The Tortured (2010)

Actually, embarrassingly enough, it does include me because I was highly entertained by this meretricious mass of sinematic sleaze. While viewing the feature, I was planning to rate it a 1 or 2 based on it's morally objectionable premise but realized after being solidly enthralled for an hour plus, that it deserved at least a 5 rating despite a blatant disregard for any considerations of ethical decorum. The film clips along at a brisk pace even with a primitive script, distastefully gruesome graphics, a mostly implausible story line and characters that are rather non-dimensional, only coming to life when exercising their quest to snuff someone else's out. One of the absurd scenarios include jail van cops getting their coffee roofied by our vengeful protagonists in a convenience store, pulling over a few minutes later when the drugs kick in, abandoning their vehicle containing targeted-for-vengeance bad guy, then apparently disappearing into an adjoining field to sleep it off, leaving the evil dude alone ( or is he? ) and ripe for kidnapping. This is one of those stories that tries to elicit sympathy for the main characters while simultaneously exploiting their grief, thus maintaining a highly ambivalent moral stance that is at least consistent in its sordid sophistry. The prurient/ tragic motif is also evidenced by the scene in which the naked svelte mother ( Erika Christensen ) cries in the bathtub, suggesting a sub-genre of torture grief porn. Should I look at her lithe nude figure or feel empathy? The answer is perhaps both which is where the tale may obtain its narrative power by employing a contradictory, disassociative technique. An annoying musical theme drones in the background during most of the movie which I assume is one more component in this dark psyop of a feature designed to pre program us further into a culture that endorses torture as a tonic that's good for what ails 'ya. Not recommended, so hurry up and watch it!

This movie sat in my Netflix queue for quite some time until I had one of those days that you just want to watch something but do not want to become too invested. Usually I cannot help but go on IMDb during or before a movie just to get a feel for what I am about to see, but I did not do that with this one. (I had left the iPad across the room and really did not feel like getting it). A lot of reviewers say that the movie is predictable, which in some aspects, it is. I do think, however, the storyline could have been beefed up a little bit but the events that unfolded in the short amount of time were worth a watch. The five stars I gave this film are dedicated to how the couple, mainly the mother, reacted to the kidnapping of their son. I feel like I would have reacted the same way, and while I may have been driving aimlessly I would have the urge to just go and look for my missing child. She played the part well and really embodied how utterly devastating and full of rage a mother would be. The divide for viewers will boil down to those that would never consider torturing or wanting to make someone 'pay' for the pain that they have caused them, and those that would. It is easy to say yes or no when it is not yourself in the situation and you are on the outside looking in. As the parents are leaving the courtroom post sentencing, the mother says 'I do not want him eating, exercising or jerking off (etc)' :I felt that this was a crucial line because this is one of the major issues with the justice system, because in the end- why should someone who took the life of another be allowed luxuries that some free people do not even have? As for the end of the movie,I am surprised at the confusion of some people on the message boards, but I credit that to denial on their part. I am perturbed by the fact that the couple staked out the prison and saw him being loaded into the transport van but failed to see that there was another prisoner put in the van also. I feel like this is the kind of movie that did not need the twist. Like another reviewer said, I would like to have seen the reaction of the parents after seeing the truth, some movies end in this open way and it is acceptable, but for this one - no. The ending seemed to confuse whole story for me. By that I mean, what did the filmmakers want from their audience, or what did they want the audience to take away from the film?

This movie is just plain silly. The premise is so simple and the "surprise ending" so predicable. And actions of the characters implausible. It offers nothing.The plot: Just in case you're still curious about seeing this film. Yuppie doctors have their young son kidnapped and murdered by a child serial killer. The killer pleads insanity and gets a light sentence. This in and of itself could at least made an interesting Lifetime network movie but instead it's just rushed into the first 15 minutes of the film. We feel absolutely no emotions for this couple or their son since we really don't know anything about them. Their loss is merely the set up for the premise.The vengeful couple plan to hijack the killer's prison transport and take him back their house to torture him. Since they're doctors they know how to keep him alive.The hijack results in a crash but the couple succeeds in their plan and bring the already seriously injured killer back to their basement.Here's where the movie also misses out on an easy opportunity. Movie serial killers are generally interesting. They have a gimmick, 'Manhunter,' 'Seven,' 'Saw,' 'The Crimson Rivers.' Serial killers are interesting. But not this one. The injured killer is unable to speak and we learn absolutely nothing about him. Not a thing other than fact that he's murdered several children.After 60 minutes of boring R rated torture scenes. Yes, R is boring. True horror fans have already seen the Ilsa trilogy, 'Riki Oh' and 'Cannibal Holocaust.' Anything with a mere R rating is boring by our standards.Predictably the killer escapes, but only to hang himself there on the spot leaving a suicide note begging the couple's forgiveness. If he's so injured, how did he manage to hang himself to death? Spoiler warning!!! And now the predictable twist. The tortured man wasn't actually the killer. The couple later sees on the news that the prisoner transport was actually carrying two prisoners. The serial killer and a tax evader. They've been torturing the tax evader. We see in flashbacks that the real killer actually followed the couple back to their house and was hanging around their home the whole time stealing their food. He hanged the man and wrote the suicide note to frame him.Wait a minute! That doesn't make any freaking sense! Why was the serial killer hanging around the house at all? He could have simply killed the couple and hid out from the police in their house! Or he simply could have run like hell and escaped to Canada! Why was the killer even sticking around? It only increased his chances of being caught! Why was he reduced to stealing food when he could just kill for it? He's a serial killer! So what happens now? What does the couple do? They simply go on the lamb to evade the police! There's NO scene where the couple realizes in horror that they've been torturing an innocent man and feels any guilt. Or any guilt that they freed their son's killer! Aren't they the least bit concerned that the serial killer is still on the loose? I guess not since the killer was living in the bushes outside their house for a whole month and never even harmed them once! So that's the disaster which is 'The Tormented.' I can think of no redeeming value in this film what so ever. It's not even fun to riff or make of or base a drinking game around.Just in case you're still curious about the production quality and acting in this film... it's torture.

The Tortured is set in Vermont & starts as six year old Benjamin Landry (Thomas Greenwood) is abducted from his front garden, his father Craig (Jesse Metcalfe) is moments too late to save his son & after giving a short chase phones the police. Two cops visit the home of John Kozlowski (Bill Moseley) & find Benjamin's dead body in his basement, Kozlowski is arrested, put on trial & subsequently convicted of abduction & murder. Kozolwski is given 25 years which means he might be out in 10 on parole, Craig & his wife Elise (Erika Christensen) are devastated & decide to dish out their own justice to Kozlowski. They follow the prison van he is being transported in & manage to steal it, Craig crashes the van as he speeds through the countryside but both he & Kozlowski survive. Craig & Elise take the badly injured Kozlowski to a remote cabin & in the basement torture him in revenge for killing their son, however they begin to question themselves & the FBI are closing in as well...This American & Canadian co-production was directed by Robert Lieberman & is an odd film that I thought had mixed messages, on the one hand it starts off as a serious drama as two parents have to deal with the loss of their child but then turns into something much different as the Saw (2004) style torture & gore take center stage along with an twist ending which had the potential to be great. The issue of child abduction is a very serious & real one, The Tortured does a reasonable job of setting the story up & showing the effects of such an incident but this seems present only to justify all the torture & nastiness that follows. The themes in The Tortured are quite strong, child abduction like I said as well as the strong desire for revenge & just how far people are willing to go to right a perceived injustice. Both aspects are handled pretty well, the human drama at the start & the grisly tortures that follow, there's a fair bit of nasty torture here with Craig explaining it all in uncomfortable detail to his victim which is obviously aimed at the audience just so they know how much something is going to hurt or that the poor guy will be awake & be able to feel everything while it's happening. The character's are alright, the two parents seem to flip between feeling guilty & remorseful to brimming with hatred & vengeance a bit too often though. The script is hard to take seriously at times though, there are also huge leaps of logic involved & most viewers will have questions about some of the event's. How did Craig & Elise know what prison van Kowloski was in or when he was going to be transfered? Why wasn't Craig more injured in the crash? Then there's the twist ending which had great potential but some lazy writing & bad editing makes things a little unclear, you will have to see it for yourself & while most of it does actually make sense the film isn't clear enough & again you need to suspend your disbelief at some of the events, coincidences & twists.Filmed in 2007 but remained unreleased until 2010 The Tortured is shot a fairly low key way & doesn't go for flashy camera tricks or editing, I am sure that was the intention. There's some nasty torture scenes here, while they don't result directly in anyone's death they do make you feel a little uneasy at times. A foot is clamped in a vice & slowly crushed, a huge syringe is inserted into an ear to burst the guy's ear drum, people are burned, beaten & in one scene a stomach is sliced open & intestines are pulled out. The special effects are pretty good as well, I didn't notice any CGI computer effects either, this is on set make-up & prosthetics.The IMDb says the The Tortured had a budget of about $8,500,000 which I find impossible to believe, where did all the money go? No big stars, no big action scenes or exotic locations. The acting is alright if not exactly moving, you should probably feel more for the character's here than what I did.The Tortured is a decent horror thriller, it has it's moments where it's very effective & that twist ending is pretty good even if it's badly scripted & badly edited. At only 75 minutes long it's quick as well, The Tortured is reasonably good at what it sets out to do.