The Human Centipede (First Sequence) (2009)

Directed by: Tom Six | 90 minutes | drama, horror, thriller | Actors: Dieter Laser, Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie, Akihiro Kitamura, Andreas Leupold, Peter Blankenstein, Bernd Kostrau, Rene de Wit, Sylvia Zidek, Rosemary Annbella, Maurício d’Orey

‘The Human Centipede’ is a horror film directed by Tom Six. Then you actually already know enough. The director who treated the world to pulp like ‘Gay’ and ‘I love Dries’ is not known for his delicate work and every time the rancidity level is increased further. After showing Dries Roelvink’s naked ass, the search continues for a new way to shock the unsuspecting viewer. Enter ‘The Human Centipede’.

Two spoiled American tourists (Williams and Yennie) want to go to a rave, but unfortunately map reading isn’t their forte. When the ladies ended up in a deserted German forest with car trouble, they decide to knock on the door of a remote country house. The light is still on and maybe the resident can help them. Unfortunately, the master of the house is a twisted scientist who has rather unethical and morbid fantasies. dr. Josef (Laser), the internationally respected surgeon in question, engages in bizarre practices. His dream is to create a human centipede. The captured Japanese Katsuro (Kitamura) serves as the front, while the two tourists act as the center and rear end of the centipede.

Six has managed to create an equally infantile and entertaining horror film. The acting is appalling. dr. Josef is played in an ingenious way by Laser (a very cool last name, by the way, but that aside) who portrays the crazy surgeon as a caricature. Equipped with a fat accent and a piercing look, this villain is not to be taken seriously for a moment. The reason for his obsession is not given anywhere. The man simply wants to create a human centipede. Point. The tourists are never sympathetic and have strikingly shrill voices. And the contribution of the Japanese actor Akihiro Kitamura also makes no sense. The fact that Kitamura speaks completely in Japanese and nobody understands him (except for the fact that it is allowed to do with subtitles) doesn’t make it any more logical.

Six spends the most time on the idea of ​​the human centipede. The doctor first explains neatly to his prisoners what he intends to do and then shows the result. The three people are tied together. The anus of the predecessor opens into the mouth of the middle section, after which the process resumes with the final section. There is in fact a large intestine that is led by three people. What does that look like? Like three people who huddle behind each other (with a modest white slip). The idea is too gross for words, but the execution (fortunately) remains surprisingly good.

One of the selling points of ‘The Human Centipede’ is the fact that Six was advised by a real surgeon to make the film more believable and that you are therefore looking at a ‘100 percent accurate medical procedure’. Sure, but that doesn’t make it a good movie. Very entertaining though. The clumsy acting, the outrageous dialogues and the strange choices (for example, a lot of time is spent on trivial matters. A telephone number to be called is read slowly and a lot of time is spent with a horny driver who is no longer in the story. returns) make for a movie that’s so bad it’s fun.

In terms of entertainment value, this production scores very high. At least if you’re willing to go along with the raunchy data and the wacky interpretations. By the way, a sequel to ‘The Human Centipe’ is in the works. Six promises that it contains a human centipede of twelve people and is a lot more bloody than the first part. The most shocking aspect is that this horror film has won several awards at American film festivals, including Best Actor (Laser) and Best Picture. We are curious what they think of ‘I love Dries’ in the United States…