[Repo!The Genetic Opera]
Plot:Based on the Darren Lynn Bousman short involving an epedemic of organ failures which ends up killing millions. Soon a company called GENECO comes on the scene, a biotech company that offers easy organ financing. But should you miss any payments, all body parts are subject to legal default remedies...including reposession. A group of skilled assassins called The Organ repo men are sent to retrieve body parts from those who fail to make their payments, and they will retreive those parts by any means necessary.

Cast:Alexa Vega, Tobin Bell, Bill Moseley, Paul Sorvino, Paris Hilton, Anthony Stewart Head, Sarah Brightman, J. Larose.

My Thoughts:The Repo man is coming!

Review:I have to admit, going into Darren Lynn Bousman's horror-rock opera "Repo! The Genetic Opera"...I wasn't really sure what to expect, or whether the film would disappoint, or surprise. While I didn't think "Repo" was the best horror film of 2008, it certainly was the best mainstream horror film of the fall, which has been quite a disappointment so far...with "Saw 5" losing it's edge seemingly, and "Quarantine"? Nough said.

The film has a story which is played out through various musical numbers, where a girl named Shilo, who is sick...is unwittingly a large cog in a power struggle between the owners of Geneco, the Largo family...and a revenge plot that the owner of Geneco, Rotti Largo...is hell bent on carrying out against Shilo's father for taking away his one true love many years ago. Shilo's father Nathan however is determined to protect his daughter from Rotti, but can he overcome his own dark secret in the face of his daughter's peril?

"Repo!" is an interesting and very vivid combination of gothic set pieces, mesmerizing colors, and extremely creative yet dark and morbid dance numbers. It kind of reminded me of something Tim Burton would've came up with if DLB hadn't come up with it first. Darren Lynn Bousman directs the film brilliantly, capturing the full spirit of each song and dance number, and squeezing the best out of his actors. Which wasn't really hard I presume with a very talented cast which includes Bill Moseley as Luigi Largo, Anthony Stewart Head as Nathan Wallace, Alexa Vega as Shilo Wallace, and Paul Sorvino as Rotti Largo.

Even Paris Hilton as the queen of the Geneco empire Amber Sweet...gives a great performance. And let me repeat myself so you won't think I'm going crazy...Paris Hilton gives a GOOD performance. However, she was definitely casted into a role that sort of fits her real life persona, which is basically the backstabbing, power hungry daughter of an evil and maniacal biotech company owner who is addicted to "going under the knife" and a futuristic version of crystal meth.

The story centers on the Largo family's inner turmoil, as Rotti scoffs and frowns on the idea of leaving his Geneco empire in the hands of his three wingnut kids Amber, Luigi, and the third being Pavi Largo played by rocker Ogre...and decides to use Shilo's fathers secret to turn her against him so he can then put her in position to inherit Geneco, and exact his revenge at the same time. In the midst of all of this, the Repo Man is on the prowl, repossessing organs the old fashioned way from donors who have missed their payments, as in this futuristic utopia of sorts...a bill has been passed to put organ financing on the books.

Which means that anyone who misses a payment, is subject to being visited by the Repo Man, and having their organs literally ripped from their bodies. Which not surprisingly, are some of the films best (and goriest) moments....next to something funny as hell which happens to Hilton's character near the end of the film. I won't spoil it, but it's a hilarious scene to behold. The blood and gore in the movie are fantastic, and as I said before take place during the organ repossession scenes mostly, with a few stabbing scenes strolled throughout the movie and performed by various characters.

But the pic makes it's money at simply being unique...putting a whole new spin on the genre with a fantastically creative and unique idea of blending horror with rock and with twisted dance numbers. The dance numbers are very well choreographed and performed wonderfully by the actors involved. Alexa Vega is left to carry most of this movie when Paul Sorvino isn't on screen, and she does a fantastic job of rising to the occasion. I was actually pretty impressed by her performance considering I haven't seen her in much besides the first "Spy Kids" movie, and the other films she did simply weren't up my alley.

But for what is her first mainstream adult picture, she does an excellent job. The middle of the movie is mostly held up by Paris and Bill Moseley as Luigi and Paris as Amber Sweet, and Moseley is very funny in this movie as the demented Luigi Largo, the angry and power hungry son of Rotti who is ready to kill anyone at the drop of a hat...literally. Anthony Stewart Head as Shilo's father gives a strong performance as well, and you've gotta wonder why this guy, even though he's a brit and probably does alot of local work over stateside stuff......doesn't get offered alot of roles in Hollywood U.S.A. The guy was talented on "Buffy" as Giles, and he's still talented many years after the show has ended.

"Repo!" does have a bit rushed and sloppy ending, but when you really look at the finale...it makes sense from a character standpoint, mostly from the standpoint of Vega's character Shilo. "Repo!" is one of those rare horror movies that does something very different, and manages to succeed at it in a major way.

Positives:Good dance numbers, nice choreography, strong performances, great blood and gore, entertaining characters, and very vivid visuals.

Negatives:The ending was a bit rushed but not completely a disaster or anything.

Overall:Three and a half stars out of four.





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