Thriller: A Cruel Picture [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Very interesting film, which in its tone and camerawork reminds me a lot of 'I Spit on Your Grave' - it has that same edgy, subjective, almost documentary-style look to it which really adds to the overall effect (and a similar lack of soundtrack, which make some of the action sequences almost surreal). I call this a mix of Sam Peckinpah and Ingmar Bergman - it has a very bleak, sombre mood and very minimal dialogue. No big cityscapes, no exotic deserts here - instead we're taken on a tour of low-key Swedish housing estates, barren countryside that looks a lot like the North of Scotland. The terriffic harbour scene with Madeleine getting shot up by an unseen assailant is almost pure Sergio Leone, and is the coolest sequence in the film. (The only scene cooler is one that doesn't appear in this cut - the 'alternate' version of the warehouse shootout has her shedding her long coat and launching into some spectacular slow-mo kung-fu kicks - pretty damn good for Sweden, 1974!)

The only scene which doesn't work for me at all is the most notorious one. The shot of the wide open eye is far, far too long to be credible (even brutalised people on heroin don't stare unblinkingly up at a scalpel that's about to be plunged through their eyeball) - it should have been a lot shorter, but the shock value is definitely there. I couldn't watch it first time around. The XXX scenes are pretty disposable too, but at least by objectifying the body parts they make the whole business look as mechanical and sordid as it is, and enhance the downbeat tone.

Only real fault I can find is that some of the scenes could have been trimmed, tightened up at the editing stage. Too much time spent lingering on people doing not very much. Lots of random driving around towards the end, which feels a bit flabby (and lots of cars which decide to blow up for no reason) - 'French Connection' it ain't, but all in all I would really recommend this to any fan of dark revenge/exploitation movies.

I only ever watch foreign movies with the subtitles on, so I can't comment on the dubbing, but the extras are very good. Lots of great stills, some superb shots of Madeleine looking very stylish with her shotgun. And the animated menus are a hoot!

And yes, this inspired 'Kill Bill'. I walked out of that after 20 minutes, but I know I will watch this little classic again. Get it while you can 'cos this version's limited to 25,000.

A brilliant tale of sadness and revenge this movie is a must see for cult horror fans. A girl was raped as a child turning her mute, now a young adult she is offered a lift from a seemingly kind gentleman which then turns into dinner and eventually back to his place where she is drugged. Waking up many days later she finds he has been pumping her full of heroine which her body now relies on and she must service various clients to get her daily fix, at first she refuses but after she gets an eye gouging punishment she decides to co-operate, she doesn't give up though and is secretly preparing for an all out war on the people who are responsible. This is not a hollywood revenge film, no huge explosions or smug one-liners (keep in mind the main character is mute) just a beautiful yet controversial tale that builds the depressing atmosphere until it drives you nuts then gives you the vengeful outburst you so deserately want by then, this one will stick with you a while. Synapse Films released this in the US in two versions, the cut version uses the title "Thriller: They Call Her One Eye" and the uncut version which says limited edition on the box and goes by the title "Thriller: A Cruel Picture".

The movie opens with a shot of an empty road. No sound can be heard as the credits appear on screen, until, in the distance a police car approaches and its sirens can be heard getting louder as it draws closer.

The police arrest an old man who has just raped a young girl. Due to this traumatic event the girl, Madeleine, becomes mute.

15 years after that horrific event, Madeleine works on her parents farm and despite the trauma of her youth, life appears to be passing peacefully for her. One day as Madeleine is going into town she misses her bus and ends up accepting a lift from a passing stranger.
Unfortunately for Madeleine her life is about to be ripped apart again.
The stranger, Tony, drugs Madeleine and while she is unconscious he begins injecting her with heroin.

Keeping her as his prisoner and increasing her dependancy on heroin, tony turns Madeleine to a life of prostitution. Initially, Madeleine tries to resist but after she injures a client Tony puts out one of her eyes as punishment.
Seemingly trapped in a life of drugs and prostitution, Madeleine is in fact secretly planning retribution. She saves the extra money she gets from her clients and on the one day a week she is allowed out, she pays for lessons in martial arts, aggressive driving and shooting.

Finally, with her new talents mastered and with nothing to lose Madeleine heads out to find her clients and Tony and make these degenerates pay for what they have done to her.

This is a damn fine piece of exploitation cinema. Well shot, with a fantastic lack of soundtrack and dialogue that mirrors Madeleines own inability to speak. In fact, the only real fault that you can pick with this is the cars that crash into each other and then explode for no reason. Hell, what looks like a mini explodes simply from going off the road, although thinking about it, perhaps that is realistic after all.

The movie has stirred up some controversy over the years due to the inclusion of a few xxx scenes, although these each only last for a few seconds and just highlight the horror of what is happening to Madeleine. And of course there is the famous 'eyeball scene' in which it is widely believed that the effect was achieved by filming a close up of a dead girl in a morgue and then stabbing her cadaver in the eye.

If you are a fan of exploitation movies and cult cinema then this one deserves to be in your collection.