That was an excellent one.

Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Combat Shock has been described as a cross between Eraserhead and Taxi Driver. I would find that statement to be accurate . However, Taxi Driver is a shiny happy movie compared to this . This movie shows the crime of poverty , the horrors of war and how some veterans fall under real hard times when they return home. Very low budget , limited resources really set the tone for this filthy , bleak, urban hell . The most well made of anything under the Troma banner , and artistic even. I do enjoy a lot of Troma 's campy titles , but this is stone cold serious , depressing , and well done. The pace is slow, but hits hard and heavy like a Black Sabbath riff. Very good.

If you want to see a very effective, considerably penniless drama filled with horror and despair you can't go past the Troma released "Combat Shock". Looking at the cover artwork, it doesn't do it any justice because it's far more than just an exploitative actioner but a thoughtfully raw and unsettling psychological character piece on the struggle to cope with the hardship of unflinching reality that faced Frankie a Vietnam Vet returning back to a decayed society that just doesn't care. It's a dog eat dog world. Other than the nightmares and flashbacks that plague his mind, he finds himself still battling a war and trying to survive along with his wife and baby son (which is a disturbing sight); only the jungle this time is in his own backyard. An urban jungle --- where pimps and thugs rule the nest. Nothing seems to go right, even when he tries it goes from bad to worse with no real luck and the powerfully downbeat finale is hard to wipe from your mind. It's as depressing as you can get, because the story actually gets your into this character's mindset making you feel every bit of pain and torture. There is some action and violence, but like I mentioned earlier it's more than just that. Ugly to look at with its seedy shot on locations, but the script emotionally unfolds slowly and remains captivating in its bleak intensity. Sometimes it might lull about with the spaced-out central character's aimless wandering, but it grimy edginess just sticks with you. Although the accompanying electronic score does amplify some oddly sounding cues. Performances are credible and Ricky Giovinazzo moodily solitude turn is picture-perfect as Frankie. Director/writer/producer Buddy Giovinazzo straight-up compact handling is tough and unsparing, making the production a true labour of love. Primitive, but challenging entertainment."I can't go home empty handed tonight"

This one really struck me. I can't think of a more downright grimy movie than "Combat Shock." The plot is simple and effective. A guy comes back from 'Nam and is completely distant from everything and everyone. His life is awful and beyond upsetting.This film hardly has a redeeming quality to it; it's mostly just shocking and upsetting. The cover art is very deceptive, doesn't show at all what this movie is all about.I was pretty depressed after viewing this one, but I'm still glad I saw it, and I might even watch it again. This movie definitely does what it sets out to do on a minimal budget. It's one of those films where having a low budget adds to the overall effectiveness of the picture.Recommended for fans of films like "Deadbeat At Dawn," "Eraserhead" and "Nekromantik." 8 out of 10, kids.

This movie is so over the top in some aspects you cant help but laugh. The deformed baby that looks like an alien, his junkie friend mike who has bulging veins, etc. There is also some really funny scenes involving child prostitute sisters calling each other names and his junkie friend mike not being able to find a needle to shoot up his dime bag. I seriously doubt if the director intended all of this to be taken seriously. The big problem with the movie is all the drawn out scenes that go nowhere. You get pointless scenes with the baby crying and his cow of a wife complaining and milling about. There is a bunch of scenes with him walking around the same part of slum over and over as synth music plays in the background. This is a 90 min movie that needs about 30 mins cut out. The ending is very predictable although the baked baby was a nice touch. The director should have went for a more exciting "taxi driver" style ending but they probably didn't have the budget for that.