Das Komabrutale Duell (DVD)
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Reviewed by Johnny Butane
Starring Heiko Fipper, Mike Hoffman, Stefan Hoft
Directed by Heiko Fipper
Released by Unearthed Films
“Your ribcage is hanging open. I’ll staple it together in the basement”
So I got this in the mail the other day from Unearthed Films and if you ever needed any indication of just what a strange company they are, look no further than the German splatterfest Das Komabrutale Duell.
There is a plot, of sorts, but you’ll be really lucky if you can make it out between the 10+ minutes of gore scenes in between the sporadic dialogue. Apparently, though, the film is about a guy who was put into a coma by the Eightlets Mafia, a gang of eight identical siblings, and has awoken years later to find his life in ruins so he goes on a revenge trip. Well, sort of. Actually he just wakes up and walks out of the hospital, only to be attacked by one of the Mafia’s cronies on the way home and the cycle of violence begins anew.
Sucks to be him.
The rest of the “film” consists of scenes of our hero and two friends running around, usually through a park, finding gang members and getting into fights with them, killing or dismembering one another, somehow piecing themselves back together, and going back at it again. Seriously, that’s the whole film.
So, in lieu of writing an actual review, I will give you a list of just some of what I learned watching Das Komabrutal Duell…
As for the DVD itself, picture quality is what one would expect from a movie made with about $20 almost 10 years ago with low-grade equipment. This isn’t really a movie that would benefit from any cleanup. Part of its charm, as it were, is in how cheap it looks.
Even though Unearthed put a slew of features on the back of the DVD, they’re all pretty much the same thing; “Behind the Scenes” is just some shots being filmed over and over again, “Outtakes” is the same with the cast and crew laughing more in between, and “Deleted Scenes” are just that; scenes of extended plot or brutality not deemed worthy of the final cut. Oh, and can’t forget “Digital Effects Comparison” which shows, for example, what a gun shot scene looks like before a digital muzzle flash is put in. Fascinating.
So the real question is; is the movie worth watching? Personally I wouldn’t again since it’s violence for no other reason than to be violent, something that really only works if there’s some semblance of plot around it (see Brain Dead). However, as a curiosity piece I’m sure a lot of you would dig it. If nothing else I’m sure it’s a fun movie to get fucked up to and see how strong your friend’s stomachs are…
Special Features
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2 out of 5
Special Features:
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1 1/2 out of 5
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