Mecanix

Director - Remy M. Larochelle
Starring - Stephane Bilodeau (Someone is Watching), Julie-Anne Cote (Rollerball), and Philippe Chabot (The Descendant)
Release Date - 2003
Format - DVD (Personal Collection)

Rating (out of 5):

     When it comes to depravity there is a hand full of movie companies you can turn to for your fix.  Some look to ToeTag for their gore.  ToeTag has built a large following over the last decade and a half or so with films like the August Underground trilogy, The Redsin Tower, and Maskhead.  Then you have the Florida based Unearthed Films owned by the uncompromising Stephen Biro.  The company is known for releasing films like Where the Dead Go to Die, Black Metal Veins, and the Vomit Gore trilogy.  The company recently made an even bigger splash when Biro stepped behind the camera for American Guinea Pig: Bouquet of Guts and Gore.  Though I was not fond of the film I can see how it took the faux snuff film to a whole new level.  I recently befriended Biro and he was kind enough to start sharing Unearthed Films' press releases.  Sometime ago he sent over a pr for Mecanix.  It looked unique to say the least and soon after I found the film in my mail box from my friends over at MVD.  I want to thank Biro and MVD for sending this one my way.
     The film takes place in a world where all of humanity is gone except two people.  The world is populated by machines who cover themselves in the corpses of bones of different animals.  They control one of the two surviving humans.  He is a scientist and he is tasked with stopping the other human who is carrying an embryo that is said to save mankind from extinction.






     I had no idea what Mecanix was about when I first received the initial press release.  The film looked crazy but I could not make heads or tails out of what was going on in the trailer.  Frankly, I still don't which is fine because I still enjoyed myself.  The acting in this one is non-existent.  The cast is mostly made up of animated creatures and mechanical beasts.  We do have two or three human characters but they have no true lines of dialogue and act against a backdrop.  They could be seasoned actors or new to film and make their roles work.  The story for this one is fun but I wish it was a little more like a traditional film.  The story following a world where humans are no longer the top of the food chain is chilling.  The mechanical creatures covering their body in the dead is even creepier.  However, I wish there was a little more to it.  A story like this would have been perfect for a short but with the length we are given we need more to it.  This raised more questions than it had answers.  Finally, the film looks spectacular.  The film uses live action and animation/Claymation to get its unique look.  The film does not have any blood and a little gore but does have marvelous creatures and cinematography.  Overall, Mecanix is Ray Harryhausen meets Clive Barker.  It may be short on story but more than makes up for it with beauty.