Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Disturbing, violent.....superb!, 27 Feb 2005
Apparently this film showed to London audiences in 2004 and was universally panned by the critics.Let me start by saying that I have a fascination for Charles Manson and The Family. I remember when it all happened in the late 60s, I saw the CBS documentary in the 70s (?) and I have read both 'Helter Skelter' and Manson's own 'Without Conscience'. This fascination doesn't extend to the hero worship that he seems to have achieved? I am fully aware that he is totally insane, having seen interviews with him on TV. The power that he managed to exert over his followers and indeed the affect that he has had on popular culture is nothing short of spectacular. The Family and Altamont signified the death of the Peace and Love Generation and the realisation that humanity is basically violent and not able to exist in peace.
And so onto this dvd. Whatever you have seen before, this will shock you. This is a disturbing film. Not so long ago it would never have made it to dvd?
It is filmed in a documentary style, with grainy interviews with actors playing the part of Family members. It is the story from inside the Family, rather than the story of Charles Manson. There are a lot of drug crazed, group sex and blood orgies, some of them being quite disturbing (e.g. the dog sacrifice, Charlie crucifixion, acid orgy). There is a soundtrack of psychotic organ and feedback guitar, interspersed with the sound of climaxing women. And there is the violence. This is not the sanitised, comic book violence of Hollywood. This is the most graphic, vivid, bloody and brutal violence that you are ever likely to see on a legal dvd?! It is Texas Chainsaw Massacre crossed with the drug fuelled excesses of Easy Riders' acid scene in the New Orleans graveyardn?!) with Snuff thrown in for good measure! Excessive? The true story is excessive! The Family really did cut the unborn baby out of Sharon Tate's womb! That is excessive!? I believe that it is necessary to the film. Disturbing? Without a doubt. If you aren't affected by this film you need therapy!
To add to it, there is a side story about some modern Mansonites, who are drug crazed, sado-masochistic psychos. Apparently some of the cast didn't like this being added to the film (which began filming in 1988!) but I think that it works in the way that it shows how some aspects of society will make a hero of the most evil, disturbed individuals and be influenced by them.
So is it a good film? It is one of the most disturbing, vilolent films that I have ever seen. No, make that THE most disturbing, violent film that I have ever seen! I think that it is a masterpiece. If you think that you can handle it, watch it!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
I have to admit, this is a pretty hard hitting and very well made film !! !! !! !!, 21 Jan 2007
The first thing you have to understand that this is not just a B-movie based on a bunch of murders and making a true story an excuse to make alot of bloody death scenes put into a film.
This is actually a fairy realistic film of the true events of the Manson family murders and dont get me wrong, this film has some terribly violent scenes, yet the vast length of this film is mainly about the events that lead to the murders and what caused the poeple to do what they did. That-plus-there is a little twist at the end which sees the manson family uprising again.
The acting isnt all magnificent and you can tell this is a budget film, but due to its extreme realism and surprisingly good picture (thanks to the surprisingly good DVD), this film doesnt look to dated or badly made when you get into the flow of the story.
Like i said earlier, this film does mainly show the event that lead the manson family members to kill, and how exatly they were brainwashed, the film does have alot of sex and nudity, plus a fair amount of drug use in the scenes that follow up to the disturbingly realistic and brutal killings of the familys. The murders themselves arent all that bloody compared to those of a film that revolves around the death scenes, such as a bloody slasher film. Yet the killings in this film are genually some of the most disturbing ive seen in films, so fans of this kind of thing should enjoy the climax of this film, Yet like i said before, this films violence is not the centerpiece of the film, so do not buy this film as i did in search of a super gory slasher film, because the killing is only at the very end of the movie.
This film also covers up alot of misconceptions of Charlie Manson, as in this film he only kills one person, if that. This film shows you what really happend with that little twist to make it into a movie that isnt like the rest.
This is also a docemantary style film and although the actors blatantly act as the people involved in the murders it does add alot of realism to the film, and the style in which the film is made, how each scene moves to the next from shots of the currently runnign manson members to the documentary style quotes the whitneses give to the main story. This is a very well made and extrememly wel directed movie when you really look into it.
I would reccomend this to anyone who likes disturbing B-movies, and dont mind watching 7/8th's of a movie to get to the murders or someone who is intrerested in the Manson murders may want to watch this but the hard-core Manson buffs may find this a bit unrealist as it does twist the truth a little to make it into a movie thats watchable by more audiences. Overall though this is a little gem of movie making, and a decent sex 'n' horror flick. And to be honest, i baught mine for 2 quid and the asking prices on amazon dont look like their gonna be much higher. The extras on this 2 disc version are also pretty good considering how quiet this film has kept and as i said earlier, the picture is pretty good.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The good, bad and ugly., 9 Dec 2005
By A Customer
A triumph of low budget, no correction, NO budget film-making this alternates between moments of excellence and equal moments of chaotic mess. Well done Vanbebber for working away and getting the thing finished but there are some weak things on display here. The biggest bad move was the inclusion of the "modern" Mansonites and their slaying of the news anchor man. Hopless and laughable in the extreme. On the other hand the 60's / 70's footage, for the most part, is very good and convincing. A good example of how having no money and poor grade film stock really adds to the look and feel. Still one of the best "fan" movies out there and truly ambitious. Comparing this to other independent horror film fair rubbish demonstrates how this work is simply miles ahead of the crowd.
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