A review of "100 Tears"

Confessions of a Film Junkie: A review of “100 Tears”

By: Brian Cotnoir

The film I’m reviewing this week is titled “100 Tears”, though I think a more appropriate title of this film should have been “100 Tears you’ll shed because this movie flat out sucks!”.  This film has the distinguished honor of being the first NC-17 film I’ve ever reviewed.  True, I’ve reviewed some violent films for this blog, but all of those films were either Rated-R or “Not Yet Rated”, this film however has a definite rating of NC-17 for “excessive horror violence”.  This film is really nothing special and I’m going to explain why. So the film focuses on two tabloid reporters are looking to do a report on a serial killer.  They eventually agree to do their story on a killer named Luther Edward Baxter aka “Gurdy the Clown”.  Gurdy was accused of rape (a crime he did not commit) by a jealous ex-lover and was beaten senseless by the circuses strong man.  Now Gurdy is out for vengeance against those who wronged him, and chooses to do it in the most violent ways possible.                                            

Not Scary!

     First of all the “killer clown” motif has been done to death by horror films since the trial of John Wayne Gacy.  Yes, some people are afraid of clowns, but not everyone finds clowns to be terrifying.  If clowns were purposely meant to be terrifying don’t you think they would be banned from performing in circuses and children’s hospitals? The makers of this film clearly don’t understand how to properly use a clown in a horror film.  If you’re going to write a horror film where your villain is a killer clown then you must have a reason or a good motive!   Also, if you’re going to contradict the original purpose of the clown you need a valid reason!  Why does the killer have to be a clown?  Because he works in a circus?  That’s not a good enough reason.  “Killer clowns” in films are becoming one of those ungodly awful clichés in horror films!  Look at Tod Browning’s 1932 classic “Freaks”; the film is set at a circus, but it’s not a clown who is out for vengeance; it’s not a clown who is committing the murders.  It’s the midgets and other carnival freaks that commit the murders.           

Speaking of midgets, there’s one of those in the film too.  The films midget is a guy named Drago who initially tries to run away from the reporters because he mistakes them for cops.  After a pointless chase scene, Drago eventually says that he can’t tell them about Gurdy because...the directors hate you and want to make the movie 40 minute longer?  We eventually find out the truth about Gurdy and how he was in love with another carnie and then another carnie spread a false rumor that he was a rapist and he was beaten senseless by the strong man.  This turns Gurdy from a happy-go-lucky clown to a stabby-go-hack-you with-an-axe clown.                                                 

There's Daddy's Little Psycho

    Here’s the part that makes no sense to me:  Drago says that he killed the strong man and the other carnie for beating and humiliating him, and yet he continues to go an unmotivated rampage!  The first time we see Gurdy in the film he wanders into a half-way house and hacks everyone in there to death.  Why?  What did he have to gain by murdering a bunch of ex-junkies?  It’s not like they were hiding the strong man or any of the others that were cruel to him or mistreated him.  So this scene is essentially pointless to the plot.  It only exists to show excessive violence and crappy special effects.  Oh and here’s another interesting twist-to-the-plot that goes nowhere (SPOILERS!).  As it turns out the clown actually has an adult daughter now, and she’s a homicidal lunatic just like her father.  So the father and daughter go into an abandoned warehouse and massacre a bunch of college kids who are holding an illegal party there.  We’re introduced to the daughter earlier in the film and she just comes off as this weird and obnoxious girl, but then once we find out she’s his daughter she puts on her big girl crazy pants and becomes a psycho!  Again, makes no God D@amn sense!                                          

    For a film that focuses so much of it’s attention on a circus clown, I was surprised to see that they never spent any time at actual circus!  Sure they talk to carnies, but not at a circus or carnival.  The tabloid reporters always have to meet them in a bar or a trailer.  This film has no focus, no motivation and it just a giant pile of crap!  The characters are unlikeable, the acting’s bad, the stories bad and lacks reason, the effects are bad, and this film is just not worth seeing! Anyone who was involved in this film (cast and crew) should never be allowed near a film set ever again!