...OK, people!! All hands raised high!! Who, within read-shot, believes that the 'found footage' horror sub-genre, has run it's course?? Let's see...there's one hand...two hands...three...four...five...may as well stop counting; there's just too many hands up, to count. Funny thing about coming to the conclusion that the 'found footage' thing has long become stale; each time one comes to that eye-rolling, 'tsk, tsk'-rendering relevation...well, this viewer be damned if someone comes along, and manages to stir something new into the mix, breathing life into this beaten dead horse...as evident by the reportedly positive, recent critic & general public reviews for the upcoming "V/H/S 2" (...hopefully, to be similarly reviewed here, real soon). However, as is typical, in the cable and direct-to-video markets, for every few and far between exception to the rule, there will invariably be the ho-hum, yawn-inducing, 'riding the coattail' knockoffs, which gives furthered and exhaustive cause to the sub-genre having far too long out-stayed it's welcome...call it "The Thing That Wouldn't Leave", as was once amusingly coined, in one of those old Saturday Night Live routines. Such is the case with the most recent entry in the sub-genre...an excruciatingly tame, harmless and ultimately 'by-the-numbers' forgettable little 'found footage' ditty from 2012, called "Stripped"...
...we open this trite little number up with the typical cookie-cutter group of guy friends, who in this case, are road-bound for Las Vegas, to wildly usher in and celebrate one of the friend's 21st birthday. A young gal...one of the guys' best friends...tags along, in hopes of hooking up with her hunky military beau, when they get to Vegas. Naturally, one of the guys brings along a digital camcorder, in order to document the anticipatedly wayward and rampant shenanigans (...as well as the prerequisite 'dramatic' relevations, admissions and secrets, which of course, come out, once the imbibed alcohol level is high, and the inhibitions are down), during the trip. Once having arrived in Vegas, and making themselves comfortable in an arranged penthouse suite, some unbridled and reckless partying ensues. At one point, it is suggested that the group call out for some prostitutes; the contact, which they hook up with, in turn suggests that the group make their way to a darkened, secluded and out-of-the-way place of ill-repute, for...uh, for the desired 'services' to be rendered. Upon arrival at the suggested, albeit outwardly suspicious address, the friends are flirtatiously allured by the bevy of beautiful & sexy gals at their disposal, in what appears to inwardly be a very hip and enticing place, and as things become seemingly more comfortable and as such, underliningly more vulnerable for the guys, these 'ladies of the evening' proceed to afford them, an evening not soon forgotten. But as screams and harrowing footsteps echo faintly down the darkened hallways, outside of the bedrooms, it soon becomes clear that these gals are up to something far more sinister and horrific, than can be possibly imagined...
...now, given the generic storyline here, as well as the forgivable dialog by the characters (...and the fact that said conversation seems to drone on and on and on, in the ever-voyeuristic presence of the camcorder footage being taken), let's waxrapsonic a bit about expectations. With the outlaid scenario herein, it very quickly becomes clear that the writers and filmmakers were quite taken by the instilled rusty-razor's edge tension & horrific outrageousness of the 'Hostel' film franchise, and as such, took said franchise inspirationally in mind, when they conceived of this blatant little knock-off. However, if one is going to emulate such nerve-shattering suspense, and ghastly & gruesome 'outrageousness', especially in light of the predictable and substandard set-up present here, one just HAS to go the full nine and liberally play the special-effects-laden, blood-and-gore-drenched 'shock' card for all it's worth. Unfortunately, this is where "Stripped" severely pulls it's punches, and fails miserably. Not that this viewer necessarily gazes wide-eyed, lulls and drools profusely, in anticipation of seeing such visceral and righteous arterial splatter, in film; after all, 'gore' is good, if it's realistically rendered, if it succeeds in it's ability to shock, and it supplement & enhances the mood of the situation. However, with "Stripped", there's hardly any bloodshed, hence no real payoff...no 'money shots'. OK, this viewer might buy into the implied suggestion that 'the less shown, the more one's imagination can fill in the blanks', but if one teases the 'Hostel' idea, but doesn't follow through...well, that pretty much brings us back around to the idea of expectations, right??...
...Ultimately, "Stripped" seems not that far removed from "Hostel", in concept, and in an ordinary and predictable sort of way, it's not necessarily an outright terrible film; however, with the expectations of what this visceral sub-genre has clearly become known for, even after having been melded with the adjoining 'found footage' approach, the filmmakers here have instead given the hapless viewer, a relatively bloodless 'Hostel'-like movie, on the level of say, an edited, commercial-laden USA Channel made-for-cable movie. Heck, if the powers that be, behind the making of this little trifle of a film, pulled their punches any further than what they already have here, we'd definitely have something more geared for the Disney Channel.....
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