Movies
Gnaw (V)
“Gnaw isn’t completely inept. Admittedly, it’s mostly in focus. A couple of the violent set-pieces are an admirably gory mess, enhanced by a syrupy, chunky red-black blood that looked like it was a bitch to work with. But Gnaw lacks tension. And wit. And scares. It’s cookie-cutter torture-porn, as generic as a white-labeled can of creamed corn. “
Gnaw reveals its torture-porn aspirations before the opening credits have even started rolling. Start with a jerky-cam sequence featuring a dirty, nightie-clad girl, panting as she runs barefoot through the forest. Then her inevitable capture by a mysterious figure pursuing in a big oily truck. And of course, a super gory torture scene staged in a grimy basement, in which the girl screams and wails until she dies, just to let the audience know that this movie means business. Roll opening credits. And you’ve got yourself some torture-porn.
Not to be confused with the sequel to Food of the Gods (har), Gnaw takes a handful of horny, indistinguishable British 20-somethings and throws them into a secluded mansion to flirt, fuck, and babble about bullshit, all while a bunch of POV shots accompanied by heavy breathing watch their every move. Even at a scant 76 minutes, Gnaw manages to squander its first two acts on fake scares and some truly godawful relationship dialogue. [Bloke #1: “You fancy her, don’t you?” Bloke #2: “No.” Bloke #1: “Bollocks!”] When the friends discover a dinner table laden with all manner of pastries and meat pies, it’s easy to see where Gnaw is headed. But Jesus, it sure does take its sweet time getting there.
Finally (finally!) a couple of the friends go out exploring on their own, and the lurking voyeur, a stubble-headed hillbilly cannibal who’s been silently watching the action for about 45 minutes now, finally gets his ass into gear. Working with a limited weapons arsenal (bear traps and a man-sized BBQ fork) and occasionally dressing up in a hooded cape and fur mask, the hillbilly methodically whacks the British buddies one-by-one in a series of rote, tedious death scenes. No spoiler alert necessary. You know how this movie begins. You know how it ends. You’ve seen it before. We’ve all seen it before.
Gnaw isn’t completely inept. Admittedly, it’s mostly in focus. A couple of the violent set-pieces are an admirably gory mess, enhanced by a syrupy, chunky red-black blood that looked like it was a bitch to work with. But Gnaw lacks tension. And wit. And scares. It’s cookie-cutter torture-porn, as generic as a white-labeled can of creamed corn.
Universal has been having a hell of a time getting their Universal Monsters brand back on a better path in the wake of the Dark Universe collapsing, with four movies thus far released in the years since The Mummy attempted to get that interconnected universe off the ground.
First was Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man, to date the only post-Mummy hit for the Universal Monsters, followed by The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Renfield, and now Abigail. The latter three films have attempted to bring Dracula back to the screen in fresh ways, but both Demeter and Renfield severely underperformed at the box office. And while Abigail is a far better vampire movie than those two, it’s unfortunately also struggling to turn a profit.
Where does the Universal Monsters brand go from here? The good news is that Universal and Blumhouse have once again enlisted the help of Leigh Whannell for their upcoming Wolf Man reboot, which is howling its way into theaters in January 2025. This is good news, of course, because Whannell’s Invisible Man was the best – and certainly most profitable – of the post-Dark Universe movies that Universal has been able to conjure up. The film ended its worldwide run with $144 million back in 2020, a massive win considering the $7 million budget.
Given the film was such a success, you may wondering why The Invisible Man 2 hasn’t come along in these past four years. But the wait for that sequel may be coming to an end.
Speaking with the Happy Sad Confused podcast this week, The Invisible Man star Elisabeth Moss notes that she feels “very good” about the sequel’s development at this point in time.
“Blumhouse and my production company [Love & Squalor Pictures]… we are closer than we have ever been to cracking it,” Moss updates this week. “And I feel very good about it.”
She adds, “We are very much intent on continuing that story.”
At the end of the 2020 movie, Elisabeth Moss’s heroine Cecilia Kass uses her stalker’s high-tech invisibility suit to kill him, now in possession of the technology that ruined her life.
Stay tuned for more on The Invisible Man 2 as we learn it.
[Related] Power Corrupts: Universal Monsters Classic ‘The Invisible Man’ at 90
Dev Patel’s ‘Monkey Man’ Is Now Available to Watch at Home!
Five Underseen Vampire Horror Movies to Stream This Week
‘Stream’ – Horror Movie from the Team Behind ‘Terrifier’ Sets August Theatrical Release
‘The Blair Witch Project’ – Original Stars Release a Statement Asking Lionsgate for Residuals & Recognition
‘Mountain Man’ – Joe Manganiello Will Battle Zombies in Upcoming Horror Movie
