\"Isn't there something that you could get a psychic reading on other than her panties?\" I thought it was OK.
Body Parts is set in Hollywood & starts as Detectives Frank Otello
(Dick Monda) & his partner Harris (Steven B. McMillan) are called out to the 'Body Parts Strip Club' where a homicidal maniac has slaughtered all the strippers & the owner, they also discover a couple of hookers murdered in a cheap motel room across the street & a videotape. Back at the station they play the tape & find that the murderer filmed their killing spree, Otello & Harris are baffled as nothing in the case makes any sense. Was it wannabe filmmaker & virgin college student from out of town Marty (John Gidcomb)? Or perhaps the bartender Price Waterson (Johnny Mandell) did it after being fired? What about sex mad weirdo stripper & part time Marilyn Monroe impersonator Norma-Jean (Teri Marlow) who was also sacked? Then there's always the theory of brilliant psychic Dr. Christopher Jocoby (Clement Von Franckenstein (hey, that's his name in the credits!)) that an ancient Egyptian demon is responsible, who knows? This Canadian production was written & directed by Michael Paul Girard & for what it was I actually thought it was alright. The script is more of a detective thriller with some comedy & a bit of sex & nudity thrown in there for good measure. Despite the title Body Parts & it being advertised primarily as a horror film for the most part I'd say it has little in the way of horror in it, all of the murders except one take place within the first five minutes so until the very end there is not a single death & the film focuses on Otello & Harris's investigations. The whole Egyptian demon thing is thrown in there but not much is done with it except provide a silly over-the-top explanation. While the horror elements were lacking & didn't impress me what did impress me was that it was rather well written & the things actually rather funny at times with some smart dialogue, a scene near the start when Otello is watching the murder tape & he says 'he sure ain't going to win no academy award for this s*it' has to be intentional & a joke by the filmmakers aimed squarely at themselves. There is also a very funny scene where the psychic is trying to find the whereabouts of a stripper so he touches & sniffs her panties to try & get some sort of psychic reading on them! It also has the benefit of likable character's, I suppose while I was disappointed there wasn't any blood, gore or dismembered body parts & it wasn't exactly exciting I found Body Parts surprisingly very likable. I don't know, this is one of those films that when watched you shouldn't like it but for some strange reason I did like it, so sue me. Director Girard was obviously working on a low budget here & it shows, the whole thing looks cheap although luckily he never takes the film too seriously. He does what he can & he goes for that neon lit look where half the screen is brightly lit by neon lights while the other half is so dark you can't see jack. There are plenty of strip scenes which help things, forget about any gore, seriously there barely a drop of blood in the entire thing & there certainly isn't a single body part in sight that isn't still attached to it's owner. Disappointing to say the least. Technically Body Parts is a little rough around the edges but everyone seemed to try their best & I also think that shows on screen as well. Some of the music & songs are also quite good. The acting was OK at best. Body Parts wasn't what I expected as a film, having said that it turned out to be a pleasant surprise, sure it's not that well made & has no gore whatsoever but it has a certain charm about it that I just liked. Anyway, that's my opinion & I'm sticking with it!. |
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