This Mexican shocker crept up on audiences from practically out of nowhere, with legendary Cannibal Holocaust director Ruggero Deodato having his name in the lime light as an associate producer. Director Lex Ortega delivers the horror from the streets of Mexico where the film states over 28,000 murders go unsolved each year and another quote on how anyone can get away with murder there. In the introduction of Atroz (Atrocious) we get this very urban feel to the movie -- a great intro showing the gritty streets and all the seedy characters (derelicts, prostitutes and the regular people of society all existing as one).

Unearthed Films guru, Stephen Biro has an eye for sinister material and gets only the best films on his roster. With this indie horror production, there is no exception. The sheer ferocity and merciless nature of Atroz beats you savagely over the head and doesn’t let up. It’s fast paced, well edited and moves along with the storyline in a break-neck pace. What’s more twisted is director Lex Ortega taking the reins as the main character so the man knew what he wanted out of this movie, what he was aiming for in both direction and acting.

The storyline is well constructed and simple, but it works effectively. A woman has been brutally struck down by a car and the two drivers have been obtained by the police. The unorthodox commander-in-chief decides to check out the assailant’s car for himself and makes a gruesome discovery on a camcorder. The video recorder features the relentless torture and murder of a prostitute. The police decide to deal out some justice of their own -- justice that would make even the criminals cringe -- by interrogating their perpetrators, they discover more videotapes exposing even more sexually deviant torture and murder.

Without giving much of the juiciness away I can honestly say Atroz delivers the violence and gore tenfold, but does so in a manner of such savagery, with these crazy first person point-of-view camera shots and probably some of the most uncomfortable scenes of anal violation ever put on celluloid. Feces, incest, menstrual blood, gore, castration, sexual mutilation, it’s all here and then some! This is an intense experience which is solely told by gritty video camera footage which frequently switches back to present time when the criminals are questioned.

Where I question Atroz is not in its delivery but how everything was caught on video camera. Even the main killer’s fucked up childhood humiliation from his parents. Who in their right mind films all this, all these fucked up scenes in their life with a video camera? I had a hard time stomaching this but it didn't lessen the experience for me.

Ortega has bludgeoned everyone over the head with Atroz. No mercy is shown and I can honestly say this movie is one of the most intense viewing experiences I've had in a while and not soon to be forgotten. I hate comparisons but it’s easily up there with the infamous big guns such as A Serbian Film and American Guinea Pig: Bouquet of Guts and Gore. I recommend every underground horror film enthusiast to seek this out for their collection. Lex Ortega is a filmmaker to be watched. Unearthed Films and Biro have got another winner on their hands. Soon Unearthed Films will take over the world and turn shit into solid horror gold.

 

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