I think many people have since sought out this film as I heard it was featured on a popular DVD titled Boogiemen - The Killer Compilation (2001), which is not a showcase of 70's disco dancing stars but sort of a `greatest hits' of cinematic killers. Having not seen the video I just mentioned, I came across The Ugly (1997) through a recommendation to me by the Amazon website and found it intriguing enough to look into further. Written and directed by New Zealand native Scott Reynolds (I sort of feel sorry for any filmmakers coming out of New Zealand now as they'll invariably have to face being compared to New Zealand's prodigal son Peter Jackson), the film, comprised of mainly a cast of New Zealanders (none of whom I heard of before), stars Paolo Rotondo and Rebecca Hobbs, both of whom have produced and directed their own, short films. Also appearing is Jennifer Ward-Lealand, Roy Ward, and Vanessa Byrnes.

As the film begins, a shackled man with a pillowcase on his head is led down a hallway of what appears to be an institution of some kind. He's taken into a room and chained to a chair, suffering some abuse by a couple of orderlies who look like rejects from the film The Road Warrior. Soon Dr. Karen Shoemaker (Hobbs) arrives, and we learn she's here to provide an independent assessment of the man, whose name is Simon Cartwright (Rotundo), as he's serial killer of sorts who's been institutionalized for the past number of years. The thing that seems to puzzle authorities the most is Simon doesn't display any of the expected predilections of a serial killer, as all his victims have almost nothing in common, just people, some he knew, some he didn't, chosen at random to meet a grisly fate at the end of a straight edge razor. As Dr. Shoemaker begins to delve into Simon's past and his psyche, we witness some of his crimes and he talks about how voices in his head instructed him to do the things he did, forcing him to comply as they wouldn't stop badgering him until he did, to which we see there may be elements of the supernatural kind at work...we see a history of harassment from schoolmates and co-workers, along with rather harsh treatment by Simon's slightly cuckoo (for Coco Puffs?) mother (Ward-Lealand). Simon seems willing enough cooperate with Dr. Shoemaker at times, but then one can't help but feel his cooperation is more of a manipulation tactic to get what he really wants, which is still unclear at this point. Eventually Simon is able to gain Dr. Shoemaker's trust enough to allow him some minor liberties, but that ends up with Simon escaping and, well, you'll just have to watch the film if you want to know more...

I think the artwork on the DVD case, which kind of reminds me of that on the Jeepers Creepers DVD, makes the film more sensational that it actually is...the film wasn't bad, but I didn't find it to be all that great, either. I felt I'd seen this story done many times in the past, sometimes much better, sometime worse, but it brought very little originality to the predictable psychiatrist dealing with a killer patient, trying to find out what makes him tick and getting drawn into far beyond what she expected. The alluding to a supernatural aspect was something a little different, but the ambiguity surrounding this point sort of weaken it to the point where I didn't really care. And I felt the characters weren't written all that well (quite transparent), as so much time is spent on Simon's past that the character of Dr. Shoemaker, who is supposed to be one of the main characters, is watery thin, and I couldn't find myself developing any sort of empathy for her, which I think was important especially in terms of where the story eventually ended up, and overall, I had a hard time believing she was actually a doctor, but she is very attractive and pleasant to look at on the screen, so that counts for something. Now those orderlies...were these guys supposed to be some sort of comic element? The one guy had dirty dreadlocks (white guys with dreadlocks...not a good look), and walked around with his shirt wide open, displaying an `Intensity' tattoo on his belly. I found it hard to believe these guys had the job they did, given their sadistic nature. I also didn't care for how some of the violent scenes were shot, as they appear to have been done with a handheld, with the cameraman instructed to shake violently to help create a sense of frenzy, but it just made me a little dizzy. And in spending so much time in Simon's past I could hardly understand what drove him to do the things he did...sure he suffered from various things, but nothing seemed so life altering as to cause someone to develop into the killer that he did, except for maybe his mother who had a penchant for overly disciplining the young boy, but even that seemed hardly enough to cause one to go on a wholesale kill-for-all. I did like most of the directing, although I felt Reynolds did try to go for the cheap scare once too often. The flashback scenes, often blended in with the present were highly interesting and original, and handled really well. I can't say as I've seen this done before, but it certainly helped to blur the lines between what was real, and what wasn't...I think it's especially difficult to maintain a continuity bouncing around between the past and present, but Reynolds did an exception job in this aspect. Oh, yeah, I thought the use black rather than red blood an interesting choice as it added a different aesthetic to the film, but some more visceral lovers will be put off by it...

The widescreen anamorphic (1.85:1) picture on this DVD looks decent, and the Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround comes the fairly clean. The only special features include a trailer for this film, along with a couple of Trimark previews for films called Cube (1997) and Chinese Box (1997).

Cookieman108

I brought on a word of somebody,and found out that i had rented it years earlier and dint like it well thats after I spent $20 on it. I did not like this movie at all im stuck between 2.5 and 3 stars. Its not horribly bad just kind of cheezy and not scary at all. the blood dont even look real it looks like Oil or chocalte syrp or something. Rent b4 you buy I didnt like it and got rid of it.

This movie started out a little slow, but once it got going.....yow! Nightmare city.

Although this film is quite watchable, there are many better films of this type you should own first. For this much money, you should rent it, mail me a check for $10, and pocket the rest. You'll be glad you did.

Dumb and stupid. Not the least bit scary. And what's up with the black blood???? Don't waste your time or money on this piece of crap.