Horror-On-Sea Film Festival 2022: Alex Visani’s ‘Stomach’ (2019)

As our remote coverage of the Horror-On-Sea Film Festival 2022 rolls on, we were privy to the insanely ultraviolent 2019 film, Stomach, and let’s just say, it certainly lives up to its name. Once again, I had no idea what I was getting myself into, and this one grabbed me by the guts. 

Stomach is a terrifying horror film written and directed by Alex Visani (Born Dead 2021). It stars Ingrid Monacelli (Born Dead 2021), Maurilio Breccolenti (Il maestros di lingue 2009), Maddalena Ciotti (De Weg der Rose 2008), and Iwan Mazoni (Born Dead 2021), as well as newcomers Fabio Carlani, Lucrezia Calogero, Ornella Cerro, Fabio Furiosi, Diego Cianfriglia, Simone Frascarelli, Olmo Mazzoni, Marco Paparelli, and Elisa Ucciolini.

Synopsis:

A young man does his best to survive a cruel vicious existence, constantly picked on and taken advantage of by those around him. But something deep inside him is growing, something that begs to be let loose, something that needs to be fed. Can he remain in control and save his loved ones, or will the hunger win out in the end?

Stomach is a dark, twisted tale about the evil that resides deep within the heart of mankind. It’s cold, harsh, and unforgiving, with some excellent gore and really great camera work. The editing is fantastic, while the music is par for the course.

There were a few areas that could use some touching up, however, such as the acting and audio. The performances are great for the most part, but there are some spots where I was pulled out of the experience, losing my attention for a bit. Also, the audio is a little echo-heavy and hard to decipher in certain places.

The lighting isn’t the best, either, making it hard to tell what’s happening in some scenes. I understand the intent of it—for special effects reasons and to add to the ambiance—but it could have benefited from a little more backlighting. And, there isn’t much of a story, although the decay of the human psyche is always a fascinating subject, if done right, which this film did.

Overall, Stomach is violent, brutal, and sadistic as f*ck. It’s one sick ass film. It’s vicious, unforgiving, and extremely unnerving. This film is not for everyone, as it leans more toward extreme horror, but it’s definitely worth checking out if you’ve got the stomach for it.