Review of The Midnight Meat Train (2008) by Nikki K — 23 Nov 2010

There's something deeply disturbing about the 'show biz' politics and intrigues that managed to exile such a well made film to the dollar theaters. On the other hand, horror purists of all caliber, such as myself, get a kick out of seeing the visceral shocks and convoluted twists Riuhei Kitamura and Clibe Barker have prepared in the likes of a seedy, rundown theater. If the disturbed denizens of 42nd Street have all but disappeared, scared away by the gloss and glitz of the cineplex and the popcorn munching crowd that inhabits it, perhaps the final bastion of grindhouse cinema can be found in watching a brutal, raw horror film in an empty theater with only a handful of genre enthusiasts in accompaniment.

There's also something deeply disturbing about the mentality of the movie-watching public. That a FAR inferior sequel will gross more than MMT, simply because of its household franchise name. I'm sorry but a shot of a tape player and someone musing off screen "I want to play a game...", seems to confirm UK grinders Napalm Death motto, "the public gets what the public doesn't want". Now that's not to say that MMT is an excellent horror flick. No, it's far from it. But it does exactly what it says on the tin and then some. If the pace slackens a bit after the balls-to-the-wall pummeling takes place in the first half hour, it is salvaged by Kitamura's decision to channel the dark, neon-noir of David Fincher.

If the CGI blood is a sign of things to come in the field of mainstream American horror or is something that's leftover from Kitamura's days in Japan, well, that's for him and only him to know. What Kitamura brings to the film, however, is his distinct stylistic hallmark - when the camera repeatedly spins around a train wagon in motion, one will be hard pressed not to recall a similar rotating camera trick from Azumi. A long overhead crane shot seems to combine the off-kilter axis games of Argento with Tarantino's now-famous crane shot in Kill Bill. And if some people complain that the editing and style appear to be too music video-ish, I will respectfully disagree and point them in the direction of such atrocities as Doom and Hell Ride. Kitamura at least understands rhythm.

The 'novelty' of staging a slasher in a subway train is what gives MMT its first push. The other is the inspired casting choice of having Vinnie "Mean Machine" Jones in the role of the baddie. His silence throughout the film is simply chilling. The third is the distinctly Clive Barker-esque twist that brings the film to a close - not exactly my cup of tea but that's because my sensibilities are distinctly otherwise. It came a bit out of left field, but that's okay because it lends to the film's overall uniqueness. MMT might never reach its full potential story-wise but it's fast-paced, bloody, and brutal; exactly as promised.