31
As a filmmaker, Rob Zombie is best known for violent exploitation-style slasher horror, and so this is perhaps the epitome of his oeuvre, but not as a masterpiece. 31 is the average of all Rob Zombie films if you added the common elements together and divided the result by his total number of films. It’s a slash-fest of unpleasantness with a few good moments, but is mostly derivative of his other work.
The concept is very simple and familiar: some people are kidnapped and find themselves in a game of survival against some nasty characters who are intent on killing them. This happens every Halloween, hence the challenge being known as 31. Some rich folk dressed in historical fancy, led by Malcolm McDowell, are betting on the results.
As might be expected from Zombie, the group kidnapped are travelling Carnies and contains his wife and regular leading lady Sheri Moon Zombie. There are no prizes for guessing who will be the lone survivor from the group.
The killers tasked with dispatching the captives are all deliberately in poor taste, and the whole film is an exercise in disgust. In this regard, and presumably following Zombie’s intention, it is very successful, but I found myself becoming more weary with each horrible murderer horribly murdering a horrible murder victim.
Frankly, 31 is gory and gross, but a bit of fun. For fans of Rob Zombie it’s a good one to seek out, but it’s one of his weaker films. The best part is in fact the opening, where the final killer, played by Richard Brake, gives a speech to the last victim of the previous year’s game, and the final scene. It is this last moment where Zombie rises above shock and murder for fun, and instead turns his attention to pride and honour. If only this had been explored more throughout the film, 31 would have been so much more than it is.
