Snuff Killer otherwise known as Snuff Trap is an Italian thriller that is all too familiar yet doesn't give credit where credit is due.
What I mean by that is this is a blatant remake of the excellent 8mm (1999) but doesn't acknowledge itself as such. The plot is the same just with a minor character tweak, many scenes are near identical and it randomly flicks to 8mm's script to the very letter.
I'm not keen on movies being remade at all truth be told but when a filmmaker doesn't even have the decency to tip his hat to the source material that's seven shades of disrespect.
But putting that aside what is the film like? Well it's not actually that bad. It tells the story of a woman who learns that her missing daughter may have been kidnapped to be put into the seedy world of extreme cinema and snuff. To save her daughter she must dive into the bowels of the industry and put herself at risk.
The tweeked plot of 8mm does give the film its own identity, right up until the point it suddenly decides to reinact a scene line for line.
As for the content it manages to be both tamer and more hardcore at the same time. 8mm was grittier, darker and more brutal while Snuff Killer/Snuff Trap opts for considerably more nudity yet little actual unpleasantness by comparison.
I sadly couldn't get over the 8mm remake factor, but I could still recognise that this piece of Italian cinema is perfectly watchable and not the needless T&A or torture porn movie many might assume.
The Good:
All round passably made
Lead was surprisingly competent
The Bad:
Shameless remake
Couple of plot points made absolutely no sense
Weak dub
Things I Learnt From This Movie:
Even the sight of people smoking makes me nauseas
I'm glad I've never been asked to pay the go down payment!
What I mean by that is this is a blatant remake of the excellent 8mm (1999) but doesn't acknowledge itself as such. The plot is the same just with a minor character tweak, many scenes are near identical and it randomly flicks to 8mm's script to the very letter.
I'm not keen on movies being remade at all truth be told but when a filmmaker doesn't even have the decency to tip his hat to the source material that's seven shades of disrespect.
But putting that aside what is the film like? Well it's not actually that bad. It tells the story of a woman who learns that her missing daughter may have been kidnapped to be put into the seedy world of extreme cinema and snuff. To save her daughter she must dive into the bowels of the industry and put herself at risk.
The tweeked plot of 8mm does give the film its own identity, right up until the point it suddenly decides to reinact a scene line for line.
As for the content it manages to be both tamer and more hardcore at the same time. 8mm was grittier, darker and more brutal while Snuff Killer/Snuff Trap opts for considerably more nudity yet little actual unpleasantness by comparison.
I sadly couldn't get over the 8mm remake factor, but I could still recognise that this piece of Italian cinema is perfectly watchable and not the needless T&A or torture porn movie many might assume.
The Good:
All round passably made
Lead was surprisingly competent
The Bad:
Shameless remake
Couple of plot points made absolutely no sense
Weak dub
Things I Learnt From This Movie:
Even the sight of people smoking makes me nauseas
I'm glad I've never been asked to pay the go down payment!