Gruesome - Not actually that gruesome

Just cheap.  There’s something that just doesn’t work about ‘Gruesome’ and I think it’s the lack of budget.  The acting is okay and, despite being called ‘Gruesome’ there isn’t that much gore in it (but what there is isn’t too bad), so it has to be the general vibe.  The film comes across like it’s been filmed on a cameraphone and the lighting is practically non existent.  Every shot has a grey tint to it, like it’s been shot through the wrong filter.  I know that’s hardly a major thing, but it just adds to the overall feeling of cheapness.

‘Gruesome’ is about a waitress, who seems to be destined to be stalked (and then murdered!) by some local weirdo.  Then, just as the axe – literally – falls on her, she wakes up and has to go through it all over again, only with slight variants on the same theme each time.  It probably sounds like a ‘horror version of Groundhog Day’ but it’s probably more akin to (the less well known) ‘The Deaths of Ian Stone’ (although that had a budget!).

Maybe the reason the ‘grey tinge’ bugged me so much is because ‘grey’ is largely regarded as a dull colour.  And it just matches the overall feel.  I know the story tries to be a little deeper than your average torture p0rn/slasher film and it does try to add a few twists in there for good measure.  But nothing can really disguise the fact that this is a cheap offering that offers very little new in terms of horror or storytelling. 

4/10 You can watch this film while you're doing the ironing (you'll still get the general gist of it)