Dead Hooker in a Trunk (2009)

RATED- UNRATED
RUN TIME- 92 MINS
WRITER(S)- JEN AND SYLVIA SOSKA
STARRING- RIKKI GAGNE, JEN SOSKA AND SYLVIA SOSKA
DIRECTOR- JENA AND SYLVIA SOSKA



Synopsis taken from IMDb
Set in beautiful Vancouver, four friends set out on an everyday errand and end up in a fight for their lives when they discover the body of a dead hooker left in their trunk. Led by a sexy, impulsive Badass, her distant geek twin sister, their bible thumping, Jesus loving Goody Two Shoes friend, and a chaotic, rock star junkie pal, the group has to put aside their differences to dispose of the body before they're next. Thrown into their own personal purgatory, they face off against persistent police, a sleazy motel manager, chainsaw wielding triads, and a brutal serial killer. All the while they are followed by a mysterious Cowboy Pimp who wants to claim the corpse for his own. Will they uncover the truth behind the body and be able to stand up to their demons? Buckle up and get ready for the ride of your life filled with guns fights, extreme violence, blood, guts, gore, and goats. Dead Hooker in a Trunk is the unexpected first feature film written, directed, and produced by identical twin sisters, Jen and Sylvia Soska. The two newcomers created an impossible film that is an underground sensation, destined to become a cult classic and will make you fall in love with films again! 




Having seen "American Mary", I instantly became a fan of the Soska twins. It was apparent to me that they get what horror is and understand it on a professional level. They're innovative and tactical, as well as smart directors and writers. I even participated in an twitter chat-a-thon with the cast and crew when "American Mary" hit video a few weeks ago.

Even though I was on the ball with their newest film, one thing I never got around to was seeing their first film. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I heard nothing but good things. My dilemma was that I liked "American Mary" so much, that I was afraid of being let down by a lesser film. And I couldn't have been more wrong!

"Dead Hooker in a Trunk" is true Grindhouse style horror. You have a lot of films lately trying to be Grindhouse, but this movie is a lot more genuine than those. They didn't have to shoot it to look like it was from the 70's or make the film look deteriorated. They just shot a gritty, bloody and darkly sexy movie with a small budget and a lot of heart for the genre. 

It's a blast to watch from the opening scenes until the end credits. The Soska twins actually have some pretty decent acting skills, they're better than I thought they'd be. And they're a lot of fun. It's great to see how involved they were with this film, you can tell it's their baby and they took a lot of pride in it.

Another thing, is that it has a lot of humor in it! In one scene you're holding your mouth, and the next you're laughing and shaking your head. Very over the top, and very, very awesome film. I think anyone can enjoy this film. I actually almost like it more than their new film, "American Mary". Not quite...but almost.

The story is the most compelling thing about the film, because it's all over the place. There's so much going on and, so many crazy, over-the-top characters that you're enthralled to keep watching through the duration. 

The gore is really good and fun. It's both used in a funny gag way, and in a brutal "holy crap!" way. The scene where Jen Soska gets her eyeball knocked out cracked me up, but also got a quiet pause out of me. It's just the way the movie's made, it invokes every emotion in you!

In conclusion, "Dead Hooker in a Trunk" is a movie that you've gotta see as soon as possible, if you haven't seen it already. You won't know what you've missed out on until you see it. It's a roller coaster ride of pure awesomeness. I'm glad I finally got around to seeing this. Now I know what all the fuss was about.

American Mary (2012)

*** S  P  O  I  L  E  R  S ***

"Pain is Inevitable, Suffering Is Optional"

RATED- R

RUN TIME- 103 MINS

WRITER(S)- SYLVIA SOSKA AND  JEN SOSKA

STARRING- KATHARINE ISABELLE, ANTONIO CUPO AND TRISTAN RISK

DIRECTOR- JEN AND SYLVIA SOSKA

Synopsis taken from IMDb

The story follows medical student, Mary Mason, as she becomes increasingly broke and disenchanted with the surgical world she once admired...

STORY: A fellow horror blogger, Dr Blood, suggested this movie to me. So, of course after hearing it's good and seeing the poster above I was convinced. Not to mention the gorgeous Katharine Isabelle (Ginger Snaps) is the lead character Mary Mason.

Mary Mason is a sympathetic character and a reflection of the America's medical school students; broke and in need of money. Always working and studying and only getting deeper into debt. She goes to a strip club owner Billy (Antonio Cupo) and he gives her a job, $5000.00 for one night of work. The catch? Use her surgical training to torture a guy and disfigure him. Mary plays it off cool but when she gets home she's paranoid and not sleeping.

Then she meets Beatress Johnson (Tristan Risk), a woman who's undergone 14 surgeries to make herself look like Betty Boop, and I must add that she was creepy as hell looking. Beatress gives Mary some money to see her friend who wants a weird procedure done. Mary is apprehensive at first but is convinced in the end to do the procedure, which is to make a woman look like a barbie by cutting off and out all of her "woman parts". Now that Mary's doing good for herself and feeling good about herself, she's invited to a party with a bunch of Doctors. This makes her feel special until she gets drugged and raped by her teacher who suspected her of coming into wealth by being a prostitute. This is when the film really gets good...

Mary goes back to Billy and pays him to let her use his back room, and in that back room she has her teacher tied down to a table and uses her surgical magic to disfigure him for life, the ultimate revenge. She splits his tongue and makes him a complete amputee. As she put it, she gave him 14 of the most bizarre and requested surgeries in one night. Mary is soon pursued by a cop looking for her missing teacher.

From here the movie gets more and more twisted and the ultimate lesson of this movie is that revenge is a bitch and that once someone's done what they have to do, they'll never get to do what they want to do. Mary Mason's story is simply about greed and the power of the mighty dollar and in today's society. It really hits a high note because not a lot of people can't say that they wouldn't do what she does in this film. And that's a sad, tragic thing, losing your moral to have the finer things in life. Mary Mason finds what she's good at and capitalizes. And in the end, her sins and her unethical actions that she does for the big pay-offs costs Mary very, very dearly.

Mary exacts revenge on her teacher and rapist.

ACTING: The acting in this movie is spot on, there wasn't anything I can really complain about. Katharine Isabelle puts on her best performance yet and although she isn't very well known, I think this movie is going to make her known. It should anyway, after this film she deserves some credit.



KILLS/GORE: The killings and torture are well done and very vague at points. I love that they don't show you everything! If you read my blog then you know I don't mind a movie that doesn't show you every single last drop of blood spilled. Horror movies started as dark, romantic movies, so I sincerely don't like it when people complain about lack of gore because to me that shows that you aren't a true horror fan, you just like the twisted stuff. A horror movie is supposed to give you the creeps and if it does then it does it's job. Gore and brutality don't make a horror movie, but this film still has it's share of gore malevolence.



OVERALL: I'd say this movie is damned near perfect. It's got all the right ingredients to be an instant classic. It's Nip/Tuck with a bigger set of balls and a more twisted personality. Almost everyone in this movie except for Mary and Billy are suspicious and creepy, you don't know who to trust or what their motive is. The Soska sisters nailed the eerie atmospheric feeling to this film and it keeps you enthralled and on edge. This movie rocks!

THIS FILM GETS 4 REAPER SKULLS OUT OF 5