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Directed by Written by
Starring
Presented by Rated R 89 Minutes
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THE
TATTOOIST Review
AS the opening states, the art of tattooing is a Somoan tradition that is taken very seriously, so much so that to not honor this custom and mock it would result in living in shame, which to the Somoan culture, is a fate worse than death. THE TATTOOIST is the first film to deal with the art of tattooing in a horrific sense, and the result has some interesting moments but it feels more like an Asian ghost horror film than trying to be original. The film opens with tattoo artist Jake Sawyer (Jason Behr of THE GRUDGE) whose upper body is filled with tattoo design. He believes himself something of a healer whose designs heal and protect the sick. After reflecting on a traumatic childhood where his arm is sliced by his father who deems the art “the devil’s work,” Jake is in Singapore looking for the latest designs for himself, which he finds in an ancient Somoan ritual. He receives a tattoo and heads to New Zealand, where he continues his search. He soon learns that the markings he received are a mark of death, and in order to save his life, he must find the origins of the evil behind the markings. THE TATTOOIST is the latest in the line of movies from Ghost House Pictures, which was responsible for THE GRUDGE, BOOGEYMAN, and 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, and it keeps the tradition in top notch production quality, looking like it’s made far above the three million it cost to make. It also takes its time with the story, but not before showing some gruesome shots of the old Samoan ritual and some odd moments of Jake seeing some dark beings reflected in mirrors. The film spends a great deal of time teaching us about the Samoan culture, best evidenced in a scenr where Jake witnesses a ritual with his girlfriend Sina (Mia Blake). It goes slowly but it’s necessary to understand because once you get into the gist of it, things get very interesting, and bloody, as the tattoos drawn by Sawyer seem to come alive and kill the person it’s on. Aside from Jason Behr, the cast is full of unknowns, except for HERCULES regular Michael Hurst, virtually unrecognizable in the role of Crash, Jake’s best friend. Behr is interesting and plays the notes right, but the character isn’t all that interesting. You don’t hate him. You don’t like him. He’s just there and there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of development for him. As I said, the direction and production design are excellent, as the tattoos are simply splendid, and the ways in which people are killed is extremely inventive and clever, going for some bloody but not gory moments. This is the feature film debut of director Peter Burger and he does a decent job his first time out, flowing the story and relying more on visual scares than just all out blood and gore. It works in some areas, but falls flat in others. The DVD includes a digital copy to put on your PC or PSP (which seems to be a staple of all Sony Pictures releases now) as well as several cool behind the scenes featurettes, including one on the tattoo design alone. The most interesting is a featurette on a real life Somoan tattoo ritual and it shows how closely the filmmakers were to the real thing in the film. For a DVD like this, it’s packed with features that educate the viewer on the making of the film. In all, THE TATTOOIST is an interesting film that’s worth a look for those wanting something different. It’s not memorable but it’s a plus for fans of THE GRUDGE and THE RING as it falls into that vein. The problem is it falls too familiar in that genre when it really had a chance to be something truly unique. THE TATTOOIST: 5 Out Of 10 Maggots
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