By Francoise Van Kuren
“The Midnight Meat Train,” based on the Clive Barker novel of the same title, is gore at its most unrefined and vulgar limits.
A story of a young and handsome photographer, Leon is pushed farther by his obsession with a strange robotic man that seems to coincide with late night disappearances in the subway. As his mind begins to slip, Leon’s girlfriend attempts to rescue him from himself, but instead entangles herself as well.
Directed by Japanese director Ryuhei Kitamura (“Sky High,” “Godzilla,” “Final Wars”) with cast including Bradley Cooper, Leslie Bibb, Vinnie Jones and Brooke Shields, this highly computerized and tasteless but delightful film leaves onlookers excited but moderately confused. Is that his tongue? What’s with the crazy marks on his chest? Each question is left in the viewer’s head as he or she leaves the movie theater, but with really no further self reflection, except maybe to be paranoid in the 2 a.m. subways of Manhattan.
What is especially deplorably enjoyable about this film, is the first swing of the “Subway Butcher’s” complete dislocation of a victims’ juicy eyeball. Another riveting moment for the audience may be viewing some girls-instead of slipping on an invisible Hollywood object-slip on the blood of her coworker on the slick metal train floors. Or maybe that the biggest applause, aside from the initial eyeball squirting, was received by Brooke Shields simply appearing on screen as a slinky art director. Of course the art world was a little cheesy, especially because it suggested that in the art world you either make it or not and the difference is in a couple of photographs of a sexually harassed model. Then again, this may have been Kitamura poking fun at the senseless simplicity of it all.
All aspects of entertainment existed in this film: gore, a heated sex scene and an epic battle scene of good guy and bad guy. But to strengthen the plot, some explanations of details would have been preferred.
Leaving these questions unanswered would have been appropriate if Kitamura wanted his audience to ask some greater question within themselves, but I doubt it’s necessary to worry about evil under the meat shop deep in the subway.
Not exactly the film to bring your grandma to, but if you’re looking to gross out your girlfriend with butchered bodies swinging upside down or just a fun movie for horror buffs, “The Midnight Meat Train” may be the right ride for you.