Repo! The Genetic Opera
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Movie Reviews of Repo! The Genetic Opera
Movie Review: If you don't pay, they send the REPO MAN!
Summary: 5 Stars
Right away, I already know that a lot of people are going to dub this movie as just a cheesy, over the top, "Gothic" wanna-be. Those people aren't going to give REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA much of a chance because they're "above it." What I mean by that comment is that in todays society, most people feel that if something is "Goth" (weather it's a style of dress or a type of music), it's immature no matter what. They see someone on the street dressed up in all black, or someone wearing "strange" make-up and they pass a judgement. I'm not talking about the typical scared judgement either. That would be too naive for today's "hipster" crowd. I'm talking about the judgement that most people have towards "Goth's" where they think the only reason a person wants to dress like that is for attention. Granted, some people do give the true Gothic culture a bad name. That happens no matter what when something becomes popular in todays culture. I mean look at the store HOT TOPIC. They're located in every mall today, opening the doorway for the real "wanna-be's", the College kids (typically the Female Sorority girls) with a passing fancy for the Goth culture. They're not real Goth's, they just like to play one behind closed doors.
Now that I got my psychological analysis of society out of the way, I can talk about the actual film REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA. What can I say about this film that others haven't said already? Is it beautiful? It sure is! REPO is a visual sight to behold from start to finish. Yet, it's not up to the level of 300 or SIN CITY for that matter. It's a much "smaller" film and for what it strives for, everything unfolds wonderfully. The special effects are kept simple, just the occasional CGI effect or the standard green screen. In the end, this works out for the best because it keeps everything in perspective. REPO ends up being more "epic" than it should be but thats okay. Goth's (true goths) want something that has meaning and doesn't feel cheap and rushed. REPO is that film.
Let's talk about the music now. REPO is a musical. No bones about it. When it comes down to my own personal preference, I usually dislike musicals. I hate how almost every scene has to have singing in it and I also dislike how "hammy" most musicals come off. For the most part, they usually seem over the top to me. That being said, in recent years I've come to enjoy the darker musicals that seem to be coming out. I really liked SWEENEY TODD with Johnny Depp and REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA seems to be continuing the trend for me. I even find myself singing and enjoying some of the songs from these two films, which is a shocker considering I normally hate musicals. Maybe it's just the darker tone I find to be enjoyable. REPO and SWEENEY TODD are far from DISNEY'S NEWSIES, thats for sure!
The plot of REPO is a complex story about a seemingly horrible future. One in which you can buy organs for surgery but if you miss a payment on the business owned organ, they send out a mercenary called THE REPO MAN who takes back the "product" any way possible. The method of choice is usually a knife without any pain killer! The Repo Man just strings people up (sometimes like the PREDATOR, sometimes like the SAW movies), cuts them open and takes out the "product." This usually ends in a lot of bleeding and screaming mind you. All the while, singing permeates the gruesome death scene. REPO is truly an original film, thats for sure!
The cast is some what odd, in that there are people involved I would have never imagined to be involved with a project such as this. The main one being Paris Hilton. For the most part, my opinion on Paris hasn't been the most positive one over the years. I personally don't find her attractive (not that she's hard on the eye's or anything either) and her attitude about wealth and society truly sucks! That being said, she actually does a pretty good job here in REPO. She's not an amazing singer by far but she does own up to the role for this movie. In the end, I actually have more respect for Paris after watching this movie. Coming from me, thats actually saying something!
The main reason I wanted to see this movie was because one of my favorite singers of all time is in it. The one, the only, Ohgr! For those of you who don't know who I'm talking about (HOT TOPIC crowd, I'm looking in your direction), he's the lead singer of 1980's classic Industrial band SKINNY PUPPY and the more resent OHGR project. Although his role in the movie is a small one (I get the feeling because of budget restrictions), it was great to see him doing something outside of his music projects. Also, his role is a very strange one! His character is like a mix between Leather Face and a "freak" theater mask. If you can't picture what I'm talking about, you'll just have to watch the movie for yourself.
Over all, I found REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA to be a rather enjoyable experience. Gore hounds have much to enjoy here, especially if they liked the movie SWEENEY TODD. It's in the same category. Musical fans also might like this movie too, although I'm sure some people won't be able to move past the "Gothic" theme. Fans of cinema in general, beware. You might not like this. If you're idea of a good time at the movies is the latest Brendan Frasier MUMMY flick, this movie might go over your head. If you're a little more open minded, enjoy gore with your musicals, like the Gothic culture, then REPO is for you!
Over and out!
Movie Review: New Cult Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Repo! The Genetic Opera is one of those bizarre, indescribable experiences that most people either love or love to hate. Think Saw meets Sin City with a splash of a Greek morality play and buckets upon buckets of blood and gore... oh, and there's singing. Lots of singing.
This over-the-top rock opera is set in a futuristic dystopia, where an epidemic of organ failures led to the founding of GeneCo, a company that swooped in to save the day with their organ financing programs- like a car loan. The catch, of course, is the repossession clause; should the recipient fail to make their payments, Rotti Largo, GeneCo's formidable mobster-like founder, sends one of his Repo Men to collect the organs. And these `legal assasins' are figures to be feared by everyone save for Rotti and his spoiled, miscreant children. Which brings us to the main plot: while Rotti's fearful image might be immortal, he has discovered that he is not. He's dying, and must name an heir to GeneCo and his large fortune. As he complains in song, his `children are a bust'. Luigi is a sociopath with anger management issues, whose favorite past time leaves an unsightly trail of dead bodies behind; Amber Sweet is not only addicted to surgery, but also to the cheap, street Zydrate (a powerful, and addictive, painkiller GeneCo developed) that her father outlawed; Pavi has appearance issues, apparently, and to compensate steals faces that he wears like masks.
So Rotti is dying and has no suitable heir to keep his company going. His once-promising protégé, Nathan Wallace, lost favor when Rotti's girlfriend, Marni, fell in love with and married him. Rotti seems to have gotten his revenge, in the end, though; while pregnant, Marni fell ill with a rare blood disease and died when Nathan tried to cure her. He managed to save their daughter, Shilo, though Marni's death has turned him into every teenage girl's nightmare of an overprotective father. He will literally do anything to protect her (even if it means keeping her locked up in her bedroom). But, in order to keep from being legally blamed for his wife's death, he has struck a deal with the devil: in exchange for Rotti's help in smoothing the whole nasty incident over, he becomes a Repo Man.
Fast forward seventeen years; Shilo is now seventeen, a naïve songbird who spends her time collecting insects, watching her idol, Blind Mag, on television, and hanging out in her mother's tomb. She suffers from the same blood disease that she was told killed her mother, and as far as she knows, Nathan is a busy doctor. While she thinks he spends his days and nights tending to patients, he's wrestling with his dark alter ego (cudos to Anthony Head; Nathan's transformation into the Repo Man is downright chilling).
They don't always see eye-to-eye, but Shilo generally respects her father's orders to stay indoors. Until one night when she chases an insect out into a graveyard and meets a Graverobber- criminals who traffic in stolen organs and street Zydrate that they extract from the dead. Rotti discovers her and decides that she will serve as his heir-provided she can pass his test. Before long, Shilo is thrust headlong into this dangerous and strange world, discovering the truth about her past, and ultimately the nature of true freedom.
As the name would suggest, this is a musical; there is very little spoken dialogue, most of it is sung, but the cast carries it well (Head, Paul Sorvino and Terrance Zdunich in particular). The music alternates between full-on operatic numbers, like `Chromaggia', to Shilo's teen rebellion punk anthem, `Seventeen' (during which Joan Jett makes a random cameo), and the delightfully-demented `Thankless Job' (in which the Repo Man laments the lack of appreciation for his profession). Terrance Zdunich's Graverobber steals the show as a sort of demented Greek Chorus, at times talking (or singing) directly to the audience.
The not-so-subtle commentary centers on the consequences of a society obsessed with appearance and status (as Graverobber says: "So why care for these petty obsessions? You're designer heart still beats with common blood... and what if you could have genetic perfection? Would you change who you are if you could?"), and the equally dire consequences of hate, power and vengeance ("Goth opera. Blood saga... sometimes I wonder how we ever got here. Old grudges. Scorned lovers... sometimes I wonder why we all don't move on!")
Repo is a stylized and visually-arresting masterpiece painted in grit, blood and gore; a morality tale about the consequences of vanity, pride and hate. It isn't for everyone, but if you have a bit of a twisted sense of humor, and an appreciation for the odd and offbeat, this might be the new cult hit for you.
Movie Review: Zydrate Comes In A Little Glass Vial...
Summary: 5 Stars
I wasn't a huge fan of the Darren Lynn Bousman Saw movies. I really dug Saw II, but only because it was the only of the Saw films that had any potential. I mean, it picked up right after Saw 1 ended, which was necessary considering how that film ended. But after two and the ridiculous plot twists they started to take, I gave up on the series. I did see 3 and 4, but to be honest, I don't remember really anything about them- that's how forgettable they were. And no, I have not seen Saw 5 and am not particularly excited to.
So naturally I was a bit apprehensive about Repo. I thought the plot was stupid, and what the hell was a 'rock opera'? I had never heard of anything like that before, and with such a strange storyline (not to mention Paris Hilton), I had planned to never see this film. But one night, I was sitting around, bored as hell, and flipping through movies on demand when I saw Repo. I had been told be a friend just how amazing Repo was, and I figured 'what the hell. If it sucks, it's only $[...] and and hour and a half out of my life.' So I watched it. And am I glad I did.
Like most people, it took me a while to comprehend exactly what it was that I had just watched. I was confused, amazed, excited, and surprised- like most people that saw this film. And after seeing it four times now, I think I can make a pretty safe review about this film.
It rocks.
I'm not going to rehash the story. If you want to know what it's about you can either look it up or read the other reviews. I'm going to get into the meat of this review- the music.
I'm not going to lie, I had my doubts about the music when I first saw the film. It wasn't exactly catchy, but it wasn't terrible to listen to. It's one of those things that has to grow on you, and the more I watched the movie the more I started singing along with the songs. The one that stuck with me from the get go was Zydrate Anatomy, which is catchy, strange, and just fun to hear. The Graverobber, by Terrance Zdunich, is a valuable asset to the soundtrack. I know he can't really technically sing, but I find his voice to be an interesting, fun addition to the soundtrack. Alexa Vega shows us here that she can sing, something I never knew about her, and she is damn good at what she does. She plays Shiloh, the innocent, naiive girl, to a T. Anthony Head is really great in his part and even sings really well, especially in the song Legal Assassin. Even Paris Hilton doesn't do a half bad job, aside from one agonizing note in Zydrate Anatomy.
However, some of the songs are less than memorable. Golds falls flat, in my opinion, and the others I can't even remember the names of. But I really loved the ballad 'I Didn't Know I'd Love You So Much', because it was sung so emotionally between Anthony and Alexa. It really touches a chord.
No review would be complete if you didn't talk about the truly wonderful way that this film was shot. The sets are gorgeous and Darren uses some amazing filters and camera tricks to pull off some of the shots. True, it's not that much of a departure from the Saw films (look out for an abundance of yellows and blues), but the way this film is shot, even though we've seen it before from Darren, feels completely new.
However, the DVD falls flat. I know that Lionsgate tried to push this movie underneath the carpet and kind of screwed it, and I'm glad I at least have it on DVD, but this is the WRONG place to go for special features. It's even more bare than the 2 disc edition of The Dark Knight. We get a 10 minute Stage To Screen feature, and a featurette about the Legal Assassin, and a trailer, some commentary- that's it. It's a bare bones DVD, again, from Lionsgate Pictures. Thanks for screwing us again Lionsgate!
But if you just want the movie, you got it here. If you have been curious about the movie, rent it. It does no harm, and it's a fun, great film to watch. But, it truly is only for certain people. But there's no harm in watching it.
Movie Review: A future where organ repossession is legal...did I mention this is a musical?
Summary: 5 Stars
Imagine a dystopic future where, after an epidemic of organ failures, a massive corporation known as GeneCo stepped in with the answer to people's problems. Not only could they get new organs, but they could afford them through a kind of organ financing plan (similar to making car payments or paying the mortgage). Once the epidemic past, however, GeneCo made new organs and anatomy-altering surgery a fashion statement and an accepted part of everyday life. With GeneCo's innovative system, you too can afford body parts that can cure your genetic deficiencies, injuries, enhance your natural senses and, of course, make you look better (think a kind of out-of-proportion plastic/cosmetic surgery). The only catch is that GeneCo was able to legalize organ repossession. If you aren't able to make payments on your organs, they'll send the repo man after you who will, quite literally, track you down and rip out your heart (or liver or kidney or whatever) since you couldn't pay for it. Oh, and did I mention that this is a musical? Yeah, it's an incredibly violent, dystopic, semi-satirical and somewhat messed-up rock opera stage musical turned into a movie.
With a scenario like this, I was intrigued. It's weird, I know (and the film is pretty stylized and weird), but sometimes you just gotta have some weird in your life. I went into this movie (now an underground cult classic) with high expectations and wasn't disappointed. The film follows the story of seventeen year-old Shilo Wallace (Alexa Vega), who inherited a blood disease from her now-deceased mother that prevents her from leaving her room. Not only is Shilo sick of her shut-in life and overprotective father, but she longs for a cure to her disease.
Meanwhile GeneCo founder and president Rotti Largo (Paul Sorvino) discovers that he has a terminal disease and is faced with having to find an heir for his empire, as well as the impending retirement of the "Voice of GeneCo" and star of the company's live TV program, "The Genetic Opera," Blind Mag (Sarah Brightman). Rotti feels that his three children Luigi (Bill Moseley), Pavi (Nivek Orge) and Amber Sweet (Paris Hilton) are horrible disappointments (each one is messed up in some way), and doesn't want to leave the company to any of them.
There are so many elements that this movie brings together fairly well. The tone is somewhat dark, but kooky and almost comic book-y, enough so that the over-the-top violence seems nearly comedic and cartoon-like. Many of the characters are also really over-the-top in order to make a point, in particular the Largo children, Luigi, Pavi and Amber Sweet. Luigi is a homicidal manic who fatally stabs anyone who so much as bumps into him or brings him cold coffee; Pavi is a womanizing pervert who hides his horribly scarred face with interchangeable faces stolen from female victims; Amber Sweet is a spoiled brat and wannabe singer who is addicted to surgery and street-grade pain killers (not much of a stretch for Paris Hilton, I might add). The music is pretty good too. While I won't be listening to the soundtrack in my spare time, the songs are enjoyable and do a good job of telling the story while relying information about characters. Virtually the entire film is sung, so if you don't like musicals, this could be difficult for you to get into.
A tough one to make mainstream, Repo! will appeal to fans of off-beat films, semi-corny violence and outrageous dystopias. The film has a very niche group of fans, but for what it is, Repo! is enjoyable, compelling, and thought-provoking. The ending implies that there will be a sequel, and the director has said that the original idea was to make this a three-movie series. I'd like to see that come to life, but it's tough to tell since the movie was not made that much money to date due to its obscure nature and niche appeal. I can only hope...
Movie Review: Finally, a modern musical (or opera) for me...that ROCKS
Summary: 5 Stars
Take one part rock music, one part bio/steam punk, a future city in devastation and you have Repo! The first thing you will notice about Repo is the music. I will say Repo is different from any movie you have ever seen. Not only is it a different movie, but the music crosses various genres and delivers you a beautiful blending of music.
Repo is not just a musical, it is an Opera and operas are usually sung from beginning to end with little dialogue. There is some beautiful opera music with lead vocals by Sarah Brightman, but there are also razor sharp rock duets by Sarah and Anthony Stewart Head. Another notable singer in Repo is the very talented Paul Sorvino, who I had no idea could sing so well! Let me also jump on the bandwagon that Paris Hilton is in this film, and it's not what you think...exactly. This role changed my opinion about Paris, the part was not only perfect for her but she is only in it for a brief time (and performed very well). She's an addicted surgery addict, head of the "Zydrate Support Network." What is Zydrate you ask? It is a futuristic drug that eases the pain of frequent surgery, without the side effects of having to go under while getting surgery.
The songs are brilliant, simple but highly effective and most definitely will get stuck in your head (even the brief ones). The various musical talents shine on the movies soundtrack, vocals, and guitars, beautiful with a side of razor blades. Notable songs include "At the Opera Tonight," "Things You See in a Graveyard," "Legal Assassin," "Zydrate Anatomy," "Chase the Morning," and "We Started this Opera S**t."
The next thing I love about Repo is the visuals; dark and colorful, they are stunning and well done by the creative team at SwitchVFX. They are in fact so beautiful that it makes you want to see it in person, as if it were a real place. Some wonderful effects to note include the city in ruins, 3d portraits and digital corneas. There is an overall glow on the film that draws you in and makes you want to be a part of a futuristic world with advanced technology.
Let me also same the premise of the story is amazing. In the distant future, organ failure became a worldwide problem. In the midst of finding a cure, thousands died and grave markers can be found everywhere as a reminder to the city and its people. GeneCo found a cure, replacing organs on a financing plan. However, those who miss their payments....Geneco send out the Repo Man (there is some blood/gore but it's very minimal). The thing about the organ collecting is its legal! "90 days delinquent and you get the repo treatment."
I also want to talk about what very few musicals I enjoy. There are classics including "The Sound of Music," "The Nightmare before Christmas." Some recent ones I enjoy include "Chicago" and "Sweeny Todd," however many people compare Repo to Rocky Horror Picture Show and Blade Runner. I want to say "Sweeny Todd," fell short for me, the music wasn't that great and Rocky Horror is just not part of my generation nor is "Blade Runner". Sure the visuals of Repo remind me of "Blade Runner," however they vastly improved on their visual ideas and there is nothing wrong with that. If one wants to say Repo reminds them of such movies, great but I think Repo is today's "Rocky Horror" for my generation. It was made for cult movies/cult TV fans and you will either totally understand or "get" the world of Repo or you won't.
One thing is for sure; after I saw Repo I had so many questions. What happens next? What happened before? I also want to say Repo is a cult film; it's been driven by the creators and only fan support (little if no corporate help whatsoever). Repo has created a fan family community and I invite you to check out the world of Repo.