Japan’s 2009 horror flick “Grotesque” caused a stir when the British film rating authorities refused to certify it. I find that rather odd because there’s nothing here that makes any more disturbing than “Saw” or “Hostel”. This is definitely an incredibly gruesome film and it’s unrelenting in its sadism. However, I think at times, it actually does a reasonable job of building up some tension.

A doctor (Shigeo Ôsako “Brutal”) kidnaps a young couple on their first date. He restrains them as he carries out evil acts on their bodies as he mutilates and molests them. He claims that he will release them if they can satisfy his sick urges. He will push them to the very limits of human experience both physically and psychologically.

The unnamed doctor doesn’t have any motivation involving money or teaching his victims some grand lesson, he just wants to satisfy himself in some sick and demented ways. The acts he carries out are truly despicable. Unfortunately, I don’t think that the performances from the cast members playing the couple are very good, which weakens the interest I had in their struggle. The special effects are actually pretty impressive and convincing at times as the doctor continues to mutilate them.

If you’ve seen “Saw”, “Hostel”, “Human Centipede” or even the old “Guinea Pig” films from Japan, you’ll probably know what sort of thing to expect. “Grotesque” is about as violent and disgusting as films come. I think that some better performances from the couple could have helped keep me more engaged because when you lose interest in seeing them try to survive, we just end up with nothing but a series of excessive gore. If you are into your extreme films, I think you’ll agree that this is certainly up there with many other sadistic horror movies. I definitely don’t recommend watching this on an actual first date.