Dead Hooker in a Trunk (Classic Review)

Dead Hooker in a Trunk (Classic Review!)

I usually will only review new movies but today I am reviewing Dead Hooker in a Trunk from 2009 from the Twisted Twins, writer/directors Jen and Sylvia Soska. It's both to celebrate their new movie, Vendetta coming out June 12^th, and because Dead Hooker in a Trunk is the first movie That One Review is calling a classic and it's first Classic Review!

The opening shot sets the stage for the character Badass (Sylvia Soska) as the camera follows her as she walks through a club surrounded by people and a band playing loud music. The character name 'Badass' is earned right away with this shot as she struts through the crowd with a confident I-don't-give-a-fuck swagger. There are a few other shots in the movie like this and I can confidently say that nobody walks like Sylvia Soska.

The film focuses on 4 friends who are running a mundane, everyday errand when they discover they have a dead hooker in the trunk of their car. From here they try to dispose of the body and are on the run from a “Street Walker Killer” and a pimp who wants his hooker back. The discovery of the hooker scene is capped off with Geek (Jen Soska) exclaiming, “there's a dead hooker in a trunk,” and that's what this movie is: fun, in your face, outrageous, and self aware.

It's in your face because the gore is heavy when it's called for, the blood splatters like a Jackson Pollack painting, and the violence is relentless. The music adds to the violence and creates moods that either intensify the scenes (like piano playing over a woman being beaten with a bat) or confuse your senses to oddly enjoy the mayhem and bloodshed, like playing Japanese pop/punk over people getting shot.

It's outrageous because we have a myriad of strange characters that populate the movie and a handful of scenes that throw logic out the window. We see sleazy cops, a motel manager who is very close to his sheep, and the “Street Walker Killer” has a secret that sticks a fork in his cocky demeanor. There is a scene where one of the friends, Goody Two-Shoes sews the arm back on the other friend, Junkie, after it's ripped off in a car accident.

All of this sounds outrageous because it is, and it all works in this movie because most importantly it is fun as hell. The Soska sisters are fans of the genre and they know what they can get away with in movies because they understand the fans who watch their product. They are fans themselves and their fantastic debut reflects this. It's bloody, violent, loud, fast, and funny. Geek is especially funny, her straight face delivery and physical humor had me laughing out loud.

The Soskas know how to let the camera capture a scene to make it the most effective it can be. There is a great shot that follows Badass (another kickass walking scene) as she walks up to the trucker that ripped her friends arm off with his truck, punches him, grabs the arm, and walks back to her car. She is the authority of the group and this shot tells us that. Another effective shot is towards the end when Badass is kidnapped and the viewer can feel the fear and the struggle as the camera lingers and slowly moves back and slightly from side to side as if wanting to help but being too afraid. It's great stuff that lends itself well to multiple viewings.

Finally, the film is very self aware with comments like, “I can't believe there are no repercussions for anything we did,” at the end of their dead hooker journey. There is also a little audience acknowledgment from Badass at the last second as she looks quick at the camera as if to imply she knew we were watching all along. This 'in on the secret' feeling has defined the relationship between the Soska Sisters and their fans throughout their career since their breakout cult hit. They always acknowledge their fans and their fans are severely loyal in return. It also helps to create loyal fans when you put out quality work like Dead Hooker in a Trunk. Go watch this one and become a fan.

And it has a pug.