Carnal Monsters is a very low budget (apparently this cost £500 to make) grindhouse style horror film that comes from director Joe Cash (Slutty the Clown). Having seen his style of filmmaking before I knew to expect something that was slimy, sleazy and violent, and in that respect this didn't disappoint.
Much of the movie takes place just outside the fictional town of Tromaville, at the site of a former nuclear research facility. A group of female friends, looking for something fun to do, have headed to this place to do some urban exploring. They discover two unconscious girls, and soon come to regret helping them, as upon waking up, the two girls turn murderous and begin to hunt down the friends.
Everything about this film is very purposeful, the lack of budget is worn as a badge of honour, and rather than try and create something outside its scope, this instead happily leans into its no budget aesthetic. This includes the humorous use of stock footage from other films, and a conscious desire to make this seem like a lost grindhouse movie through the use of artificial film grain.
The focal point of the film appears to just be to focus on female nudity, with many of the cast either scantily clad or topless for superfluous reasons. The plot here is near non-existent, with the synopsis mentioned in the paragraph above only really coming to fruition past the halfway mark of this sixty five minute movie. While the movie isn't too long, it can occasionally feel like it's dragging, such as an extended news report scene in which reporter Sarah Griswold (Selena Liz) dances naked to heavy rock music for a good few minutes. There are also scenes that seem to go on far longer than they need to, such as the group of friends walking and talking, seemingly making their lines up on the spot and talking over each other.
When the horror does come it is short but sweet, the mostly non-existent special effects see the girls get dispatched in various slightly bloody ways. I did like the masks the two killers were wearing, especially the one with the creepy human mask. The acting was near universally terrible, but I think that part of the vibe of these films is the expectation of poor dialogue, it helps mold this into a grindhouse feel. I did like how this felt like it was part of a larger 'Troma Universe', with some unifying moments such as a fun guest appearance from Troma owner Lloyd Kauffman, and news reports that mention Slutty the Clown from one of Cash's other films, as well as footage of the iconic Toxic Avenger.
Carnal Monsters isn't going to appeal to everyone, and to me it isn't really the type of horror that I enjoy. It isn't even the gratuitous nudity and low budget feel, more the lack of much of a plot, and long scenes of really not much happening, as this led to moments of boredom for me. Still, for such a low budget, this fitted into its genre well, and I am sure there are plenty of people who this will appeal to. Carnal Monsters came to Blu-ray in the USA and Prime Video worldwide in February from VIPCO and Bayview Entertainment.
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