Pieces of Talent- Joe Stauffer

The story itself, is simple. A girl who is trying to make it as an actress, ends up witnessing a man beat. She helps him, and they strike up a friendship. He chats with her about a role she would be perfect for. This decision will change her life forever. See, it turns out. David is a fucking psycho.

As I type that, I realize it sounds pretty generic, and to be honest, at points it is. With that said, there is plenty of great things in this film. As mentioned before, David is a psycho. Imagine if T.J. Miller and Weird Al were in the back of a shed fucking. Then Mick Taylor showed up from the outback, and interrupted. They are worried, but it turns out he just wants in on the action. He tells them to continue. He is mostly a watcher, but this time, he decides to show them what a "knife" looks like. Next thing you know, they are all climaxing, and their love juices all bleeds together. Instantaneously, a creature starts to rise up from the gooey mess on the floor. That creature is David. Kind of nerdy, kind of friendly, but also as terrifying as they come. My point being. David is a wonderful bad guy. It is easy to hate and love him, to pity and look up to him, to feel sympathy and fear him. He embodies everything good and bad.

The atmosphere is fantastic, and the imagery feels like my childhood. David's house is full of so many electronics from my childhood. A top loader VCR, a VHS camcorder, and a TV that looks like it was pulled out of my grandparents RV.  These were just a few of my favorites, but the movie is full of  some great design, and atmosphere. 

The style in which this film is made, is in some ways quite unique, and in others, a mishmash of genre and style. It almost has a nineties indie feel. Think Greg Araki, Harmony Korine, or even Vincent Gallo. It also has a strong surreal overtone. When we go inside David's head, we are flooded with experimental, almost hallucinogenic scenes. Sure they can be overly artsy, but sometimes that's okay. I could not help, but think of the nineties Canuxploitation classic "Subconscious Cruelty"  when viewing these scenes. The way the blood flowed so beautifully, and freely.

This is by no means a perfect film. It drags at points, and there is some filler. I found myself losing interest somewhere in the middle, but it didn't take long to get going again. Every time it almost lost me, it would suddenly throw its hooks in my face, and drag me back into the surreal, brutal, funny world it had earlier created.

One last thing I want to touch on, is the gore. There is plenty of it, and gorehounds will have to resist pleasuring themselves awkwardly when their friends are around. Now if you watch it by yourself like I did, well, I will just quit there. Just know that the blood flows like Countess Bathory  on her period. That is how science works right? If you drink a lot of blood, then you bleed, you will bleed more blood? Sounds right to me.

You can purchase Pieces of Talent directly from the filmmakers on their website. There is a special edition with commentaries, behind the scenes, music videos, and shorts. There is also a standard version hitting in September. If you don't want to wait, you can get it digitally, and for the collectors, there is a couple of VHS options.



3.5/5


-Tromeric