I've always had a soft spot for film's about a person getting obsessed with something odd. Having a character completely obsessed with a gun, a film, a machine, whatever quickly draws me in. Maybe it speaks to my own slightly addictive personality? Who knows, but what matters is that "Gut" is a film of that kind. The obsession in this film is a tape. Our lead character Tom is just about to move to a new place with his family, and get a new job. But he's a bit off - there's something about the changes that he's not happy with. The same goes for his best friend Dan, who is a major movie geek. His friend fears that he will lose his friend, and notices how weird Tom is acting. One day Dan gets a tape in the mail that he knows Tom just has to see. He invites him over and they watch this tape that showed a woman's stomach being cut open, and a hand is pushed into the wound. They don't know whether this tape is reality or fiction, but they both become shocked yet fascinated by it. Tom can't get the images out of his head, and Dan keeps getting more of these tapes. Even though Tom wants to stay away from them, it's as if they are calling him. The idea of being obsessed with a tape is certainly nothing new, and "Gut" suffers from some predictability. But it doesn't weaken the movie at all, because there's something very different to this film as well. It's not so focused on the tape or the footage that it becomes another "Videodrome", it's always about Tom and his relationship with his lady and his friend. The tape didn't create tension between the characters, it was there to begin with. It just happened to appear in their lives at a time where they both needed something to hold on to. I think it's good that the movie stays as vague as it is, because even though we can guess what will happen next, the vagueness gives it a creepy feel that wouldn't have been there otherwise. It's impossible for me to review "Gut" without mentioning the sex. There are lots of scenes that could only be described as erotic. Almost everything about the movie hints towards something erotic. Even the scenes of the stomach's being cut open come off as perverse. Not only because it shows breasts, but the way the hand touches the wound. The movie doesn't shy away from the nudity, there's plenty of boobs and some glimpses of Tom's penis. Penis excluded, I gotta say, it's a sexy movie in all its creepiness. "Gut" manages to draw you into its world in no time, and it won't let you go until it's over. It's rather predictable at times but that never takes me out of the movie. It's a simple movie yet creepy, intense, perverse and erotic. Everyone on screen does a fantastic job, even the smaller roles. It's not all that gory or graphic, but it also doesn't mind showing what it needs to show, and that includes some well-executed scenes of stomach's being cut open, lots of nudity and occasional blood. "Gut" is a great, psychological thriller that'll lure you in before you know it. Highly recommended!
Review of Gut
