SLAUGHTERED VOMIT DOLLS (2006)

Directed/Written by Lucifer Valentine
Starring Ameara Lavey, Pig Lizzy, Maja Lee
Find out more about this film here!

I had a tough time sitting through SLAUGHTERED VOMIT DOLLS. A very, very tough time. Though I should have been prepared by the title, the repeated scenes of regurgitation shown throughout this film is what ultimately made me watch through shuttered fingers. The writer/director Lucifer Valentine is a proud Satanist and creator of the subgenre of films he dubs “Vomit Gore”. But just because the film tickled my gag reflex doesn’t mean it is not without redeeming qualities.

On its own, SLAUGHTERED VOMIT DOLLS might be seen as a series of shallow scenes of torture, gory mutilation, and of course, vomiting. The narrative is extremely loose, switching from one scene to the next and linking them all in with repeated candid shots of its star Ameara Lavey stripping, falling over drunk, confessing to the camera about past abuse and Satan worship, and of course, suffering from bulimia. In many ways, this is a descent into madness tale as told with only the shadow of a narrative thread. For that, I admire Valentine’s bold choices in telling this story. As a series of random images, it does its job inciting disgust at the gore and sometimes beauty in the framing of simple shots of a woman sleeping or a little girl singing.

The gore in this film should be recognized as well. Though the material used is all about shocking you, the gore is especially well done in a manner that at times made me wonder if it were actually happening. Some clever cuts make it look seamless and will definitely fool an untrained eye and make them wonder if the horror we are experiencing is real. Combined with surreal imagery of a little girl singing, religious chanting, disturbing confessionals, and of course, the barfing, SLAUGHTERED VOMIT DOLLS definitely does its job in causing unease for the viewer.

After watching this film, I checked out the “History of Vomit Gore” available in the special features of this disk. Without revealing too much, Valentine confesses the heartbreaking origins of this story and how it affected the director. His tale of his sister, who suffered from severe mental instability, is tough to be heard, but sheds some light on the imagery chosen for this film.

In many ways, SLAUGHTERED VOMIT DOLLS and the subsequent films that follow in the VOMIT GORE TRILOGY seemed to serve as a cathartic experience for Valentine. In that, I can acknowledge the message behind all of that blood and regurgitation. Though I found this film extremely hard to watch, having done so, then hearing Valentine’s personal story, I can’t help but be fascinated by it all. I don’t think I’ll be rewatching SLAUGHTERED VOMIT DOLLS anytime soon, but it is a film experience I won’t be able to shake. This film is for those with a steel-hard stomach. The way it festishizes such a reviled and taboo subject matter is the stuff of true horror, which is why I respect it fully despite being nauseous while thinking about it.

Check out the trailer here if you dare, but it is definitely Not Safe For Work!!