Lowlife (2017) User Reviews

Not So Terrible

[socrates4 · 7/10 · 8 June 2019]

LOWLIFE was hyped up quite a bit for supposed similarities to PULP FICTION. It's similar on the surface only, and while it's not nearly as good as the earlier film, it's still a lot of fun.

For a low budget film, the acting and production value are very good. There are two or three very fun scenes. There's some corny stuff in here too, but nothing too bad. Feels like the filmmakers had a pretty good idea of what they were doing. Recommend.

Hey, it wasn't half bad.

[tjsuf · 6/10 · 11 January 2019]

How are you going to hate on the movie, it wasn't THAT bad. It's a B movie, but honestly, the acting is pretty good and I enjoyed the storyline. If you had some big named actors do that story and you had a more expensive production, this movie would have killed at the box office. You need to take it for what it is, a pretty good B movie, with some unknown but pretty good actors. It is a good watch if you are bored and want to watch a thriller/action/comedy, I would check this out. 6.1

PULP FRICTION

[js-66130 · 7/10 · 4 May 2018]

Life is tough for a down on his luck Mexican wrestling masked hero. Crime fighting doesn't really pay, so El Monstruo is relegated to thug duty. The conflicted good guy is a complex character, eager to carry on his family tradition (daddy was a famous luchador), but with a baby on the way, he stoops to henchman duties for local crime boss Teddy to pay the bills, usually with uncontrollably violent results.

That's plenty for plot, but this film throws in a heaping helping of parallel story lines for a rather convoluted viewing experience. Major events are replayed through different characters, and alternate angles, resulting in some much needed clarity, as everything comes together nicely, and not so nicely in the end.

The very seedy side of L.A. is the backdrop here, where illegals are funnelled towards horrific futures as prostitutes, or donors for a lucrative organ harvesting operation, or both. Grisly, old school gore movies are referenced as is some of Tarantino's spicier moments, but "Lowlife" works best on it's own originality: tackling very big global topics with local struggles.

"Lowlife" struggles from the usual low budget issues, mainly uneven performances - Teddy is too wooden - but the clever, spiderweb tale, wild sequences, and quirky characters make up for it: here's a newly released convict with a full face Swastika tattoo, who is refreshingly likeable. No, really.

This Movie Surprised Me.

[redrobin62-321-207311 · 7/10 · 31 August 2018]

Specifically, Nicki Micheaux's acting. After I saw "Lowlife" I had to look her up, see what she had done before. For a Tarantino-esque crime thriller her acting was right on point, dare I say even Oscar worthy?

I like films where you see things that you've never seen before. In this case, there were quite a few, from the failed luchador who keeps his mask on all the time to the kid with the swastika on his face who, as it turned out, wasn't even racist at all. You can file this one under "must see." It'll be worth it.

Tarantinoesc gory film, with some surprising twists

[davepennington-13493 · 7/10 · 19 November 2018]

Not what I expected but entertaining, quite gory though.

Mexican Flav

[westsideschl · 7/10 · 21 August 2018]

This film had a Mexican film flavor to it - low cost production, everyday people, gang mentality, a little over-the-top killing. Dialogue, especially by the Nazi tatted ex-con, was believably hilariously raw. Character El Monstruo was great, although not a particularly challenging role. A negative was a not coherently edited, jumping around too much, storyline.

Utter crap

[procletnic · 1/10 · 8 April 2018]

This is one of those 1 star movies you'll regret giving a chance to. I got fooled by the reviews, which are obviously written by paid shills. Don't make my mistake and avoid this movie like the plague. Talking about directing and cinematography doesn't make any sense when you have a script as atrocious as this one. I'll be honest here, I normally watch movies until the end, even if they are bad but by God, this thing was so incredibly stupid that I couldn't make it until the end. Make yourself a favor and skip this one.

The Lowest of Lives

[thesar-2 · 8/10 · 16 February 2019]

What tangled webs.

Wildly original, gory as hell and convoluted...Lowlife lives up to its name. It's not a story you can look away from at any given time. You gotta pay attention.

This is one hard movie to summarize. There are multiple stories, characters and intersections between the two. Basically, we're following pretty bad people all with unique motivations of their own. Some want to better their situations, but with any means possible. Others relish in their evildoings.

This is not a simple story to write a synopsis about. I recommend it because I love multi-storyline films with many characters crossing over the layers. Due to the enormously different and deep players and their needs, this never let me down in for a moment. I wanted more and more until the cinematic climax.

It's not for everyone, especially the squeamish and for those who want simple, Hollywood A-B-C storytelling - especially with clear villains and heroes. This is for those who want to go dark and experience creativity.

Funny, this is almost Breaking Bad Ver 2.

***

Final thoughts: Really just wanted to see what Nacho Libre looked like underneath his monstrous mask and thanks to IMDb, I finally did. Annnd I'm sad he had to hide such an incredible mug.

Pulp fiction less the genius

[chrisparker · 7/10 · 1 October 2018]

Reminded me of a Tarantino film. It tells the story of small time criminals who get involved in a kidnap/murder/organ theft from the various sides, all leading up to bloody finallie. Wouldn't go out to see it at the cinema, but if you catch it on TV, it's worth a watch

Don't believe the fake reviews...

[quixotic_x · 1/10 · 8 September 2018]

This movie was simply not good. I almost could not finish, the only thing which kept me going was the hope, that in the end something comes up, what could save the movie, but it didn't. Unlikeable characters, paired with bad storytelling and absolutely no suspense - really not worth the watch.

Deserves a bigger audience.

[deloudelouvain · 8/10 · 29 February 2020]

Lowlife was a pleasant surprise, much better than I thought it would be. I loved the way the story was told, with different stories and characters intertwining to finally all come together in one entertaining story. The movie is easy to watch, even though there are some bloody gory scenes, which were great by the way, it still remains a movie that is a bit different from the rest. The cast was well chosen, they all did a good job with their respective characters. I see people are comparing it to some big cult movies, which I get, and that's just a compliment to Ryan Prows who did a great job to make this movie standing out from the rest. Lowlife has it's own style, a style they should make more movies like.

Really feels like something different

[MooseNugget · 7/10 · 29 April 2020]

This movie is everything you'd want in an indie film. The story is interesting that involves drama, twists and turns. It's more gory than mainstream films. And it dares to be a little bit different. Really who else has a luchador running around killing people and bashing their heads in? And I understood everyone's motivation. It's great to see someone do a lot with a limited budget. Not a classic but it's worth rewatching.

Tarantino Lite

[billcr12 · 4/10 · 26 April 2018]

The makers of Lowlife have obviously seen Reservoir Dogs. The non linear style and over the top violence are the similarities. What is missing here is Tarantino's genius. The main character is a Mexican wrestler in a Zorro mask. He has the funniest lines and they are in Spanish. The problem is the confused story line. The acting is competent but overall , Lowlife is a miss.

Really good, under the radar.

[benprichardsdotcom · 7/10 · 25 June 2020]

The actors here give some incredible performances - the director really got the utmost from them. The story is cleverly intertwined and I found myself really rooting for El Monstruo.

Be warned the opening scenes are harsh and set the tone but it does settle down to a consistent violence after the first acts.

Much ado about nothing: A wrong biz investment

[MovieIQTest · 7 September 2018]

I was so impatient to sit through the whole movie. The underworld boss should just contact the Communist China government and sign a Fair Trade or Square Trade agreement to ask them to supply human organs on a regular basis. It's a public knowledge that this particular government is harvesting human organs not just from the dying patients but even from healthy alive people once they are arrested, condemned and imprisoned. Kidneys, livers....whatever, no problem. : )

A sleazy delight.

[killercharm · 7/10 · 18 May 2022]

A delight. El Monstruo, a luchador, no longer wrestles but retains the love of his public. In his failed post-luchador life he's an enforcer for an evil man. It doesn't sit well with him; it bothers him that his loving public look up to him as a savior even in the face of his unsavory means of making ends meet. It's all presented with flair and humor and is engrossing.

Appropriate title

[ncolen · 7/10 · 26 January 2023]

No ones hands are clean in this twisted little tale of strange people who get brushed off by society and struggle to exist on the fringes while being prayed upon by the worst of said society. A surprisingly well made and bizarre film with an aesthetic that captures the feel of the darker corners of Southern California through fantastic cinematography on what i imagine was a shoestring budget in a way that few films manage. The movie is a bit of a downer to say the least but that makes sense for a movie reflecting reality through a surreal circus mirror. Im Glad I stumbled upon this one and decided to give it a chance.

Incredibly poor movie

[ger55champ · 3/10 · 1 October 2018]

Terrible acting .Terrible storyline How on earth did this win awards

Superb.

[james-2374 · 8/10 · 7 October 2018]

At times gory, a gritty, enjoyable romp. Dark humour, you won't be disappointed.

Not bad if you dont mind gore

[sarahsonley · 6/10 · 15 February 2021]

Criss cross tale of unfortunate lives. Has dark humour and a lot of gore. Not a bad movie for a low budget

Absolute nonsense

[muamba_eats_toast · 5/10 · 13 February 2019]

The whole time was a bit of a mess with an absolutely thin to the bone storyline. Yet despite this nonsense and not always having any idea what was going on it was still reasonably watchable and to an extent enjoyable.

Very very good movie and should have been more promoted worldwide

[markied-87371 · 8/10 · 16 June 2019]

See the pic of the cover in my trakt movie collection loads and never watched it,then one day thought let's see what it's like,and for a low budget not famous cast,and not a big cast can't be more then 20 people in the whole film.I was very surprised and happy with it,it's a deep dark and humerous film with a few plot twists that all lead to one,well written and directed and the character of El monsteruo is class,and the films antagonist Teddy bear Haynes played brilliant and well makes the movie a good watch,also the Eminem lookalike Randy makes the movie a very underrated movie

Crazy

[sergelamarche · 6/10 · 23 February 2022]

Crazy story where we see from different view points. The film is well done. Good acting. Gruesome effects on the bodies. Very silly at the beginning but get more intelligent toward the end. Still crazy though.

Ludicrous grand guignol style horror film

[jake_fantom · 3/10 · 12 February 2019]

This is blood-bath style horror, with plenty of tight closeups of amateur organ harvesting. The film is ever so slightly livened up by the performance of the actor who plays the masked Mexican wrestler, but weighted down by a preposterous plot and all the familiar low-budget indie trappings - including cheap sets, a minimum of locales, and plenty of confused acting by actors are clearly flummoxed by the loopy script. It's essentially a cartoonish horror film with an occasional nice touch.

Half good

[gab-67599 · 5/10 · 20 April 2021]

After reading the reviews I thought, why not? Man, this is why I do not trust reviews in the first place. Movies like this kill it for me. I stuck it out till the very end and get like I just hit a dead end! Also, any correlation between Pulp Fiction and this movie are laughable! Pulp fiction had two great actors that brought you to a sexy, intriguing, but very dangers side of life. This movie could not touch Pulp Fiction with a 10 foot pole. I could have enjoyed the movie more if there was no Monster in it. I mean how annoying was that guy? I do not recommend this movie at all, but you be your own judge. Just do not expect Pulp Fiction lol.