As many times as you may have heard this disclaimer, you're gonna have to hear it again, so let's just get it out of the way here right from the start. Shugo Fujii's Living Hell was shot for about 100,000 US dollars, in little over a week's time. There, I said it, now I feel much better. Not to use a films' budget or time constraints as an excuse for sloppy filmmaking (or what have you), it's still nice to put these things into perspective, because they 'do' indeed matter (whether you want to believe it or not) in the long run. Now, this isn't to say that Living Hell is an example of sloppy filmmaking either, because it isn't - as a matter of fact it has quite a bit going for it. The fact that it was shot (on film) on such a low budget and so quickly (there I go again!) actually makes it all the more impressive a feature. This little gem of cinematic cruelness has been brought to us on DVD as the maiden 'Special Edition DVD' voyage for Subversive Cinema, and if this release is any indication of things to come, I may just be on board for the long haul.

We'll get into the story here just a bit, but only a bit, because once again, this is an instance of 'don't ask, don't tell.' In other words, I don't want to give too much away. The film takes some unusual turns well into the second act (for better or for worse) and you're simply better off not knowing about these detours until you actually sit down with the flick yourself. The box art proclaims Living Hell to be some sort of a 'Japanese Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and while that description (in my opinion) is not wholly accurate, it still gives far too much away, simply because Living Hell doesn't start out heading in that direction.

After a brief prologue in which a young girl in her twenties (Yuki) and her 'grandmother' (Chiyo) slaughter an unsuspecting family in a couple of short lived gruesome ways, the duo move in with another family, to stake yet another claim (all the while, a nosy reporter is hot on their trail). Right from the start, we know (and the family sure as hell should know too) that something is going to go down, we just don't know how...or...when, or even why for that matter. Wheelchair bound Yasu, is the first to realize that something 'just ain't right' but his father and siblings (Ken and Mami) believe Yasu to just be depressed and plain old nuts (or do they?). Through a series of unfortunate events, Yasu is left alone with Chiyo and Yuki, who begin to taunt and torture the poor crippled young man.

Things start out 'innocent' enough (for lack of a better term) as Chiyo and Yuki force Yasu (while in his wheelchair) down a steep hill into oncoming traffic or dump a plate of worms on his lap. The threat continually increases as the ghostly duo take to Yasu with a stun gun (at one point they wet his genitals just before using said stun gun!) and eventually the actual bloodletting begins. That's all you get for now, there is quite a bit more to endure here, but for now, mum's the word.

In the end, it sounds a lot more graphic than it actually is, but purely on an aesthetic level. While onscreen violence isn't quite as intense as I would have expected, the look and feel of the film itself, is still quite gruesome. Don't get me wrong, there is blood, and it does get nasty, but a lot of the carnage isn't quite as nasty as it coulda been. Part of the success here has to be appointed to the performances, which are all spot on. It's rare to find a film of this ilk (particularly a foreign film) in which performances can transcend the language barrier and work as well as they do here. Obviously a testament to the dedication the actors had for the project (cause they weren't paid much) and a big kudos to Fujii for bringing it all together. Fujii lists Hitchcock as one of his main inspirations and I can see why. While Fujii may not be as accomplished a director as Hitchcock (yet) he plays up to the master's techniques quite well, there's definite potential here.

It's not a perfect horror film by any means - but Fujii manages to craft an effective little chiller, that while still fairly violent, doesn't necessarily need to depend on the nastiness for its ultimate success. Living Hell may be deliberately paced, but it uses this to its full advantage, even after wading through the clichés (of which there are quite a few, mind you), the most seasoned horror fans (or newcomers) should walk away ultimately pleased.

The transfer here is generally clean of any defects, damage etc, and colors (while still a bit muted) appear accurate. I noticed in a few scenes that there was a slight ghosting effect evident, which I could really only attribute to edge enhancement. Overall, the quality of this non anamorphic transfer is quite clean and appealing. The Dolby Surround audio is nice as well, subtle (real subtle) audio appearances in the surround speakers and clear dialogue, with no evidence of distortion or trouble spots.

Extras include 4 early short films from Shugo Fujii, (running feature length between them). Fujii also provides a full-length audio commentary as well. Luckily his English is pretty good, and if you stick with it, may find points of reward throughout. Also included are about 6 minutes of deleted scenes (uneventful), trailers for a few other Subversive titles due out on DVD (including Living Hell) some storyboards and a brief (yet interesting) text BIO for Fujii. All in all, it's a fascinating platter of goodies that accompany an obscure (yet entertaining) fright film. I highly recommend this DVD release of Living Hell from newcomers Subversive Cinema. Nothing here is quite perfect, but it is so fan friendly, you can't help but dig in and enjoy.

Buy it online from Subversive Cinema at http://www.subversivecinema.com