeper and more complicated. All in all, I'd say The Killing Gene was a gloomy combination of Saw, The Bone Collector and Kindergarten Cop.

I personally enjoyed it as a thriller, not as Horror. If you're thriller fans, you probably will enjoy it too.

Transcending Torture

[Jonny_Numb · 7/10 · 26 January 2010]

When taking a chance on a sight-unseen, used DVD, my expectations are usually fairly reflective of the few bucks I shell out for it. "The Killing Gene," while boasting a fine cast, struck me as nothing more than another blurb-happy, sledgehammer obvious entry in the Dimension 'Extreme' line of hit-or-miss horrors. After having watched it, all I can say is...holy hell. Obviously targeting the audiences that made "Saw" and "Hostel" the New Torture Vanguard (one of the box blurbs directly references the former, not without accuracy), "The Killing Gene"--despite some transparently derivative elements pulled from the genre--comes very close to trouncing its competition. Remember that moment near the end of "Saw" when Cary Elwes does the unthinkable with the titular tool? Well, imagine that degree of gritty intensity stretched out over the course of 102 nerve-shredding minutes, and you have a good idea of what to expect here. Stellan Skarsgard (bearing an uncanny resemblance to Donald Pleasence) plays a homicide detective investigating a string of torture-murders with novice cop Melissa George; suspicions are running that the killer is targeting a group of vile gang members out of revenge for an equally hideous crime (which I won't reveal here; it's a truly horrifying scene). Clive Bradley's script doesn't use the torture angle as a mere marketable throwaway, nor does it treat the characters as meat for the machine; there is a surprising amount of development here, to the point where our sympathies and doubts become one and the same. From a visual standpoint, director Tom Shankland ("The Children") uses jerky digital video and claustrophobic close-ups to convey a sense of urgency within a decaying urban nightmare from which all hope has been drained (this could very well be the most squalid metropolis since David Fincher's "Se7en"). As an unapologetic, unashamed horror fan, I often find myself sitting through garbage that isn't worth the DVD it's pressed on, which makes something like "The Killing Gene" all the more refreshing. Yes, there are some parts you'll feel as though you've seen before; but damned if the overall experience doesn't leave you shaken and adequately disturbed afterward. (It also bears noting that this R-rated film contains some of the most unglamorous, boundary-pushing violence in recent memory.)

Not bad, just a triumph of style over substance

[seawalker · 6/10 · 28 February 2008]

The most influential American horror movie of the last 20 years is "Seven". This much is undeniable. I really liked "Seven". Great movie. It might be one of my favourites. The only problem is that every inner city set horror thriller made since comes across, to me, as "Seven"-lite.

Which brings me to "Waz".

A city of permanent night. A cop on the edge. A diabolical killer. Inventive, ingenious torture and murder. Victims with a reason for being victimised.

Yup. "Seven"-lite. Not necessarily a bad thing in itself, because you have to take every movie on it's own merits, but disappointing when witnessed over and over again.

"Waz" isn't bad. It is just unoriginal and a triumph of style over substance. The city is effectively portrayed as grim, dirty, cold and wet. You wouldn't want to go there on holiday. You wouldn't want to hang out with any of these people. The tone of the film is unpleasant, seedy and black. To coin a dated phrase, a video nasty. It will get you down. It also has one of the most disturbing filmed sequences of sexual abuse I have ever seen. All insinuated, you don't see a thing, but it is horrible.

Melissa George has been better and is frankly wasted as the pouting sidekick, but "Waz" does have a superior cast (Stellan Skarsgård, Selma Blair, Tom Hardy, etc.) for what is effectively a straightforward genre movie. Some of the questions I had as to why they signed up for this movie were answered during the denouement, when the motivations behind Stellan Skarsgård's actions are revealed and his character develops levels way beyond that of a tormented cop.

So, "Waz" was OK. Not bad for a walk on the dark side.

In your face serial murder

[robertemerald · 7/10 · 19 March 2019]

This is a little like a cross between I Spit On Your Grave and a standard serial killer movie like Seven. Alas, it's not quite as good as either. I get that it's going for a tough as nails look, with sleazy cafes, lots of abandoned warehouses, mean-lit streets (usually after rain) and tough-as-old-boots cops, and I get that the shaky camera work is trying to give the whole an air of uncomfortably close escalating horror, but I also feel that the Director has overdone it. In light of this toughness there comes a shock toward the end that runs counter and I admit I didn't see it coming. Somehow the story never creates sufficient tension before the various bursts of blood in the wake of the killer. It's all a bit too close and claustrophobic. I felt the male cops needed to relax a bit and the Director needed to step back a bit. Melissa George was really good as the rookie, and Tom Hardy was good as the thug. His character should have been developed more. The flash-back to the original crime really needed more time, horror and tension, and needed the shock of sudden realisation somehow. OK, that's a lot of being picky. W Delta A is essentially a fairly gripping and deliciously repulsive horror and torture movie, and sufficiently unusual to be worth a watch. Keep well away from children of any age.

Owes much to Se7en, but is still pretty solid.

[Samiam3 · 7/10 · 29 May 2010]

It's grim, it's gloomy and morally twisted. The Killing Gene is entertaining in darkest of manners. At times, it feels like a forerunner to Law Abiding Citizen only with more subtlety, but it would be more appropriate to think of The Killing Gene as an indie version of Se7en (we all remember that film right?)

The story appears to be set in the city that never sleeps. What we have here is Selma Blair taking on a Jigsaw(Saw series) persona killing her chosen victims using a kind of Milgram's experiment (which I won't describe for obvious reasons). Detective Eddie Argo and his new partner are on the case investigating the appearance of bodies as they start to pop up with an algebraic formula carved on them. Eddie knows something that he is not telling the department, something that may catch up with him before he catches up with the killer.

For a good eighty minutes, this killer thriller growls like a lion, angry but stable. It waits to let out its roar until the climax, which turns out to be the film's Achilles heal. I was fairly impressed by the Killing Gene's ability to avoid getting convoluted, but make no mistake, nothing lasts forever. It has a sloppily presented finale, which is stagey, badly acted, and is a lousy pay off for what at the beginning seemed to be an important element.

I've always had a sort of liking for Stellan Skaresgard, even though he lacks charisma. His screen presence here while somewhat torpid, is surprisingly compelling. He evokes the persona of a man who is hiding a lot. A cynical person could easily see him as cardboard, but bit by bit, he starts to make more sense. the same cannot be said of Melissa George. Her character is pointless, and seems to have no real place in the script. Selma Blair has no acting ability whatsoever. In some films, she has gotten away with her emo persona, but this may be the worst entry in her resume yet.

I'm not sure which part of New York this film is set in, but if I though it was as psychedelic looking as this, I may go just for a photo shoot. the Killing Gene is lit like a comic book, sometimes matching John Carpenter's vision in Escape from New York, only without the street fires and the wrecked cars.

The whole thing works. I am not an easy person to creep out, but The Killing Gene occasionally got under my skin. Just imagine what it would do to a squeamish person. If you were in to Saw or Se7en, I think you'll find The Killing Gene a fairly worthy investment of your time, for a rainy night.

Not really that good..

[weemonk · 5/10 · 24 May 2008]

I give 5 stars as this is one of those films that you can watch and then throw away. It's not bad but it's not good. I don't think it's the sort of film where you would pull it out of your DVD collection every couple of months to watch.

I'm not sure what type of 'film' was used but the director went for (what looked like to me) HD hand-held cams. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean Cloverfield 'all over the show' sort of filming but rather the film print it's self. I suppose this gives the film it's 'gritty' look, which I can appreciate sometimes but for this movie it just made the production look cheap. If it weren't for the famous faces you'd be forgiven for thinking you may be watching a lower budget movie.

As for the film itself....we've seen such ideas already done with 'Saw' and 'untraceable'. There's no real new context here to give a fresh light to the story. The acting was fine and I have no problem with the direction....I just wasn't drawn into the film in any way. It was difficult to hold my interest or really care about the characters on screen.

I don't really give insight into the 'story' of a film when I review as others do that better but as a film goer I'd say that this is a throw-away film.....the sort you'd rent or watch to pass some time. As I've said before, it's not a bad film....but it isn't great. Slap bang in the middle

Altruistic Nightmare!

[hitchcockthelegend · 6/10 · 26 October 2015]

Bodies have started turning up with W∆Z carved into their skin, cops Eddie Argo (Stellan Skarsgård) and Helen Westcott (Melissa George) investigate and find something truly disturbing is afoot.

It's cut from the same cloth as Saw, Seven and to a degree Hostel, in that it's torture pornish in narrative essence, and aesthetically grim with its neo-noir greens and browns. Tom Shankland's movie is undeniably bleak, but sift through the blood and the grime and you find there's an intelligent film at work, one that opens up an uncomfortable can of worms about human nature. But of course if you like it bloody and mean, then that is served up with relish as well, with all the key scenes packing an emotional whack to go with the jolts.

Brains to go with the splatter, some very smart photography (Morten Søborg) and engaging lead performances, these all lift this above average. If only it hadn't cheapened things down with the daft finale then this would have garnered more support in horror circles. 6/10

More Torture Porn With an Ending Seen Coming The First 15 Minutes

[Kashmirgrey · 5/10 · 3 June 2008]

WAZ is just another inept attempt to cash in on the torture porn card, and it tries to do so poorly.

Two cops investigate a series of murders in which one set of victims, prior to death, were forced via torture to electrocute a loved one. As they close in on the killer, it becomes apparent that one of the cops has been less than completely forthcoming about all he knows regarding the case.

There is a ridiculous number of scenes showing people getting in and out of cars in this film. The fact that that stands out as my primary memory of it says something...

Kill or be killed? What a thought provoking question.

[JimmyCollins · 7/10 · 24 October 2011]

Wowee what a film, from the first minute I was hooked, totally glued to the screen. A cop thriller that isn't afraid to hold back, beware that this movie is gritty, gruesome and very graphic. A lot of reviews compare this to movies such as Saw and Se7en and I can certainly see similarities, particularly with Saw but this is so much more than a torture porn franchise which has no end.

The story is about a killer committing gruesome murders against the gangs in new York, with each new body there is a carving etched into the skin "wDeltaz", the police soon find out that the person they are hunting is someone they are already familiar with. Movies as good as this don't come along very often, the smart script, the acting, the thought provoking subject matter, the exquisite way the director handles the murder scenes to not just make them cheesy horror movie killings is fantastic.

Melissa George and Stellan Skarsgard work well together, they both have a great screen relationship, I particularly liked Melissa's character, a woman who at first seems fragile and not a very brave cop but who soon becomes tough as nails, Melissa George is a very fine actress and it's great to see her do something very different. Also, Sally Hawkins stands out once again as a drug addict mother who commits the unspeakable, she's just stellar.

When you find out who the killer is and why they're doing these horrible things, that's when you'll really start to question everything. This movie is definitely worth seeing, it will spark a talk afterwards and will certainly leave an impression, a brutal but brilliant revenge thriller.

Lousy

[antide-42376 · 3/10 · 20 September 2018]

This movie tries so hard to be like 'Seven' or 'Silence Of The Lambs' and fails miserably. The overrated use of hand held camera is way overdone here, the script is terrible at times and the acting isn't much better. You can just feel how desperate this movie is to be cool, edgy and hard hitting.

I can't lie, I actually didn't make it to the end and gave up with about 25 minutes to go. So is it fair for me to judge it so harshly? I very rarely give up on a movie that I have spent over an hour watching so this must have been bad. Melissa George is always worth watching but she struggles here and so do most of the cast. I thought 'WAZ' wazn't worth watching (Sorry about the terrible gag!)

Solid and Dark Police Story

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 20 October 2008]

When the body of the pregnant girlfriend of the criminal Wesley Smith (Michael Liebman) is found electrocuted, detectives Eddie Argo (Stellan Skarsgård) and Helen Westcott (Melissa George) are assigned to investigate the case. They seek out Wesley with his gang of low-life criminals and Pierre (Tom Hardy), Jamal (Sean Brian Jordaan) and Daniel Leone (Ashley Walters) tell that they have not seen him. They move to a crack alley and the addicted whore Elly (Sally Hawkins) tells that Wesley is upstairs. They find Wesley tortured, with two fingers burnt and hanged with the equation W∆Z = Cov + E engraved on his flesh. Then they find Jamal and his twin brother Khaled killed in the same modus operandi and the coroner finds the dissociative anesthetic Ketamine in the autopsy. Helen finds that the only laboratory with the controlled substance available in the area is the one managed by the researcher Dr. Gelb (Paul Kaye). When they arrive, Dr. Gelb explains the meaning of the equation a.k.a. Price equation, which is a mathematical description of evolution and natural selection, i.e., there is no altruism in nature. Their further investigation discloses that Dr. Gelb's former assistant was Jean Lerner (Selma Blair), a young woman that was gang raped by Pierre and his gang and forced to kill her own mother. Due to contaminated evidences, the criminals have never been sentenced. Now she is forcing each rapist to kill the one he or she loves to save himself or herself from death, influenced by Dr. Gelb researches. Further, Helen suspects that her partner and detective Jack Corelli (John Sharian) intentionally destroyed the evidences.

"W∆Z" is a solid and dark police story and it is inevitable the comparison with the style and cinematography of "Se7en". The plot is very well resolved, supported by an excellent screenplay, great direction and stunning performances. The gruesome locations are depressive, using a dark cinematography, and the relationship between Eddie and Danny is a surprising twist. The characters are believable, with corrupt police and criminals living in the gray division between law and crime. This is the type of movie in which the killer has good motives for her actions. The plot is clever, raising questions about the existence and meaning of love and evolution of species. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "W∆Z – Matemática da Morte" ("W∆Z – Mathematic of the Death")

Under rated little chiller

[bh_tafe3 · 7/10 · 11 December 2008]

W Delta Z is a rather clunky name for a movie, especially one marketed at horror fans, so from here on in, I'm just gonna call it Waz.

Waz is actually a pretty good movie, you don't realise how good until you sit down to think about after the event. I mean, sure, I'm interested in finding out exactly why some lunatic is apparently electrocuting people and carving a mathematical equation into there chest. I'm interested also to find out what the deal is with Eddie Argo, and I really want to find out whether Helen is going to prove she has any place in the police force or not. But I never thought that the answer to the first two questions would tie in so well with each other.

The answers as it turns out is that Eddie did something really bad a few years back that set into action a series of events that led to wronged party becoming a psychotic lunatic.

Skarsgard is in strange form on this, he's either sleepwalking through the movie, or putting in a really good performance of a hardened man so calloused and scarred that he just doesn't care about anything. The film's closing stages tend me to lean towards the latter opinion.

Another tricky one for me was Melissa George. I mean, her early scenes made me actually care about her character, but from there it's all over the place. I guess in the end her suspicions and fears are vindicated, as is the integrity of her character, while Skarsgard's Eddie turns out to be much worse than you cold possibly have thought at the start of the film. But the journey her character takes is so poorly mapped out that if I didn't know from her other roles that she was a good actress, I probably would have blamed her totally for it. She tries hard with the character she's given, but falls short.

Now some of the cutting is strange. It seems to happen a number of times over the course of the film, so I guess it was intended. The only reason I mention it is because it is quite noticeable.

There is nudity, and a really disgusting torture scene near the film's end. This is not a trip down terror lane, it's a detective movie. Certainly not for the squeamish but well worth a look.

It's a little bit Se7en; it's a little bit Saw.

[BA_Harrison · 5/10 · 7 July 2008]

Not only does poor old Jean Lerner (Selma Blair) get gang raped, beaten and violated with a broken bottle, but she is also forced to shoot her own mother to end her ordeal and save her own life. The sadistic gang that subjected her to this horror are apprehended by the police, but are allowed to walk free after vital evidence is accidentally destroyed and it is found that violence was used to obtain a confession. Naturally, Jean is more than a little upset.

So when the gang members' loved ones begin to turn up dead, with part of a scientific equation carved into their corpses, detective Eddie Argo (Stellan Skarsgård) naturally assumes that Jean is out for revenge. Which she is. But she is also attempting to ease her own conscience over killing her mum: by kidnapping each gang member, plus their nearest and dearest, and then giving each scumbag the option of saving their own skin by offing their loved ones, Jean is trying to prove the WAZ equation, which claims that no creature is naturally altruistic.

As Argo slowly closes in on Lerner, his partner, rookie cop Helen Westcott (Melissa George) begins to suspect that there is much more to this case than at first meets the eye.

A grimy thriller in the vein of Se7en, but one that has an eye firmly fixed on today's torture-porn audiences, WAZ features plenty of nastiness, is suitably stylish, and includes the obligatory surprise ending that no self-respecting modern horror/thriller would be seen without. But despite having all the right ingredients, the film isn't as effective as those it seeks to emulate.

There are way too many talky scenes that interrupt the flow of the story and only serve to dissipate the tension; nearly all of the characters are unlikeable; the nasty bits leave far too much to the imagination (saves on Make-up FX, I suppose); and the finalé is... well... it's all a bit unbelievable and revolves around the most unlikely pair of cinematic lovers that I think I have ever seen.

If you are about to settle down to watch this film, I would like to suggest a drinking game that might make things a little more entertaining: take a drink every time someone gets in or out of a car, or whenever Skarsgård lights up a cigarette, and draws on it with such intensity that the tobacco can be heard 'crackling' as it burns. I guarantee you'll be hammered by the end of the film!

Interesting

[Timbzy · 7/10 · 15 June 2008]

A lot better than I thought it was going to be. The description made this sound more like the Saw movies, a movie based on pointless torture to appeal to the viewer via shock value. Instead this was more like a crime drama/thriller involving two police officers trying to find a killer who is getting revenge on the people that raped and disfigured her and killed her mother. Selma Blair does the best acting job I've every seen her do in this as the disfigured and traumatized woman. Stellan Skarsgard plays the hard, bitter cop well too. Something I felt this filmed succeeded in was building tension. There were numerous edge of your seat type moments that were very well executed. A negative would be that I felt it was trying to channel Se7en a little too much at times, but it was bearable.

Doesn't Make Much Sense, But Whatever

[redrobin62-321-207311 · 6/10 · 2 May 2017]

I'll probably forget this movie in a day or two. The story was a bit incoherent. Things just happened for violence and gore's sake and, as the viewer, you simply had to accept them. It's hard to make out where this flick was headed, and even after over an hour into it, still didn't know what the story was basically about.

Technically, this film should have been an outright bust. There were, however, good points about it. The editing was solid and kinetic in spots. The violence, although gratuitous, was well done. The motives of the different characters didn't make much sense. That whole business about W Delta Z didn't make much sense, either.

I thought the ending was a let down. Still, what kept the film afloat was the actors. All of them hit the nail on the head, so to speak. Even though i give this movie a 6 rating, I was leaning towards a 5.5. The movie wasn't that bad, but then, it's not all that good, either. Your mileage may vary.

Very silly thriller

[nigelmacdonald-97173 · 3/10 · 23 October 2020]

This made no sense at all to me. The police acted completely irrationally throughout the film. Tom Hardy mumbles incoherently as usual. The whole thing seems to be another excuse for torture porn and is wildly unrealistic.

Dull, grimy, seen it all before

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 25 April 2016]

I'm not sure why this film was so highly acclaimed upon release. It's another grim and unsatisfactory serial killer outing, with Stellan Skarsgard on gruff form as a tired, beat-down old cop investigating the crimes of a murderer who carves a mysterious symbol upon the bodies of his victims.

It amazes me that over a decade after the success of SE7EN, films are still content to copy the same look and feel. W DELTA Z is an uneven movie in which the usual police procedural stuff feels tired and forced. It doesn't help the film at all that the characterisation is nil and when finally unmasked, the serial killer role suffers from the worst miscasting ever. Plus, W DELTA Z copies heavily the kind of torture porn familiar in the SAW movies, so don't expect a lot of insight here, just pain.

With Skarsgard on autopilot, it's left to the supporting cast members to try to do something with the movie. Tom Hardy has a brief but eye catching turn as a street thug, but Melissa George takes centre screen in one of those rookie cop type roles. I've always liked her as an actress, especially given that she seems fond of the horror genre given how many horror movies she'd made over the years. Paul Kaye and Selma Blair are lower down the list. In any case, you can't help but feel that the actors are wasting their time with this one.

W Delta Z

[I_John_Barrymore_I · 31 March 2009]

Minor spoilers follow, but nothing you won't have learned from reading the DVD synopsis.

It's a shame this has been marketed as a "Se7en meets Saw"-style torture porn serial killer movie, because while it rips off huge chunks of both films it's really a whole lot more than such a summary would suggest.

Like all the best revenge thrillers, W Delta Z takes the concept and puts it under a microscope, examining its very nature and challenging audience expectations at every turn. There truly are no heroes and no villains, we only have Melissa George's inexperienced cop to ground us and provide some frame of reference as our sympathies shift back and forth between Stellan Skarsgård's grizzled Detective and Selma Blair's tortured serial killer. Issues of right and wrong are constantly blurred.

All this praise of its intelligence is not to say gore hounds will feel short-changed. There are a couple of genuinely disturbing moments, even if the most harrowing sequence mercifully happens off camera.

Blair is excellent as the tortured serial killer; her vicious determination, obvious madness and stark vulnerability all expressed beautifully in her performance. Ashley Walters is the other stand out. A former member of British rap collective So Solid Crew, he's since moved on from turning out awful records and has emerged - in this at least, I haven't seen any of his other film work - as a fine young actor with a great deal of promise. Skarsgård and George are less successful but still do decent work.

It's not entirely successful and its low budget shows. The distracting, annoying direction is too needlessly erratic and flashy for material that would be better suited to a more subtle approach. While that's a major flaw the script and performances go some way to overcoming it, but not far enough to make it a totally satisfying watch.

W Delta Z is a unique and intelligent picture, it raises fascinating questions about justice, morality and even love itself. And not a lot of modern horror movies can say that.

so much more than merely a 'saw ripoff'

[movieman_kev · 7/10 · 9 January 2009]

Stellan Skarsgård, of 'Good Will Hunting', offers up a good low-key performance as Eddie, a cop is trying to stop a revenge killer from offing more people. Melisa Goerge is also on hand as Eddie's partner, Helen, but her performance left a bit to be desired in my opinion (although she's easy on the eyes) Selma Blair is pretty damn good in the film and she & Stellan keep it an interesting watch throughout. I can see why people would assume that this movie is 'just another Saw rip-off' & while it does have moments of pretty bad torture like the aforementioned film, it's so much more than that ans it's really more akin to a "Death Wish" film told from a different perspective. Add a certain twist late in the film that I truly did not see coming (althrough clues are there) and I have to say that I thought this to be one of the better straight to DVD (in America) releases of 2008.

My Grade: B-

Dimension DVD Extras: Three featurettes ( 'in depth chat with the director', 'Torture' & a making-of); 3 deleted scenes; a trailer for this film; and trailers for "Automaton Transfusion", "Storm Warning", "Diary of the Dead", & "Welcome to the Jungle"

WAZ (aka The Killing Gene)

[action-man101 · 5/10 · 13 March 2009]

Interesting British-made thriller that borrows heavily (or is that steals?) from Se7en and Saw. Melissa George is cop trying to unravel a series of gruesome murders in New York with her gruff partner, Stellan Skarsgard. Somebody is bumping off several of the city's gang bangers and their loved ones and carving an equation onto their stomachs. The plot covers very familiar ground as the two very different detectives try to identify the killer. George does her best but her character is poorly defined - a bit more background should have been shown. Skarsgard is almost laughable in his attempt to be tough and cool, he merely comes across as being unintelligible. What makes this film different is the surprisingly good cast (Selma Blair, Tom Hardy, Ashley Walters, Sally Hawkins) who turn up. The final plot twist in the last 15 minutes is far-fetched and feels like a sensationalist tabloid headline. Tries to take a novel approach to the torture-porn genre by raising some interesting Darwinian questions but ultimately fails under its own pretensions. It's not hard to see why this went straight to DVD. Nice try though.

Superior to Saw and other so-called torture porn

[standeman1984 · 8/10 · 5 March 2008]

To begin with, this movie isn't just another torture porn flick that we've seen a glut of in recent times (Saw, Hostel and the like). There's actually a decent plot regarding the murderer and their victims, something that examines humanity's darker side yet goes beyond the base sadism displayed in actual torture porn, which this isn't. The marketing campaign gave it the appearance of such a film and i was nearly put off, however my optimism got the better of me as I confess, I am a huge horror fan and there were glimpses that it could be quite good. And it is, in fact it's very good.

There's a rugged brutal efficiency in the way this film goes about delivering the goods. You've got your cops, new and old, with sketchy case files and hints of crookedness, a scientific theory of genetics being exploited by our murderer and a gang of outlaws who are being targeted. All of it is carried out with appropriate macabre and occasional wit and humour, good, edgy hand-held camera techniques, clever acting and a pacey script. I thought it was great on an intelligence level and I squirmed every time there was a 'nail' scene.

I was even more surprised to learn afterwards that this was a British production, was shot in Belfast and used a largely British cast, yet had me fooled as to it's New York setting and convincing accents. What more can i say apart from wow, i love this movie? I also realised after that Waz is Saw backwards, and a cynic may say that is opportunistic marketing, but to them i say, see the movie and tell me it doesn't at least give Saw a run for it's money, if not kick it's stupid face off. Saw's ideas were good, but their killer seemed a flimsy afterthought to me. In Waz, the killer and their motives are integral to the plot,(which surprises before a satisfactory ending)and it's hard not to find empathy for the killer, something i never got in Saw. The great script and acting add depth and character to the story, which hit me with surprises and left me feeling contemplative, which is unusual for horror today.

Verdict: Come for the torture, stay for the good movie

The Mad Killer is a Math-Killer?

[Coventry · 6/10 · 4 January 2009]

When I noticed the mathematical equation in the title, I immediately wondered if there was going be a new trend of algebra-thrillers in the horror/thriller cinema industry. Next to "The Oxford Murders", "WAZ" would already be the second in one year! Fortunately (or unfortunately, if you will) this soon unfolds as a "Saw" imitation with a "Seven" flavored sauce, rather than as a mathematical thriller. Still this isn't your average type of torture-porn horror because the emphasis largely lays on the search for the killer and the mystery behind his/her motivations instead of on the vile acts of murder themselves. "WAZ" is an exceptionally grim and unsettling film, but that's purely speaking in terms of atmosphere and set-pieces, since the graphical gory effects (except during the last half hour or so) are kept to a minimum. "WAZ" is a hideously dark and unpleasant film, with despicable characters and filthy scenery, and that the main reason why I – and surely many horror fanatics with me – cherish at least some appreciation for this overall forgettable film. Eddie Argo and new arrival Helen Westcott are police detectives in one of New York's most depressing and gang-infested neighborhoods. One night they're called in to investigate a murder case that is undoubtedly the start of a serial killer's relentless spree. In a short period of time, several bodies are discovered either electrocuted or barbarically mutilated and they all have the titular equation carved in their stomachs. The investigation eventually leads to an unsolved criminal assault case where the violators didn't get punished and the victim – Jean Lerner – remained behind embittered and alone. Now it seems the different culprits are put to the choice of saving themselves or being responsible for the deaths of a beloved person. And, like the equation states, love doesn't really exist. The plot similarities with "Saw" and "Seven" are obvious: the killer's main intention is to teach his/her victims a valuable life lesson (usually resulting in death, but still…), the investigation cops become a little too involved and it clear from the beginning that a happy ending is out of the question. Still, I prefer to compare "WAZ" to the gritty and relentlessly violent cop-thrillers of the late 70's and early 80's, like for example "Vice Squad". Particularly Stellan Skarsgard gives away a perplexing grim performance as the silent and suspicious cop. There are a couple of bizarre and hard-to-believe plot twists near the end, but overall this is an admirably dark thriller.

Disappointing

[Cedric_Catsuits · 2/10 · 12 August 2013]

I was hoping for so much more from this. Blair and George are two of my favourite actors, and Skarsgard is always watchable. Sadly the stupid script and lack of direction lets this down.

Blair is a tiny, tiny lady and yet here we have her overpowering and manhandling numerous giant (to her) thugs and criminals apparently all on her own. I can't suspend belief to that extent. Also she seems to be some sort of electrical and mechanical whizz.

Seeing as we are told very little about Blair's character, I can't say if she has some secret past as a weightlifting nerd. Nor is there adequate explanation about the history between her and the cop. As for George, well she just looks totally out of place, and again we know nothing about her.

A few shocking, brutal scenes aside, there is very little substance to this and it fails miserably as a story or piece of entertainment.

Had me in tears

[daggersineyes · 7/10 · 7 September 2014]

Once again the ratings at IMDb are misleading. I should just watch all the flicks rated at around 5 and I reckon I'll enjoy all of them. This is a fantastic movie. I am actually in tears after watching it and that is extremely rare for me. Even more so with a movie this dark and violent. It's not for the faint-hearted nor is it for those who just want to watch a fun thriller/action flick while they scoff popcorn. This movie needs you to give it your attention, you can't be hoovering the loungeroom or texting friends while you watch it in the background. But if you do give it your attention you will be rewarded with a unique and thought provoking experience. Good acting from the always under-appreciated Melissa George - some of the other actors are a bit stilted and the whole movie is clearly low budget - would have benefited from a more astute director - but despite that it's still a great movie and well worth watching.