Madness of Many

Director - Kasper Juhl (Monstrosity)
Starring - Ellen Abrahamson (Version Noll), Alexandra Alegren (Supernova), and Dinna Ophelia Haeklund (Tour de Force)
Release Date - 2013
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "The most controversial film ever made in Denmark"
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     When it comes to horror there are names that everyone knows and respects.  Fred Vogel and Toe Tag, Ryan Nicholson and Plot Digger, Dustin Mills and Dustin Mills Productions, and Stephen Biro with Unearthed Films.  Sadly, just because they are well known and respected that does not mean that everyone likes their films.  Stephen Biro and Unearthed Films have carved a name for themselves in the horror underground with their releases of American Guinea Pig, Vomit Gore Trilogy, Collar, and so forth. Recently, they released Madness of Many on DVD from Denmark filmmaker Kasper Juhl.  I was intrigued by this but I have not been a fan of Unearthed Films.  I did not care for AGP but Collar was a solid release.  I tried to keep an open mind but deep down I was afraid this would be a big stinker.
     The film follows Victoria.  Victoria has lived a very rough life.  She was sexually abused by her parents when she was young and this lead to her dependency on drugs.  As she gets older she finds herself selling her body to anyone with some change so she can get her next fix.  She is soon bound, tortured, and starved for sometime until she is able to escape but her freedom does not last for long.  She soon finds herself in the middle of a hell she can not fathom.

     Sometime last year I reviewed the experimental gore film Flowers released by Unearthed Films.  The film lacked plot but offered up some great gore.  It was a chore to watch but the gore was amazing and made up for the film's lack of story.  Fast forward to today and this Unearthed Films release of Madness of Many feels like I was watching the same exact film that lacked the gore.  The acting in this one is not that great.  The film just follows Victoria, and other characters, while she narrates.  This gets old very quickly.  There is no real acting other than the cast just standing around acting out scenarios with little to no dialogue.  Maybe some real scenes with dialogue and character interactions would have made this film a lot better.  The story for this one is lacking.  The plot does not have enough substance to make a full length feature film.  Edited heavily it could have been an effective short but lacks a coherent story to hold the viewer's attention for over an hour.  The film's high point is the little bit of gore we do get but gore without story is just that, pointless gore.  Finally, the film does have several scenes full of torture and gore with some great practical effects but it is just a small portion of the film.  Overall, Madness of Many was a huge let down.  The film had no story and very little gore considering.  The film tries to be something more than your everyday horror flick and fails to offer up anything entertaining.  Skip this one and check out Flowers.