Effects (1980)


REVIEWER RATING: 
3/10


Due to a problem with the distributor this film was never actually released until 2005 when Synapse Films put it out on DVD. It's clear to me that this movie was meant to stay buried, because there are far more problems here than simple distribution. Based on a novel by William H. Mooney, the film details a film crew as they make a horror film, but begin to suspect that the killings are real and that they are actually in a snuff movie, thought up by the devious producer. I honestly only gave this movie a shot because Tom Savini has a role in it and I figured he'd have a hand in the make-up effects, which usually means we'll get some pretty gory scenes.

That's sadly not the case here -- Tom's role is of the asshole crewmember that nobody likes, and the only bloody sequence we get involves a man being shot in the head, and it's only revealed to be a scene in the movie the crew is making. In fact, there are many scenes that confuse the viewer and gives you a hard time distinguishing which is the movie and which is the movie that they're making. It becomes rather annoying after the third time.

The film's pacing is incredibly slow, with a lot of relatively pointless scenes that just seem to drag on and on. Sometimes annoying music plays overhead to make the scenes even less watch-able. The only parts of the film that are worth watching is the extreme close-up T&A we get in the beginning and towards the end when the story picks up and the truth behind the shitty film production is revealed.

With its slow-pacing, dubious acting, and numerous pointless sequences, it's no wonder this movie took 25 years to be released. It should have just stayed buried.
OVERALL: 
With its slow-pacing, dubious acting, and numerous pointless sequences, it's no wonder this movie took 25 years to be released. It should have just stayed buried.


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