Review of August Underground's Mordum (2003) by Elisa K — 17 Dec 2010

And you thought Mickey & Mallory Knox had issues! The mass murdering couple from Oliver Stone and Quentin Tarantino's "Natural Born Killers" ain't got shit on the trio of marauding murderers in Pennsylvania-based Toe Tag Pictures' "August Underground" sequel, titled "August Underground's MORDUM"!

According to their official website, "August Underground's MORDUM" is "sequel to the cult classic "August Underground", is a character study in the sick: an amoral, putrid, masturbatory fantasy. The found footage contained in "August Underground's MORDUM" documents extreme deviant sexuality, torture, and murder, while unfolding a classic tale of a man and woman in love. However, the woman cannot give up her other lover, who also happens to be her younger brother. Exploiting the trio of killers and their deviant ways with issues such as child abuse, incest, rape, and their effects on the human psyche, "August Underground's MORDUM" will vomit all over you and leave you for dead.".

That alone should offer you a little peak into the heart (and guts) of this film. It's sick. It's twisted. It's offensive. And it's brilliant.

The film is done in the 'found footage' style, and is essentially 90 minutes of a simulated snuff film, detailing the murderous exploits of a psychotic trio of sadistic, sexually deviant people who, when they're not rocking out at death metal clubs, or robbing their local retailer, are on the prowl for their next victim, searching for someone whom they can abduct, chain up, vomit on, rape, torture, cut up, force into self mutilation and eventually murder. And these three do not discriminate. No matter your age or sex, you are a potential toy/victim. The only other time when they are not committing obscenely violent crimes, is when they are engaging in sick and twistedly angry sex with each other, be it the lead psycho (played brilliantly by Toe Tag co-founder Fred Vogel, who also co-wrote, co-directed and produced the film) having angry sex with his girlfriend Crusty (played, with great joy, or so it would seem, by Cristie Whiles, who is sadistically adorable in the role.) moments after murdering someone, or Crusty willingly having sex with her younger brother Maggot. (played by Michael Schneider. Schneider is incredibly willing as an actor is in this film, going to great extremes for the role. It's a shame that the actors who make millions per role don't have a tenth of the devotion to their trade that actors like Schneider, Whiles and Vogel have.) The film also co-stars Necrophagia frontman Killjoy.

If you're looking for a film with a happy ending or one with all the answers, then this is not the movie for you. "MORDUM" is an unapologetic, balls-out horror film! The realism of both the actors as well as the special FX is amazing. No CGI crap here. Only some of the most believable and realistic physical FX in this one.

Would I recommend "MORDUM"? Not to most people. But if you are a hardcore horror fan, and not easily upset or disturbed, then by all means, yes, you need to see this film! Allow me to put it this way, if you've seen "A Serbian Film" and found it disturbing or hard to watch, then "MORDUM" is perhaps not for you. "A Serbian Film", due to it's decent sized budget, bright lights, and "big studio" look, is far less realistic and disturbing than "MORDUM" is. While watching this, I found that I had to, at times, remind myself that it's only a movie. Naturally, I knew that, but it feels so real that, as you watch it, sometimes it felt as though I was watching a snuff film, as opposed to a horror movie. It's THAT well done. For this, I say BRAVO to Vogel and the rest of the gang at Toe Tag Pictures.

I give "August Underground's MORDUM" 5 out of 5 stars, but as I mentioned, it is not something that most viewers could handle. If you chose to check it out, remember, you have been warned.