Uwe Boll.
I could stop there and everyone would
understand. It's a sad reputation to have, but
let's be honest...Boll's name is becoming
synonymous with crappy films. This 2000 film,
completed before he got on his video game binge,
is actually the first of at least two Boll films
to directly rip-off films made the same year.
This past year, Boll's "Heart of America" ripped
off the wonderful Gus Van Sant film "Elephant"
in depicting a Columbine style school shooting.
"Sanctimony" is a nearly direct rip-off of
2000's "American Psycho," based upon the Bret
Easton Ellis novel. In this film, a broker
becomes bored with life and becomes a serial
killer known as the "Monkey Killer" (stop
laughing).
At 87 minutes, the film moves along quite
quickly (possibly proof there is a God),
however, it is still not quickly enough. Set in
Vancouver, I think I'd rather have seen the
stereotypical Canadian Mounted Police show
up...at least it might have been entertaining.
Along with stealing the plot from "American
Psycho," the film steals bits and pieces from
other films (including actual graphic styles
from the much more successful "Seven.")The film
stars Michael Pare' and Jennifer Rubin as two
cops investigating the serial killer. At the
point we pick up, the killer has cut off the
eyes, ears and tongue from his victims...thus
far, he has six eyes and ears and three tongues.
Hmmmmm. I see a pattern. Yep, these very astute
cops figure he's going to kill three more
victims so he can have his "666." Makes sense to
me.
Casper Van Dien plays Tom Gerrick, the
aforementioned broker/killer. Of course,
everything about this film is run-of-the-mill
and the performances range from simply horrid
(Rubin) to moderately functional (Van Dien).
It's safe to say that it's a doomed film when
Casper Van Dien has the top performance.
Everything about the film is almost painful to
watch, and it's disturbing that Boll continues
to be able to finance films. He's got four
slated for 2006 alone...is this drug money?
mafia money? daddy's money? How can this
possibly be happening? It's disturbing beyond
words. Photography here is simply wretched, the
score insipid and irritating. The script is
filled with numerous holes, not surprising since
it is a Boll script. None of the characters are
even remotely appealing, and when your favorite
performance is the killer...well, it's just not
a good sign.
"Sanctimony" was Boll's first American language
film, but it's amazing to me that 5 years later
he seems to have not grown at all. The film also
includes a supporting cast of Eric Roberts and
Catherine Oxenberg, which serves to simply
validate its really, really, really bad "B"
movie status.
"Sanctimony" passes, barely, for one simple
reason. In spots, I chuckled. Were these
intended chuckles from Boll? I have no doubt
they were not. Yet, they were chuckles and gave
me a few, very brief moments of light in the
darkness that is this film. "Sanctimony" is
typical Uwe Boll...uninspired, repetitive and
wholly unoriginal. In a year when "American
Psycho" did this plotline right, "Sanctimony" is
nothing more than a pathetic rip off that will
remind you that Boll is nothing more than a
spoiled rich boy who makes films because he can,
not because he actually has the talent to do so.
©
Written by Your Richard Propes
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How We Rated This Film
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TC Candler -
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| Richard Propes
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Jacob Hall
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TC Candler's Comment
N/A
Jacob
Hall's Comment
N/A
