When it comes to the world of extreme horror cinema, few titles are as iconic as the Japanese Guinea Pig series from the 1980’s. During the 90’s they became incredibly sought after VHS titles, a must have for fans of underground gore flicks. To date there have been a couple different home video releases on DVD, but they are currently out of print and will fetch a pretty penny on eBay. Back in 2014, as a tribute to those original Japanese films, Stephen Biro and Unearthed Films started their own series of extreme horror, the American Guinea Pig series. What follows is my ranking of the AGP films. While it doesn’t appear that the series is done, these movies are excellent and deserve to be watched.
4. AGP: Sacrifice (2017)
Haunted by the death of his father and other psychological traumas, Daniel returns to the home where he was raised. Faced with intense emotional scars, as well as physical — which are realized by the years of self-harm depicted by the cuttings adorning his body — he enters the bathroom to begin a journey of self-exploration, self-mutilation and quite possibly, self-enlightenment. Prepared only with three white candles and some crude instruments, Daniel attempts to beckon the embrace of the Goddess Ishtar to assist him on his self-illumination.
This debut directorial effort from Poison Rouge is pretty unsettling. You can’t help but feel for the main character due to the trauma he experienced in his past. He is longing for some kind of nirvana, going to great lengths to accomplish this. The story doesn’t get any more involved than that, but it didn’t need to. The real star here is the spectacular gore effects. There are numerous scenes of unflinching brutality, that is sure to make even the most hardened extreme horror veterans cringe. I definitely want to see more of Rouge’s work.
3. AGP: Bloodshock (2015)
A man is imprisoned by a psychotic doctor who tortures him in increasingly gruesome ways in order to extract chemicals from his bloodstream. Along the way, he develops a relationship with a female prisoner.
2. The Song of Solomon (2017)
Mary witnesses the brutal suicide of her Father. His death unleashes the savage forces of demonic possession in his daughter. The End of Days is upon the world, famine, drought, looting and chaos is ripping the world apart and the Catholic Church is trying to save an innocent soul from the ravages of satanic possession. Wave after wave of holy men are sent to confront the possessed.
This particular film has a different feel than the others. While still classified under the banner of “extreme horror,” there’s a lot more at work here. While the gore effects are there, and they are awesome, they aren’t the main star of this film. Intensely driven by a sinister plot and terrific acting, Song of Solomon is a truly terrifying foray into the world of demonic possession and exorcism. This is not just one of the best extreme horror films of 2017, it’s one of the best period.
1. AGP: Bouquet of Guts and Gore (2014)
Two women are abducted by a group of snuff filmmakers and brought into a Hellish nightmare of unmistakable brutality, viciousness and destruction that will leave every viewer shocked, amazed and awestruck.
