A horror anthology spawned from the imaginations of three separate Writers/Directors. All different tales set to theme of sex and death, all upturning the seediest underbellies of society. First up is Sean Hogan's 'House And Home', which sets the tone, despite flirting with the paranormal a little too much to really fit in here. A well-to-do husband and wife with particular tastes invite a homeless girl back to their house for wine and rohypnol. When she comes around, she is naked and tied to a bed. The husband rapes her, while the wife looks on. When finished, he showers, leaving the victim to his wife. It soon becomes all too clear that the victim may not be the woman tied to the bed at all.
Secondly, we have 'Mutant Tool' by Andrew Parkinson, which despite the premise of the first film, is still the most outlandish of the three stories on offer here. An ex-prostitute and drug user is trying to go straight, but is finding it difficult making ends meet. She sees her Doctor who provides her with some new medication to make her feel better, but they have some unfortunate side-effects. Not least is the unusual psychic connection it creates between her and a nameless and faceless manacled prisoner, hidden away in a cell, used for biological experimentation, the result of which is the very pills she has been prescribed.
Lastly, we have 'Bitch' by Simon Rumley. Easily the most accomplished of the anthology here and probably the most unsettling as it approaches the subjects of humiliation and revenge with a degree of reality that truly is unsavoury. Pete is being dominated completely by his girlfriend Claire, treating him like a dog and making him eat and drink from a bowl, sexually abusing him with a strap on dildo and making him sleep in a handmade kennel. He happily plays along for a while, keen to make his lover happy. He even urinates on all fours in her knicker drawer when she is out, knowing that despite the disgust, she will really appreciate his efforts. Only when the abuse extends to sleeping with his best friend despite his protestations, does he decide to get his own back, with gruesome results.
The acting from all is acceptable though never outstanding and the tales are suitably grim given the subject matter. The direction in all three shorts are gritty and down to earth, never straying from a perspective of reality that makes the viewer permanently uncomfortable. This is not a film to watch with your parents and if we're honest about it, there is a niche market for this kind of thing which straddles the bad taste soft porn and torture horror genres quite adeptly. Not one for Grandma.
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