Tormented [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS MOVIE TO BE RELEASED IN THE US!! I was investigating purchasing a Region-Free DVD player and having this shipped from Amazon UK just so I could own it, but now I don't have to--it made my day to discover this is coming out stateside in a just a few short months! Okay, sorry, review is below (same as the one that appears on the UK Edition being sold by other users).

I watched this movie just a couple of weeks ago because I had seen a trailer for it months back, but with school closing out, I had to put projects first and watching a movie I only have access to through the glory of Youtube was not on my priority list. I, however, finally found the time to sit and watch this horror film, with the volume a little low (with a mother in the house who cringes at the word "crap", point made). Perhaps I should begin with a short summary: The premise of the movie is that an unpopular student has just committed suicide and the vastly popular in-crowd (comprised of actors Alex Pettyfer [upcoming Beastly], April Pearson, Dimitri Leonidas, Tuppence Middleton, Georgia King [Wild Child], and others) are the people who bullied him mercilessly. The faculty and administration did nothing to solve the problem. That problem quickly turns against them when Darren's ghost or zombie, however you want to classify him, returns to seek revenge on them, killing them slowly, one at a time.

Now, when I first saw the movie trailer and researched the movie, since it has been out for about a year now, I figured that the graphics would be cheap, the blood fake, the language terrible, and the sex rampant. I was wrong on almost every account. Being a British film, the language is, of course, off the deep end, with the f word being the preferable choice of vocabulary, but nothing when compared to what an R rated movie can bring here in the States. There were only two sex scenes, which surprised me, but there was nothing absurdly ridiculous about them: next to no nudity, although there is no question the men are not in the slightest clothed; and they are not overly long and drawn out. The second one is cut short by a double murder, which in a morbid twist is refreshing because no one expects people to get axed while they're getting busy in a car--a bit for the irony, the film is.

On the other side of the scale involving the special effects, considering the movie was made all for under 2 million dollars, the graphics look amazingly top notch--Darren's reincarnation bears the resemblance of someone who clearly no longer has a beating heart, being gray in color, but not so decayed as to appear like he was stolen from the set of a Resident Evil movie. While still human in appearance, he has the handy nature that comes from being dead--only a few can see him, solid objects don't hinder him or kill him, and he has the ability to kill people while always appearing to be merely an apparition. The blood, which is no more gore than can be thrown around an American movie set, is highly stylized, yet not fake in slightest. There are moments where the blood shed is highly unrealistic, I have yet to see medical proof where hands being chopped off results in hose-like spraying of blood for minutes on end. The deaths, all-in-all, tend to avoid the characteristic suspension of disbelief that comes from movies such as these or other movies of the action genre in general. The only disbelief that is accepted is that a ghost is killing living people, something that the movie going audience has accepted as possible since Freddie Kruger, or possibly before him, I imagine.

In an interview I saw with the cast, they described the movie and it is classified as a Horror-Comedy. There are moments of humor that most anyone can appreciate, but overall the movie contains traces of a story too realistic to be humorous. Clearly, this is a classification that makes much more sense to the British audience, that I, as an American cannot see the humor laced heavily within the story. Another contributing factor is probably, also, because I'm a chick and women, somehow, do not find slasher movies as funny as our male counter-parts. This movie, in the end though, is not for those who are weak stomached in any sense--the deaths are especially terrible for the bullies and while the sexual contact was limited, the sexual jokes were not. All these qualities will definitely earn this film an R rating, but it is certainly not the worst R rated film I have seen, and nor will it be the last. It is, however, one of the better ones. I have seen similar movies before and they are movies I was glad to have seen once, but watching them again, I wonder in retrospect, why I ever liked them. I can tell you, upfront, that this movie completely avoids that category. The movie approaches the motive with realistic intensity and avoids the predictable ending of most slasher movies--Darren really is what is known as "an unstoppable menace" within the horror genre. By the end, you somewhat sympathize for what Bradley (Alex Pettyfer) and his gang of friends did to Darren, but you cannot sympathize with his character because of his actions--even his best friend did not survive.

Despite the fact that most horror movies avoid character driven plot for action driven plot, this movie finds a happy medium between the two. Since it is so rarely seen, the approach is refreshing and the screenplay biting. The characters are never fully fleshed out, but we see the results as a culmination of their actions. Darren's character we only see in his murderous rampage, but also in video clips of him being tormented in life. While many girls will swoon for the leading males and the leading ladies are no less stunning--a good looking cast all around--they are not people a viewer can fully sympathize with, even at the end of the film. I have heard and learned that a writing is not a success unless the main character(s) can be sympathized with on some small level (even if they are the villain) and even if it is the movies. Despite everything my English professors tell me, I am inclined to disagree on this one respect. As long as you are intrigued by the characters and the situation created by the dynamic to keep the plot moving and people interested, you have an in. This movie has that very in. An official DVD release in the United States is set for August 31st, 2010, and this small-time British film is one I shall keep on the list of things to purchase once it hits the East Coast (I am purchasing it the day it comes out).

Looking for a good horror movie, Tormented should be near the top of your list. If you're not one hundred percent sold, rent it first, but it is a movie I think, personally, everyone should see at least once.

~and the movies keep coming~

First off, as of the writing of this critique, Amazon has combined reviews for the 2009 British homage to teen slasher films "Tormented" with the 1960 micro-budget ghost story "Tormented." The films are rather dissimilar, as you might imagine, so just be aware of what you're looking at. For my part, I'm going to be addressing the former. Jon Wright's slight story about bullying, teen alienation, and retribution amongst the students of a posh British academy is a perfectly serviceable little film. An attractive cast, playing mostly caricatures of social types, are plagued by a serial murderer who may have been pushed a little too far. Several of the key actors are likable enough and the film is well constructed, it just lacks a bit of originality when all is said and done. If you like a little thriller/comedy mash-up and you don't mind overly familiar plotting--you can do worse than "Tormented." I've just seen it too frequently before and oftentimes better. As is, though, this plays as a relatively tame and unsurprising entry in an overstuffed genre.

The film begins in the aftermath of a suicide. The young man who died is relatively unknown to head girl Justine (Tuppence Middleton), who nonetheless publicly speaks to the student populace about the tragedy. Attracting the attention of the cool kids, Justine is courted by Alexis (Dimitri Leonidas) to the disdain of the crowd's popular leader (Alex Pettyfer) and his bevy of it-girls. Justine is soon ignoring her old friends to be among high school royalty. But she soon uncovers that the dead boy was madly crushing on her (which she was completely oblivious to) and that her new group was mercilessly taunting him. When members of the elite start getting murdered, might it just be a vengeful spirit seeking retaliation for past injustices? And who will survive?

As I said, I didn't hate "Tormented." It is, however, fairly forgettable. The cast is game and easy on the eyes--with Middleton, Leonidas and Pettyfer turning in solid performances. I suspect many people will uncover this film as Alex Pettyfer is exploding with a couple of high profile roles in 2011, and he is an appealing villain. But, the whole bullying concept is trite, overused, and way too convenient. I wish writer Stephen Prentice had spent some time trying to distinguish "Tormented" from a hundred other similar films. About 2 1/2 stars for me based solely on the fact that it had zero surprise or novelty factor, it'll still pass the time in an inoffensive manner if you've got nothing better cooking. Lightweight and lacking imagination. KGHarris, 2/11

. As a true horror flick, you can definitely do worse than this. The acting ranges from average to bad (there's a big shock, right?), the special effects are pretty cheesy, the plot is fairly lame, the direction equally so, the screenplay fairly trite -- in other words, all the necessary ingredients for a great B-horror movie experience. And despite it all, there are a few moments here when you'll definitely feel the hairs at the back of your neck bristle. This is great for an evening of 1-2 equally bad/good flicks, some popcorn and maybe a beer or two. For this price, there's no way to go wrong.