Lust For Vengeance

MVD
2011


Sean Weathers strikes again. In what claims to be the only American Gialli film ever made we have the story of rapist/murderer Michael Richards and his quest to get retribution against the women who he believes have wronged him. Shot in November 2001 (again on what was obviously a shoe-string budget) the movie uses the sequence approach to tell its story. We follow the lives of our five female victims (or leads) as opposed to the traditionally used time-line approach. As the film shifts back and forth from the point of view of each of the women the mystery unfolds and the violence escalates. Now If the story sounds at all familiar to you then give yourself a cookie. It is probably because half of the slasher movies made in the past 30 years or so have a similar plot. I'm not sure why but I kept thinking about the horror film Valentine (also released in 2001) starring Denise Richards and David Boreanaz. The film follows a similar path in that it tells the story of a man who goes out seeking revenge against the women who he believes are responsible for ruining his life. Now, honestly that is the only thing these two films have in common and frankly Valentine was lame so I gave Lust For Vengeance a shot hoping for some kind of sign of life. I will say that the retro feel works well as does the gritty nature of Lust For Vengeance. Certain scenes are shot in such a manor as to give the film an almost hidden camera feel. Sometimes you feel as if your watching this unfold before your eyes and some of the scenes feel quite real. That said the film does start to fizzle out as things unfold. The version I have is the 10th Anniversary Explicit Version which tacks on softcore footage making the movie less about being erotic and more about being sleaze. It does little to the film other than make it feel dirty and dumbed down. I won't divulge much more to you in case your interested in seeking this one out. It had it's moments and I have certainly seen much worse.