Chop is the very unfortunate story of Lance Reed (Will Keenan). Lance is a recovering crack addict who seems to be doing a good job of getting his life back on track (i.e. nice house, good looking wife). His troubles begin when his car brakes down and he hitches a ride with a stranger who calmly asks Lance if he has ever been shot with a tranquilizer gun before promptly shooting a dart into his neck. Lance awakens to find himself in a basement face to face with his brother who is bound and gagged. Also in this room is the Stranger who tells Lance to drop and axe into his brothers skull or something inhuman will happen to his wife at the hands of a guy named Rico. This is only the beginning of what the Stranger has in store for Lance who until he can remember who the stranger is and how he wronged him in the past will continue to be terrorized in the worst ways possible, including waking up with missing limbs from time to time.
This may sound like a pretty standard issue torture porn gross out film but it is actually almost 100% Black comedy expertly directed by Troma veteren Trent Haaga (Terror Firmer, Citizen Toxie, Tromeo and Juliet). Fellow Troma vet Will Keenan does a great job of making the character of Lance absolutley hilarious and almost likeable. The same goes for Timothy Musketell who gives his character of The Stanger a witty effeminate Jigsaw Killer quality. There are only two or three really gory scenes but the dialogue alone was more than enough to keep me entertained throughout the entire film.
I think the best way to sum this film up would be Pulp Fiction meets Saw. With great funny dialogue including a very akward conversation about the show Diff’rent Strokes, and a much needed shot in the arm of the tired Torture Porn genre, I highly recommend this one to fans of black comedy and especially exploitation.
(8.5/10)
