Mad Mutilator

Perhaps it's best that this is in another language, because it saves us from having to read it and, in essence, attempt to understand it. Which is good, because trying to comprehend what it is I'm seeing just visually is complicated enough without having the text to attempt helping make sense of it. Thankfully (or not, I guess, depends on how you feel) I go the extra mile and dug up some information for us about the film.

The movie also goes by Ogroff, and is a French slasher film released in 1983. Perhaps the most fascinating facet of the film is how it was devised entirely by the film's director, writer, and actor, Norbert Moutier (credited as N. G. Mount), who was a video rental store proprietor with the hopes of renting it to patrons at his store. Kind of brilliant, if we're being honest. Make your own movie, then rent it to the people who visit your shop. I kind of have to admire that level of deviousness. And to be fair, this isn't inherently "bad" box art. There's actually quite a bit to appreciate here.

The title font is awesome, and the artwork on the front, while not exactly well done perspective wise, is pretty solid. Like, sure, the way the skull is facing on her body doesn't make any goddamned sense, nor does it make sense why it's a skull in the first place, but it's not bad persay. And even the back isn't totally without merit. Instead of the usual out of context screenshots, we're given a nice bit of blood surrounding the box lining and two fairly solid images; one of a woman being held hostage by said Mad Mutilator and one of a guy who apparently met the Mad Mutilator sometime earlier that day and no longer has a face.

That's actually a pretty grisly image to include on box art, I gotta hand it to 'em.

So yeah, this box? Not all that bad actually. But THIS box...

Oh boy. Here we go.

Same screenshots (plus a bonus less interesting screenshot to boot!) on the back, but now it's more standardized design wise and less interesting visually, and the title font lacks the sheer awesome gruesomeness that the previous box had. Also, I don't know what "Blood Zone" is - whether that's the company who released this variant or simply a section of their rental store dedicated to really violent horror films - but I wish it was on every single VHS box ever. We've also got an extremely vague "Horror Video" title at the top of the front box, but that's, happy to say, the least confusing thing about the front.

The front of this box, oh man where to start. This is SO. BAD. I don't generally just say that outright, but I think this time it'd be wrong of me not to. The artwork on this is so goddamned awful and looks like some high schoolers attempts at making creepy images in the pages of their notebook between their homework. Someone who maybe listens to a little too much heavy metal and chainsmokes. You know the kind of high schooler I'm describing. Hell, you might have been the kind of high schooler I'm describing. And the mutilator himself just looks outright goofy, I'll say it. He's not intimidating in the least. Whether that skull lady on the first box has any bearing on the film whatsoever remains to be seen nor does it matter, because at least it was a fairly solid and interesting piece of art. But this fucking thing?

Even the colors on the back, and the shots themselves that were on the previous box, aren't as bright or nice to look at. The color is all dulled and the shots are boring. They somehow chose the more boring angle of a man with an axe in his face, and now the Mad Mutilator taking the woman hostage is seen in context of the scene and is less intriguing. But none of that matters when compared to this abomination on the front of the follow up box. I get that they had a specific art style, but it so clearly doesn't work here, and it just looks goddamned goofy. They tried to keep the mask on the Mad Mutilator but it just looks like his face is a piece of burnt toast, instead of some kind of cool iron mask situation. I don't know how you screw up this much while still maintaining originality, but congrats guys, you did it.

Though you did give us "Blood Zone", so I guess I can't call you absolute trash, because that's a contribution worthy of praise.

You know, it seems to me that most of the movies we cover on this blog are just bad horror flicks. Why's there never any bad dramas with ludicrous artwork, or bad comedies with awful design? What is it about the horror genre specifically that begs the people working on their boxes to craft monstrosities right out of our nightmares, as horrifying as the films themselves, or more so? Perhaps it's because horror lends itself to a particular brand of imagination, or perhaps we'll never know.

All I can say for certain is I hope to god the Mad Mutilator mutilated whoever was responsible for that second box, because while I am all for the arts, all for distinct visual styles and unique viewpoints, that is something somehow more offensive than the film proper I'm willing to bet, and it needs to be brought to justice.

Also, I wanna start a video rental store called Blood Zone now.