Pieces (1983)

Better Late Then Never

Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Blistering performances.

In the introduction to the reissue of Salem's Lot, Stephen King claims his mother had a classification system for the type of books he liked to read as a child, "trash" and "bad trash". King claims Tales From The Crypt was in the "bad trash" camp. While Pieces very well might be the epitome of "bad trash", as Mr King points out, sometimes that's exactly what hits the spot! I wont bother summarizing the plot because honestly if the producers didn't care about it why should you? The movie contains everything this type of movie calls for in spades, naked women , body parts being chainsawed off, buckets of blood, character actors slumming it. What more can you ask for! The best part is the film has absolutely no pretensions. It is a pure exploitation movie through and through. While the film clearly takes some inspiration from the Italian Giallo genre (the murders are committed by a killer in black gloves, a big fedora and a raincoat), it dispenses with pretentions so completely it makes even the sleaziest Giallo look like an art house film by comparison. Like the best bad films, this one also delivers many unintentional laughs, or maybe they are intentional, who knows, its impossible to tell.Let's be honest, if you even had to read this review beyond "naked women , body parts being chainsawed off" before slamming the "PLAY" button this movie is probably not for you!

"Pieces" follows a college campus where a psychopath with psychosexual problems is hacking up pretty, naked coeds with a chainsaw. How many victims will be claimed, and can an incredulous detective and an undercover cop solve the case?One of the notoriously-trashy slashers from the early eighties, "Pieces" is an unforgettable piece of celluloid (pardon the pun) because it's both an absolute disaster and something of a mild masterpiece in the realm of trash cinema. I did not like this film when I first saw it years ago, though it has grown on me. I still think it's patently bad, but it does have its charms.The narrative is a disaster-poor editing and unrefined writing are part of what make "Pieces" the bad film that it is; it's also unoriginal, cribbing elements of several of its contemporaries. What's good about the film? The main selling point is the over-the-top, gruesome gore effects, which are actually rather effective; the other is the dingy, rough-around-the-edges aesthetic the film has, which a potential viewer will either find off-putting or inexplicably attractive. I fall into the latter; the film's gritty, low-budget presentation gives it something of a hard edge that I find appealing, especially paired with the gore effects.The acting is all over the place and the film suffers from bad dubbing (this was a Spanish production with token American actors Christopher George and Lynda Day George), though the finale, as rough and abrupt as it is, is rather unforgettable (and unconscionable). Overall, "Pieces" is a mixture of both bad and good, and the kind of film that caters to a very specific audience. It's bad, but it is amusing, and I do find its atmosphere weirdly engrossing all these years later. 6/10.

If you want copious gore, terrible dubbing/acting, non-sensical scenes, and a killer who uses a chainsaw, then this is going to be right up your alley. There are some great effects and the overall plot of a killer making a human jigsaw puzzle is disturbing enough that you can overlook all of the hilarious weirdness. Well worth watching if you like trash cinema and/or slasher movies. And what the heck was with the kung fu guy that appears for NO reason?!?!?!?

This movie is fun. That's all that can be said. If you take it seriously you will probably be offended, but if you go into it with the right attitude and sense of humor you will come out entertained. The premise, execution, and gore is so over the top its impossible not to enjoy. The film has that 80s excess and lack of subtly that frankly I find myself missing in today's super serious horror films. The best part really is the over the top deaths. I won't give any away, but they have to be seen to be believed and they just keep getting better as the movie progresses. Top this off with some funny dubbing and you have a grindhouse classic!