Tusk (2014)

New flick from Kevin Smith. Total sick horror comedy. Honestly? I dug it.
I’ve always got a soft spot for twisted movies, though let's be real, there's plenty out there way more messed up than this one... ;D but if you're looking for something a little different, this hits the spot ;D
The cast is solid too—gotta love seeing Justin Long, Haley Joel Osment, and Johnny Depp all together

You list all the actors but completely overlook the absolute powerhouse of the film, Michael Parks.
The guy basically carried the entire movie on his back. 🙏
Even before I sat down to watch it, I told myself not to take this thing too seriously—mostly because Smith is the kind of writer who doesn't take himself seriously either, which is exactly how the script works (aside from the usual solid comedic beats). It’s top-tier absurdity. Honestly, I wouldn't have expected anything less from him.
SPOILERS
What really rubbed me the wrong way was how much the story just falls off a cliff after that "shocking" climax. There are way too many plot holes—like, how is he even keeping that skin intact given the lack of circulation? And how on earth did Wallace adopt a seal mindset that quickly to the point where he fully embraced a whole new identity? But somehow, the sheer enthusiasm behind all this chaos makes it weirdly charming.

Guy Lapointe. 🤣

I’m jumping on the bandwagon here. Honestly? This movie is right up my alley. It’s like some twisted cocktail of Cabin Fever, Apt Pupil, and Martyrs, just... cranked up a notch on the insanity scale. The acting is top-tier across the board, but man, Michael Parks absolutely nails it. Even though the whole thing gets pretty bizarre, it actually holds its own and stays grounded.

By the way, you should check out his podcast

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

I actually already wrote an ode to Las Vegas, so I’m just dropping some more recommendations here—just a heads-up, don't expect some deep, profound masterpiece! But if you're into twisted characters, bizarre situations, and dark humor wrapped in a totally gross package, you'll probably dig it.
I was watching Smith's Red State the other day and honestly, it made me feel a bit nauseous. I much preferred Donald Trump's style.
Btw, Ajuto, I'm not seeing any "apt pupil" vibes in this one. 🤔

Ashley Grant66 said:By the way, Patrick Martin, I don't see any kind of genius at work in this movie. 🤔

What do you mean?

Howard Howe is giving off major Kurt Dussander vibes for me,
both physically and "mentally,"
and even just the acting style.

Plus that whole victim versus tormentor dynamic in some isolated house setting.

I mean, okay, it doesn't have that same obsessive fascination, but they still feel similar to me in a way. ☕

And seriously, can someone please scrub that spoiler image from the first post? 🙂

I’m honestly kind of obsessed with how revolting this movie is.
I’ve still got about thirty minutes left, but I’m secretly hoping they play I am the Walrus by The Beatles before the credits roll. 😁

Alright, just finished it. Absolutely sickening.

I have to agree, the film was quite decent.

And Michael Parks absolutely crushed it.

You guys totally piqued my interest, so I went ahead and watched...

4/10

For a little bit there, it actually felt pretty promising, like a fun little B-movie horror flick, but then Johnny Depp shows up and just completely tanks the whole thing.

I was listening to the end credits... apparently, this whole movie was cooked up in the head of some guy at KPMG during one of his Podcasts, and the fans actually got to vote on how the ending should go!

Also, right at the start, the movie kind of circles back to this vibe:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars_Kid

Caught that one last year. Honestly, it was a bit of a snooze, but I still liked it better than that mess, It Follows.
I also watched the Texas Chainsaw Massacre the other day and actually thought it was pretty decent.

Seriously, there's no need to scrub the spoiler image from the opening post. I mean, who on earth would ever think someone was actually going to turn a person into a seal? ☕

Man, I really loved this movie. 😁 It’s such a breath of fresh air.
I had a gut feeling right from the jump that it was going to end up being super polarizing... people are definitely going to be split on this one.

Honestly, Creep is easily the best horror flick I've seen in a long while.

stormyeagle65 said:Aside from Creep, it's probably the best horror film out lately.

In what way is Creep actually better than Honeymoon (2014), for instance?

Best part is at the end... a year later, they come visit him at the zoo and just toss him some fish... and he's loving it... 🙂 totally reminds me of that penguin from Batman Returns

Go easy on the spoilers, man. Kevin Smith hasn't exactly been hitting it out of the park lately, but this one might actually be a decent laugh if we don't ruin the surprises.

This was Smith's last movie, and honestly, it bombed at the US box office. It pulled in a measly $1.9 million against a $3 million budget. Reviews are pretty mixed—some good stuff here and there, but mostly negative, and it even got labeled one of the worst films of the year. Rotten Tomatoes is sitting at 5.4, and Metacritic gave it a 55. Looks like Smith is stuck in this slump that really started back with Cop Out, which happened to be on TV last night. Has anyone else caught this one yet? What’d you think?

Peter Reed70 said:The movie also brings us right back to this story at the start:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars_Kid

First time I'm seeing this. How is it similar to that? And I don't get what people found in that video that made it go so viral.

I caught this back at Fantastic five years ago... and man, I was floored when I got home and saw the absolute onslaught of hate online. Most of the film bloggers and critics I follow were tearing it apart, calling it bland, disgusting, or just plain stupid.

I mean, you’ve got Parks playing this wild, charismatic villain—definitely a standout for me, though it's such a shame he passed away shortly after. Then there's the sexy Genesis Rodriguez, plus this totally absurd, bizarre plot and a lead character undergoing this grotesque transformation. What is there to hate? 😁 Plus, from what I saw in the theater, the crowd loved it. Everyone was laughing and having a blast.
So yeah, I was honestly stunned by the massive smear campaign I found afterward.

I have to say, I find myself agreeing with you on this one. It’s honestly baffling to me why there is such a relentless wave of negativity directed at this movie. I'll be the first to admit that "Donald Trump" isn't some modern-day "Lawrence of Arabia," but even so, it remains an undeniably entertaining piece of 👍
.
Plus, it features Johnny Depp.

This is easily Smith's best work in over fifteen years, and honestly, I don't think he's ever going to top it. His absolute prime was definitely back in the 90s...

hiddenorca6 said:Honestly, this is probably Smith's finest work in the last 15 years, and I doubt he’ll ever top it. His real prime was definitely back in the '90s...

I actually thought Red State (2011) was pretty solid too.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0873886/

starring Michael Parks and John Goodman.