100 TEARS
Writer:Joe Davison
Director:Marcus Koch
Starring:Jack Amos, Raine Brown, Georgia Chris, Joe Davison
Availability:DVD Available from www.unearthedfilms.com or mvdb2b.com
Rating:
Marcus Koch is a fucking god in the world of indie horror. There is just nobody out there who touches him in the world of gore effects. In a lot of ways, you could say he's this generation's Tom Savini, only much more talented and far less of a fucking asshole. When he's not too busy raising the bar for cinematic bloodshed, Marcus also moonlights as a director, and he's pretty damn good at that as well. His shot on video punk rock horror flick Rot is an absolutely essential part of any SOV library. His 100 Tears follow-up Fell is an absolutely devastating character piece that shows he can do wonders even when the gore is kept to a minimum. I've yet to see his early flick Bad Blood, but I hope to change that one of these days.
This all brings us to the movie I'm reviewing tonight...100 Tears. I first saw this bad boy some years back, and it's stuck with me ever since. You see, I'm a sucker for killer clowns, but unfortunately, it's one of those concepts that so many movies fail to be able to capitalize on. For every Killer Klowns From Outer Space, there's ten Jingles The Clowns. There are a handful of killer clown films that do it right. Aside from Killer Klowns From Outer Space, there's also Tim Curry as Pennywise in It (though I think this is an incredibly flawed film otherwise), Fear of Clowns, the last two Killjoy movies, Drive-Thru, Stitches, Klown Kamp Massacre, and this one. Gurdy is one bad-ass motherfucker, and there is plenty of blood and gore here to satisfy everyone...even Grandma.
Jack Amos is absolutely brilliant as Gurdy, a clown who once sought revenge on the people who wrongfully condemned him. Unfortunately, this act of vengeance triggers something inside of him, and now Gurdy is a non-stop killing machine. Throw in a couple tabloid reporters, and the always gorgeous Raine Brown as Gurdy's daughter (who also has a thirst for blood), and you have all the ingredients you need for a bona fide modern body count classic! The script from Joe Davison gives us a very eclectic group of characters. These aren't your typical slasher cliche roles. These are characters you like, that you care about, and goddamn it! Why can't more slasher movies understand that the details are just as important as the kills.
Marcus shows some mad skills behind the camera. He fills the Gurdy sequences with a truly atmospheric sense of dread. The film's low budget is never all that obvious, because Marcus has a real sense of style, and he gets some very strong performances from just about everyone here. Georgia Chris and Joe Davison are a lot of fun as the reporters, and they give the film a sense of comic relief. The gore effects, obviously, are absolutely top notch! The kills themselves aren't always the most inventive, but who cares? If there's a way to die, Marcus will find a way to exploit it!
The new release from Stephen Biro and Unearthed Films finally gave me a reason to revisit this sucker. This new release is fantastic. Not only does it offer an extended version of the movie, but you also get a crap ton of special features. The special feature that meant the most to me, though, were the childhood short films included on the set. Sure, they're rough, they're amateur, and they're far from groundbreaking. Still, though, they show a lot of heart, and I always love to see the humble beginnings of the directors I admire. This is definitely an essential release for fans of this movie.
So, there simply isn't anything I can say that hasn't already been said about this movie. It's the ultimate killer clown movie, and since my first time seeing it, I've been a fan of Marcus's, and he's a man whose career I will continue to follow. I mean, come on! He uses a fucking Voltaire song in the closing credits, for fuck's sake! If you don't know who Voltaire is, remedy that shit immediately. He's fantastic! So, buy this movie. If you've never seen it, I envy you for having the chance to see this for the first time. If you're already a fan, it's worth it for the extra footage and the bad-ass special features.
Until next time, my fellow freaks and weirdos...
Jack Amos is absolutely brilliant as Gurdy, a clown who once sought revenge on the people who wrongfully condemned him. Unfortunately, this act of vengeance triggers something inside of him, and now Gurdy is a non-stop killing machine. Throw in a couple tabloid reporters, and the always gorgeous Raine Brown as Gurdy's daughter (who also has a thirst for blood), and you have all the ingredients you need for a bona fide modern body count classic! The script from Joe Davison gives us a very eclectic group of characters. These aren't your typical slasher cliche roles. These are characters you like, that you care about, and goddamn it! Why can't more slasher movies understand that the details are just as important as the kills.
Marcus shows some mad skills behind the camera. He fills the Gurdy sequences with a truly atmospheric sense of dread. The film's low budget is never all that obvious, because Marcus has a real sense of style, and he gets some very strong performances from just about everyone here. Georgia Chris and Joe Davison are a lot of fun as the reporters, and they give the film a sense of comic relief. The gore effects, obviously, are absolutely top notch! The kills themselves aren't always the most inventive, but who cares? If there's a way to die, Marcus will find a way to exploit it!
The new release from Stephen Biro and Unearthed Films finally gave me a reason to revisit this sucker. This new release is fantastic. Not only does it offer an extended version of the movie, but you also get a crap ton of special features. The special feature that meant the most to me, though, were the childhood short films included on the set. Sure, they're rough, they're amateur, and they're far from groundbreaking. Still, though, they show a lot of heart, and I always love to see the humble beginnings of the directors I admire. This is definitely an essential release for fans of this movie.
So, there simply isn't anything I can say that hasn't already been said about this movie. It's the ultimate killer clown movie, and since my first time seeing it, I've been a fan of Marcus's, and he's a man whose career I will continue to follow. I mean, come on! He uses a fucking Voltaire song in the closing credits, for fuck's sake! If you don't know who Voltaire is, remedy that shit immediately. He's fantastic! So, buy this movie. If you've never seen it, I envy you for having the chance to see this for the first time. If you're already a fan, it's worth it for the extra footage and the bad-ass special features.
Until next time, my fellow freaks and weirdos...
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