Disturbing yet enthralling

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Two things might attract you to this movie; if you're like C, it's the prospect of seeing adult film actress Sasha Grey doing something other than swallowing massive meat (although why you would want to see her doing anything but that is a mystery to me), or you're like myself, and want to see a movie that is a tribute to the life and works of the God Father of gore H.G. Lewis....The gore, or lack of it, is another disappointment. The effects aren't really the problem, I realised that they were obviously fake to mimic some of the questionable gore props used in the 60s and 70s however I distinctly remember most of Lewis' gore being quite revolting and of bad taste. In 'Smash Cut' they are all played for a laugh which was a bit of a shame. In addition to this, and contrary to much of Lewis' ethos, many of the gore scenes are remarkably weak, nothing much is shown. On occasion the gore is there with some guts and plenty of blood, but certainly nothing which sticks in your head like in Lewis' movies.'Smash Cut' delivers an experience which is occasionally close to the great Lewis movies of old, too often though it forces the formula too far, with the 'bad acting' coming off a little to camp, and many of the jokes coming too close to seeming like a bit of a micky take. There are many aspects of the movie which fall short, but overall, the main problem remains that for a movie attempting to pay homage to the God Father of gore, it's not anyway near gory enough.Read the full review at: beyondthegore

Bitter and deranged hack horror director Able Whitman (marvelously essayed with trademark rip-snorting gusto by the always reliable David Hess) gets slammed by critics for the hokey quality of his hopelessly cheesy movies. So Able decides to start killing his enemies and using their body parts as props in his latest schlock opus. It's up to spunky reporter April Carson (a solid and appealing performance by adorable hardcore porn starlet Sasha Grey) and suave private investigator Isaac Beaumonde (smoothly played by Jesse Buck) to stop the lethal lunatic. Director Lee Gordon Demarbre and writer Ian Driscoll lovingly craft a bright, witty, and energetic ode to blithely low-grade horror exploitation cinema that makes the grade thanks to an engaging tongue-in-cheek tone, nifty homages to the grisly work of legendary goremeister Herschell Gordon Lewis (who has a neat small part as April's boss Fred Sandy and does a spot-on introduction warning folks about the graphic nature of this picture), outrageously excessive gore set pieces that really hit the splattery spot (a snobby film critic getting bagged with a clapper board rates as the definite wonderfully ridiculous highlight), and a wild climax set at a movie theater. As usual, it's a total blast to see Hess go gloriously bonkers and bump off various folks in inventively gruesome ways. Popping up in nifty supporting roles are Michael Berryman as shyster producer Philip Farnsworth Jr., Ray Sager as flamboyant hypocritical preacherman Reverend Roscoe Boone, and Jennilee Murray as doomed stripper Georgia Carson. Jean-Dennis Menard's gaudy cinematography gives the film an appropriately garish look and boasts several impressively intricate tracking shots. Michael Dubue's funky, lively, syncopated score does the right-on groovy trick. Enjoyable junk.

"I need inspiration." Poor Able Whitman(David Hess)is a filmmaker whose horror movies are rejected as worthless tripe(is this loosely based on Uwe Bol?)and he drowns his sorrow away in alcoholic pity at the local strip club(where he often finds his actresses!). A tragic event yielding a dead stripper's body may just be the inspiration Whitman needs to bring more authenticity to his work! The lingering shot of the dead body at his disposal creates an enthusiasm in his producers demanding product just as presented to them. Desperate for recognition after being long criticized, Whitman is so willing to present real, he'll draw his own blood for a "blood shower" set up written on script. Anyway, the dead stripper's sister and a detective join forces to find her whereabouts, following all the leads which will inevitably lead to Whitman. Meanwhile, Whitman descends into madness, killing those in his crew in order to further add realism to his bloody horror movie.Someone has done it! Maybe this means little to nothing if you are not an admirer of Herschell Gordon Lewis, but for those who love the guy, "Smash Cut" could be worthwhile. I imagine that this movie will be of special interest to the David Hess fan club because he is the star headlining the movie along with gorgeous porn star Sasha Grey . Seeing Hess in clownface alone will be enough I think for his faithful to check this out. That or when he pulls the arm accidentally off a stripper who is killed in a car crash, Hess completely distraught. The scene where Hess collapses after the incident where he drew blood is a howler! Oh, and Hess even gets so worked up while gathering up his bits and pieces for his movie(from the car crash victim!)that he uses the severed arm's shirt sleeve to wipe his sweaty brow! Jesse's detective Beaumonde is a character of the HGL grand tradition..he's obviously modeled after Frank Kress from The Gore Gore Girls(he even carries a cane and is sure in love with himself). I have to say that this may be the first time, the avid horror fan that I am, I've actually seen a victim held captive in a film vault. Oh, and how Hess' director goes into hysterics regarding how Hamlet is in essence a horror film when this is challenged by April(Grey as a woman seeking a part in Whitman's new movie so she can follow him more closely)is quite a hoot. Or, the macabre scene involving April unknowingly holding her dead sister's decapitated head while quoting a line from Hamlet. Hess has a lot of kill scenes where he follows up his grisly antics with some goofy line("It's gut check time!" "I always knew you had a good eye" "I have final cut!")to cement each demented act of violence. Lots of black humor on display. Is there anything more cool than HGL opening the film?! To have the godfather of gore a part of your splatter movie must've been a great honor for both sides, the one for which the film is dedicated to and for the director to have his hero present and part of "Smash Cut." Michael Berryman, in a ridiculous wig, is Hess' not-so-bright producer, pairing together two memorable exploitation icons in scenes where they can send up their image. Ray Sager is a reverend who enlists boycotts of Whitman's movies and gets caught with his pants down by Beaumonde during the investigation. The violence is purposely low-tech, particularly an absurd scene where canons of blood gusher after Whitman chops off the hands of a screenplay writer with a cleaver. I'm a little kind to this movie because it was such a pleasure seeing Hess having such fun in quite a wacky role..and, nope, he doesn't rape anybody. While I think the image of Sasha Grey in a nurse uniform covered in blood is an attractive one, I found her lacking in personality. Still, she's mighty easy on the eyes, and I imagine there's a place in the horror genre for her if she ever decides to leave pornography behind.

If you love low budget films, this is an absolute must-see. I loved every minute of it, every bad line of dialogue, every bad joke, every predictable plot device, even the ridiculous costumes.On the "B" movie scale I give it 8 out of 10.The cast and director are (mostly) very experienced, if you think for a minute that the camp and cheese is accidental, you should probably rent a Van Damme flick next time.Incidentally, it was filmed in my hometown, so I enjoyed seeing familiar landmarks. Most notably the famous Bytown Theater is featured in several scenes.I read the other reviews on here and really, if you don't like "B" movies, don't write reviews on them... If you know what to expect from this film, you will love it.OK, actual critical stuff... The opening and closing credits were both absolutely first rate. The score is brilliant, really ties the film together very nicely. The cast is full of familiar faces for horror buffs, which is a real treat. Sasha Grey performs excellently, and I love that the director never sexualizes her (except for a cute nurse outfit).Watch this movie in the right frame of mind and you will have a blast!