“Lurid tales of morbid pessimism” promises the box art for “Three Stories”. And on that count, it does deliver. Writer/director Mattimore has a beef with the so-called horror movies of today’s generation, what with their plot and story, so he decides to just cut right to the chase. The “Three Stories” of the title involve a recovering alcoholic cut in half on a jobsite, a man serviced by a dead hooker, and a man with a penchant for cutting himself searching for an alternative to his blood-lust.
Well, at least they’re three short stories.
Alright, maybe I’m not being fair. For as pointless as I found the “Three Stories” to be at first, I have to admit I haven’t been able to stop thinking about them since I watched the tape. There’s a creepy, unnerving and unclean quality to the trio that just seems to get under your skin. Absent lengthy explanations, Mattimore lets the images and implications seep into your mind – the maggots writhing in the wound of the dead hooker’s stab wound (despite the phoniness of the make-up); the blood-fetishist who purchases a baby; who set the wire-trap that bisects the working stiff in story one? At the onset, I was irritated, now I’m fascinated by what I just watched.
“Three Stories” has some of the cleanest, best-lit video photography I’ve seen in a while. The video look and feel actually add to the uncomfortably realism that Mattimore is striving for.
So, you may not be impressed while actively watching “Three Stories”, I can practically guarantee the images will stay with you for a long time.
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