Review of See No Evil

Introduction

All I knew of this film was that it was a horror and the poster showed a heavy-set man with a giant hook - promising! I didn`t know until the opening credits rolled that this was bankrolled by the WWE production company and that Vince McMahon was the executive producer. This told me a lot.

Jacob Goodnight (the wrestler Kane) is a hulking psychopath with a penchant for removing his victims` eyeballs. When eight convicts volunteer to spend a weekend cleaning up the Blackwell Hotel in return for a month off their sentences (under the supervision of a parole officer who had his arm chopped off by Jacob, but still managed to shoot him in the head!) carnage ensues as Jacob survived the shooting and is living there. The convicts have their own issues and are almost fighting each other as much as the menacing Jacob.

Video

A very sharp anamorphic transfer which is let down by appalling CGI throughout: the flies are desperately bad, the exterior shots of the hotel never look real and an entire sequence near the end would be put to shame by a next-gen video game.

Audio

The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is very clear and makes good use of the surrounds.

Features

In the commentary, director Gregory Dark and writer Dan Madigan embark on a sycophantic love-in: each compliments the other, both compliment the actors and crew and talk about a book that was seemingly written by Madigan after the screenplay.

`Do You See The Sin? - The making of See No Evil` explains how the special makeup effects, green screen and stunts were completed, with a healthy dose of love for Kane and how he has `the whole spectrum of humanity` in his face!

If any doubt remained that this film was simply a vehicle for getting Kane and the WWE into feature films, they were quickly dispelled in the interviews with the cast and crew, in which each are asked about their characters and `working with Kane`. The emphasis is entirely on what Kane is like as an actor, on and off set.

``Dog Food` scene: Storyboard to film comparison` is, as the title suggests, a comparison between the storyboard and film of one scene, which I won`t go into so as not to spoil the film.

`Kane: Journey Into Darkness` - this brief three minute feature tells you about Kane the wrestler through a montage of WWE footage. If you`re a fan of WWE then you`ll know this already; if you`re not, then you won`t want to know.

Conclusion

Whilst researching this review, I was surprised to find out that this was not WWE Films first foray into feature films: it was the production company for `Walking Tall`, `Welcome to the Jungle` and the forthcoming films `The Marine`, `Jornada del muerto` and `The Condemned` - all of which are action movies starring WWE wrestlers. This is their first departure from action into horror, begging the question: Is this what has become of the horror genre?

The WWE has produced a film featuring one of their stars and directed by a man who has built his career making adult movies and music videos. The thought of more films like this is really too depressing to put into words. In one of the extra features, Gregory Dark says he is `giving horror fans what they want` with his MTV style editing, plenty of gore and ridiculous plot. The horror genre has seen its fair share of terrible films recently, but none were such blatant attempts to foist an `actor` and the organisation he represents on the paying public.

The story seems to take place in an alternate reality as the fire damaged hotel that has been abandoned for 30 years still has a working elevator, electricity and running water. The building is being cleaned up and renovated for use as a homeless shelter, so who do they call in to do this intensive job? Eight criminals whose expertise seems to be violence and drug dealing. Are we supposed to feel sorry for them when Jacob starts killing?

Kane (real name: Glen Jacobs) certainly has the build of a horror movie killer, standing at 6` 8", but his inability to convey emotion and surprising lack of presence brought to mind another wrestler-turned-actor: Tor Johnson, Ed Wood`s favourite strongman. Just as Kane should stick to wrestling, Gregory Dark should stick to adult movies - maybe `New Wave Hookers` or `Between the Cheeks` could do with another installment?

While WWE fans might get a kick out of seeing Kane playing a psychopathic killer, I hated this film and everything it represents: quick, music video style editing; clichéd, hackneyed and predictable writing; appalling CGI; terrible acting and one-dimensional characters you just don`t care about. It seems that Kane hasn`t ventured into the world of feature films since - and I hope it stays that way, as my favourite genre is better off without him and the WWE.