• Wide Release
• Director: Ryan Nicholson
• Written by: Ryan Nicholson
• Running Time: 94 minutes
• Language: English
• MPAA Rating: R - Restricted
• Cast: Alastair Gamble, Mihola Terzic, Nathan Witte, Wade Gibb, Candice Lewald, Jeremy Beland, Trevor Gemma, Scott Alonzo, Jimmy Blais, Danielle Munro, Stephanie Schacter, Saraphina Bardeaux, Dan Ellis

Near perfect in its execution, Ryan Nicholson’s “Gutterballs” is the kind of film that most other filmmakers could only dream of making. This is the slasher-genre taken to a whole other level. This is horror with a set of Jupiter sized balls, one that you will be talking about with your friends long after it has ended. Before you get all “this is hyperbole”, all I can say is run a check on the imdb.com and take a gander at the other films being recommended under this title – “Baise-moi”, “Ichi The Killer”, “Cannibal Holocaust” and “Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer”. You comprehend the portrait I’m painting?  “Gutterballs” is a pure gore/horror experience, one that will leave you offended, disgusted and, if you’re a gore fan, writhing with ecstatic glee. You might even belly up a chuckle or two. Granted, watching the film can be gruelling at times as the loud; curse-word laden dialogue becomes nearly unbearable – used, of course, to distinguish the good guys from the bad guys, but this is but a minor quibble. The ultra-violent content, shades of Bava and Argento, suggest a director studied in giallo. The film’s true reward however, as a fan, is in its particular ambiance -- in the way it conjures up and fixes itself somewhere mid-80’s. Looking like something Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus might have laboured over, even down to the glorious soundtrack (boasting plenty of 80’s era hits), and big hair, this film is “retro-ed” the fuck out but in a good and nostalgic way.

A scene in the film where a man has his penis severed length-wise and pulled open in order to effect a posthumous sex change, I’ll admit, had me cringing but, at the same time, I was in awe of just how far the director was willing to take it and laughing at its devilishly comedic tone. Right before my eyes, the film seemed to transcend its own tired genre simply by taking chances – chances that filmmakers haven’t be willing to take since the late sixties and early seventies, for whatever reason. Filmmaker Ryan Nicholson, one of my Canadian brethren, has definitely carved out a place for himself on an international stage with the zesty cinematic trifecta of “Torched”, “Live Feed” and “Gutterballs” and with the advent of his new project being released within the year, you don’t have to be Miss Cleo to know that things are surely looking up for horror fans the world over. I'm sure Ryan's bank account is set to balloon as well.

It’s a beautiful summer night, as two teams of twenty-something’s gather at a local bowling alley for an afterhour’s tournament. One of them knows the janitor, and he reluctantly lets them in to play, however, they still have to pay for the beer they drink. Before the first game, things begin to unravel as an argument escalates into a violent fist-fight in the middle of the off-hours alley. The Janitor (Dan Ellis) quickly intervenes, shotgun in hand, breaking up the festivities, but not before lots of blood has been spilled, and at least one of the pugilists requires a cast for his mangled foot. The two teams are as different as night and day, leading one to question why they would even know each other, that is until you find out the back story. Back in the day, Jamie (Nathan Witte) and Steve (Alastair Gamble) were pretty tight, that is until Steve began sniffing around super-hottie Lisa (Candice Lewald), asking her to the prom. As it turns out, Lisa, who seems opposed to underwear, was more interested in Jamie and eventually kicked Steve to the curb. Fast-forward to the present where Steve has become an angry bitter Tourette's Sydrome sufferer, or at least that’s how it seems. He’s the kind of moron that barks out every word he speaks, often accompanied by a couple of “fucks” and “shits”. You know this guy, he’s often at last call at the local pub. His three friends, Joey (Wade Gibb), AJ (Nathan Dashwood) and Patrick (Trevor Gemma), are equally obnoxious, and with the same speech retardation.

On the other side, Jamie seems to have become a leader of a group of laid back mods, including his slutty girlfriend, Lisa, as well as gorgeous goth-girl Sarah (Mihola Terzic), slickster Dave (Scott Alonzo), guitar-strumming Kid Rock wannabe, Ben (Jeremy Beland), Cindy (Stephanie Schacter), and last but not least, the pre-operative transsexual Sam (Jimmy Blais). The fight starts because Steve’s latent homophobia – something that manifests itself when they physically taunt Sam, however, when Jamie enters into the fray, the escalation seems to be more about the past than the present, about their history over a girl. Take note of who ultimately throws the first punch, and who remains mostly passive during the early stage of the argument. The Janitor insists that they come back the following night, as long as they “mind their p’s and q’s”. While leaving, Lisa realizes that she forgot her purse, and decides to sneak back into the alley to get it. Waiting in the shadows for her is Steve and the boys, who proceed to violently rape her over a pool table. Patrick, who is against the rape from the start and even attempts to intervene, is charged with the final “coup de grâce”  -- violently stuffing the wrong end of a bowling pin inside Lisa. Yeah, ouch.

The rape sequence, as excruciatingly brutal as it is, works as the thrust-point for the film’s revenge scenario, which drives the narrative for the film’s remainder. As the two rival teams meet the following night to complete the tournament, they are suddenly made aware of an unexpected contestant joining them on the scoreboard (and in the shadows), someone calling himself BBK. While Joey insists that it’s a computer glitch, something seemingly confirmed by The Janitor, it isn’t long before their numbers begin dwindling and BBK’s numbers begin increasing. As each of the team members leaves to get a beer, have sex, or get their ball waxed, it becomes crystal-clear that they won’t be coming back. One of the big drawbacks of the film might be in the way it is resolved. While searching for a neat twist, Nicholson only manages to confuse the audience by having one too many killers, however, it does set up a really gruesome kill as they turn on each other. BBK (or Bowling Ball Killer), when revealed, brings to mind some real-life serial killers, another ingredient that makes Nicholson’s soup so exciting. BBK is dressed in attire reminiscent of the Zodiac Killer, and even the names BBK sounds similar to BTK. The sequence where Janitor, Ellis, in an ominous tone, recites to Joey his ‘pin-setter theory’ – one that suggests that human beings, at their core, are evil, is far and away the best moment in the film. It all plays into the film’s smirkingly downbeat, nihilistic tone which I absolutely loved.

The kills, marrying graphic sex (penises and vaginas are on display here) and grisly violence, are imaginative, and really work to illustrate just how far Nicholson is willing to take his film. Some of the murders include a man getting his face ground up in a hot waxer, another being anally raped with a bowling pin, a pair are suffocated while doing a sixty-nine in a bathroom, another has his head blown clean off his body and, yeah, then there’s that impromptu sex change operation. There are so many more, but as we all know, part of the joy comes from experiencing each segment in their explicit individual glory. The FX are top notch. Tom Savini, himself, would be in awe of this effort. Let’s just say that the gore sequences, staged by professional FX man Nicholson (and his team), are so jaw-droppingly realistic (minus say, the shotgun decapitation scene which went overboard a bit) and so graphic, that you’ll surely be cringing. The hot waxer sequence, for whatever reason, I found the hardest to stomach.

Regarding the performances, I wasn't entirely impressed overall, but the actors did, at least, sell their characters. Alastair Gamble (2006's "Crossed") decides to overplay his character, as I said, screaming incessantly while lacing every sentence with heaping helpings of the word "fuck". Granted, he is rather intimidating, but it's a wonder why anyone would want to hang around with him. First time actors Wade Gibb and Trevor Gemma do their best in their under-written parts, while Nathan Dashwood, who actually appeared in a movie called "The Gutter Diaries", seems to be having fun, even though he's called on to say dialogue like, "Just because I don't drink a keg of beer everyday doesn't mean that I don't know a thing or two about a thing or two." Huh? Gemma's character, in love with Lisa, adds a glimmer of humanity to a scene that lacks any, and proves to be quite perplexing in the end. Young actor, Nathan Witte, proves an interesting tough guy. He has the looks and presence to pull it off, and his character seems strangely morally ambigious. Listening to his character in the last minutes of the film, seems to hint at a very ugly person indeed. Sadly, up and coming actress, Mihola Terzic (2006's "The Entrance"), doesn't really have much to do, and even a side-story involving Jamie and her, is strangely downplayed. Dan Ellis (2003's "Monsturd") as the crusty wise-cracking Janitor, is a damn fine actor. This guy totally surprised me, so much so, in fact, that I'm giving it a year before he and Bruce Greenwood are competing with each other over scripts.

Last but not least, the soundtrack, which features April Wine, BTO, Honeymoon Suite, Chilliwack, Loverboy and Trooper, is unbelievably good, and provides background-sound for the film’s early part. Spirited soundtracks in horror films are few and far between, so when you get a good one, it’s refreshing. Sadly, I’ve read that a newer “Danger After Dark” version won’t have these songs. Ug. This film, picked up for distribution by TLA Releasing, is destined to become a classic regardless of what music is lurking in the background. It’s received mostly positive buzz on the movie boards, and the director, Nicholson, is an active chatter on the imdb.com, openly discussing his film with anyone who asks. How cool is it that a filmmaker would actually take the time to talk movies with regular folk. To sum it up, as Steve would say, "Don't miss this fucking thing, you stupid fucking cunt! Now go get me a beer!"

Find out more information on "Gutterballs" by watching the trailer or by checking these sites; imdb.com, PlotDigger.com and the Wikipedia page.