The Stink of Flesh
Encyclopedia
The Stink of Flesh is a 2005 black comedy
and sexploitation
film directed by Scott Phillips
, which depicts a band of survivors in a zombie
wasteland.
. Immediately afterward, a man armed with a one-handed sledgehammer
and a number of long spikes is engaged in hand-to-hand combat with a zombie, which he ultimately kills by overpowering it and driving a spike into its head with his hammer. His name is revealed to be 'Matool', a reference to the movie Zombi 2, as he has the same name as the island in the movie. He then sees another zombie approaching him, which appears to annoy him more than frighten him. He is also shown being extremely protective of his glasses, since zombies have overrun the world and he might find it difficult to acquire another pair.
As the opening credits roll, short clips are shown of Matool running around the deserted streets of Albuquerque, New Mexico, while Nathan is driving his pickup on those same streets, showing that the city is devoid of human life.
Afterward, a young woman is shown trapped in her car by a group of ravenous zombies outside, while her male companion is pulled down and devoured. Matool hears this and utters "Fuck yeah!" while rushing off to her rescue. Though she is obviously reluctant, she allows herself to be saved, but Matool is forced to resort to carrying her, as she is overcome by panic. They take refuge in a rundown, abandoned house, which is already occupied by a middle-aged man and two young boys. The older man, Mr. Rainville, seems not to be bothered much by what is happening outside, and neither does one of his young friends, but the other boy does not speak at all or show any kind of emotion. After some amusing introductions, Matool inquires as to the identity of the man who was just killed, and the young woman replies that it was her brother, much to Matool's joy, but she is incensed by his subtle advances, and still believes that they can save her now-dead brother. Rainville continues to do nothing but sit and watch as all this happens, though he does not hesitate to jump in with a witty comment about he's "not going to fuck you either" to Matool, mocking his attempts to get the young lady in bed. The woman then loses it and tries to leave to save her brother, but is pulled down and devoured by several zombies while Matool has no choice but to run. Rainville and one of the boys are eaten alive, but the quiet one simply hides, showing no emotion whatsoever.
As Matool runs, Nathan hits him with the door of his truck. Matool later wakes up bound in the back of Nathan's truck as they arrive at Nathan's house in the mountains near the city. Also in the truck is the quiet boy who Rainville had taken in (though the purposes for which he did so are implied to be carnal in nature). After being taken inside, he is cut loose, welcomed, allowed to bathe, and is bluntly informed that Nathan and Dexy have an alternative lifestyle, which involves Nathan watching while other men engage in sexual activity with Dexy. Matool is intrigued by this and goes along with the idea, but their first time, Dexy's sister Sassy smacks his bare rear with a ruler, surprising Matool, who is even more surprised when he sees that this new woman has a mutated human face on her side, the result of some kind of conjoined twins
situation (the face appears to be self-aware, and is named Dottie). Matool apologizes for freaking out, seeing that Sassy is very sensitive.
After a few days, during which Matool gets used to his new surroundings, and after a few fights with zombies lurking outside, Nathan and Matool become fast friends, and Matool is shown a shed behind the house where Nathan keeps a naked female zombie that he likes to "look at", prompting Matool to remark "Yeah, she'd be pretty fucking hot if she weren't decomposing."
Shortly thereafter, a small group of soldiers arrive in the rain. Two are carrying a third, who is badly injured. Their leader is Mandel, the other is Vega, and the wounded man is Sepulveda, who talk their way inside. A flashback reveals that they were part of a larger unit surviving on the roads after the zombies overran civilization until a zombie attack (including what they call 'hyperzombies, which can move faster than normal zombies) cost them two soldiers (one, a male, was eaten alive and another, a female, was dragged screaming under their truck), and wounded Sepulveda. Mandel becomes acquainted with Matool who tells him that the house is well-supplied, has power from an electrical generator
, a well, as well as "more". Sepulveda is placed in an unoccupied bedroom where Mandel and Vega take turns watching him, knowing that death and reanimation are inevitable. Also, Vega becomes acquainted with Sassy, who later admits to Mandel and Matool that the face on her side is "disturbingly sexy" (prompting Matool to call him "disturbingly weird").
Later, Mandel and Vega begin having sex with Dexy while Nathan watches, causing him obvious frustration, leading him to, while the others are having breakfast, sneak back to his shed and have rough sex with his chained female zombie. A flashback reveals that the female zombie was one of two survivors who had arrived sometime earlier (the other being a male), who, after seeing Dexy's attraction to them both, shot the man and strangled the woman, keeping her for sexual purposes.
As the days pass, Vega and Sassy begin a relationship, while Sepulveda continues to die in agony, while Mandel resists Matool's suggestion that he be put down right away. Nathan and Matool continue to fight and destroy zombies (Nathan with a Beretta
pistol
, Matool with his trademark hammer and spikes) as they show up at the house.
Things inevitably fall apart, however, as the quiet boy who has not yet said a word begins feeling an attraction towards Dexy, and takes Nathan's keys and frees his female zombie, leaving it contained in the shed. Meanwhile, Sepulveda wakes up and sees Sassy for the first time, as well as her conjoined twin, freaking out at how disgusting it is, causing Sassy to lose it and kill him with a pair of scissors. Mandel, who was watching Sepulveda, instinctively shoots Sassy, killing her. Nathan goes out to the shed for a tryst, but is killed and devoured by his zombie companion. Meanwhile, Matool, Mandel, and Vega take Sassy and Sepulveda's bodies out before they reanimate as zombies, while attempting to reassure Dexy that it was "an accident". Matool smashes Sassy's head with a cinder block over Vega's objections who is then attacked and killed by a reanimated Sepulveda.
As more zombies begin to gather at the house, Matool demands that Mandel go back into the house to get his MP5 submachine gun, but he can't, as the boy has locked them out. Mandel then kills the Sepulveda zombie with his knife. Then they head to the shed to find Nathan. They open the door and see him being devoured by his female zombie and proceed to lock her back in. As more and more zombies arrive, Mandel punches Matool, claiming Dexy as his own, but Matool fights back. As they fight, they find themselves surrounded and are forced to run down the same road to escape. Dexy, meanwhile, looks out the window as the zombies approach the door while the boy comes up to her, still not speaking or expressing any emotion. She looks at him and says "Nathan will be back." The boy then holds Dexy's hand.
The movie ends with Matool and Mandel running down a gravel road together, making their escape.
Seven minutes of especially funny outtakes are featured.
There is also a ten minute film showing the premier of The Stink of Flesh at the Guild Theater in Albuquerque, where many independent movies, especially those made in and around Albuquerque, are shown.
Also featured is a short called "Rainville, the Early Years" in which Bob Vardeman, who played Rainville, essentially goes on a random, foul-mouthed rampage while driving, walking around his front yard, petting his cat, and trying on hats for the movie.
, who played Leatherface
in the original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
.
Kurly Tlapoyawa (Matool) and Billy Garberina (Mandel) are both accomplised martial artists
who did their own stunts and choreographed many of the film's fight scenes.
The film served as a springboard for actor Kurly Tlapoyawa's career as a stunt performer
. After Crank directors Mark Neveldine and Bryan Taylor saw The Stink of Flesh while filming Gamer (film) in Albuquerque, they brought Tlapoyawa on to the film as a stuntman (Tlapoyawa is one of the slayers who fight Gerard Butler in the film's climax). Tlapoyawa also performed stunts for the duo on Crank 2: High Voltage.
The military truck shown in the movie was borrowed from a friend of one of the crew.
While filming the scenes in which Matool is hiding in the abandoned house with Rainville and the girl, a deputy from the Bernalillo Country Sheriff's Department arrived, responding to reports of a woman screaming, called in by passing motorists.
Referenced in Necroville, also shot in Albuquerque, with Billy Garberina in the lead role. At the beginning of the movie, Garberina's character, while working as a video store clerk, is causally reading a newspaper article showing a still shot from the end of The Stink of Flesh, the article explaining that a soldier and carpenter have a story to tell about their experiences of debauchery. In Necroville, zombies (as well as werewolves and vampires) stalk the streets of the town, but are regarded as pests more than anything else, while businesses and private citizens hire a company of exterminators to deal with them.
Ross Kelly as Nathan
Diva as Dexy
Billy Garberina as Mandel
Kristen Hansen as Sassy
Devin O'Leary as Vega
Andrew Vellenoweth as Sepulveda
Bryan Gallegos as the Quiet Boy (referred to in the credits as "Spooky Kid")
Bob Vardeman as Mr. Rainville
Chris Alexander and Carrie Eliza
I Bought You Some Roses,
Walking Alone,
A Love More True
By
Angry Johnny and the killbillys
Hell's what I’m used to,
Through The Devils Eyes,
By
LONESOME KINGS
Love Her with A Feel,
Rio Grande Blues,
Matool’s Smooth Groove
By
RUDY “BOY” JARMILLO
July,
Sinnerman,
Christine,
Lakeshore,
By
SODA AND HIS MILLION PIECE BAND
Code of The West,
Go-Go
By
BOOT HILL
Sassy’s Theme
By
NOAH WOLTERS
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
and sexploitation
Sexploitation
Sexploitation, or "sex-exploitation", describes a class of independently produced, low-budget feature films generally associated with the 1960s and serving largely as a vehicle for the exhibition of non-explicit sexual situations and gratuitous nudity. The genre is a subgenre of exploitation films...
film directed by Scott Phillips
Scott Phillips
Scott Phillips may refer to:*Scott Phillips of Alter Bridge and Creed*Scott Phillips , novelist...
, which depicts a band of survivors in a zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
wasteland.
Synopsis
The movie begins as a sexually insatiable woman named Dexy implores her husband Nathan to find her "someone to play with," implying a polyamorous relationshipPolyamory
Polyamory is the practice, desire, or acceptance of having more than one intimate relationship at a time with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved....
. Immediately afterward, a man armed with a one-handed sledgehammer
Sledgehammer
A sledgehammer is a tool consisting of a large, flat head attached to a lever . The head is typically made of metal. The sledgehammer can apply more impulse than other hammers, due to its large size. Along with the mallet, it shares the ability to distribute force over a wide area...
and a number of long spikes is engaged in hand-to-hand combat with a zombie, which he ultimately kills by overpowering it and driving a spike into its head with his hammer. His name is revealed to be 'Matool', a reference to the movie Zombi 2, as he has the same name as the island in the movie. He then sees another zombie approaching him, which appears to annoy him more than frighten him. He is also shown being extremely protective of his glasses, since zombies have overrun the world and he might find it difficult to acquire another pair.
As the opening credits roll, short clips are shown of Matool running around the deserted streets of Albuquerque, New Mexico, while Nathan is driving his pickup on those same streets, showing that the city is devoid of human life.
Afterward, a young woman is shown trapped in her car by a group of ravenous zombies outside, while her male companion is pulled down and devoured. Matool hears this and utters "Fuck yeah!" while rushing off to her rescue. Though she is obviously reluctant, she allows herself to be saved, but Matool is forced to resort to carrying her, as she is overcome by panic. They take refuge in a rundown, abandoned house, which is already occupied by a middle-aged man and two young boys. The older man, Mr. Rainville, seems not to be bothered much by what is happening outside, and neither does one of his young friends, but the other boy does not speak at all or show any kind of emotion. After some amusing introductions, Matool inquires as to the identity of the man who was just killed, and the young woman replies that it was her brother, much to Matool's joy, but she is incensed by his subtle advances, and still believes that they can save her now-dead brother. Rainville continues to do nothing but sit and watch as all this happens, though he does not hesitate to jump in with a witty comment about he's "not going to fuck you either" to Matool, mocking his attempts to get the young lady in bed. The woman then loses it and tries to leave to save her brother, but is pulled down and devoured by several zombies while Matool has no choice but to run. Rainville and one of the boys are eaten alive, but the quiet one simply hides, showing no emotion whatsoever.
As Matool runs, Nathan hits him with the door of his truck. Matool later wakes up bound in the back of Nathan's truck as they arrive at Nathan's house in the mountains near the city. Also in the truck is the quiet boy who Rainville had taken in (though the purposes for which he did so are implied to be carnal in nature). After being taken inside, he is cut loose, welcomed, allowed to bathe, and is bluntly informed that Nathan and Dexy have an alternative lifestyle, which involves Nathan watching while other men engage in sexual activity with Dexy. Matool is intrigued by this and goes along with the idea, but their first time, Dexy's sister Sassy smacks his bare rear with a ruler, surprising Matool, who is even more surprised when he sees that this new woman has a mutated human face on her side, the result of some kind of conjoined twins
Conjoined twins
Conjoined twins are identical twins whose bodies are joined in utero. A rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 50,000 births to 1 in 100,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in Southwest Asia and Africa. Approximately half are stillborn, and a smaller fraction of...
situation (the face appears to be self-aware, and is named Dottie). Matool apologizes for freaking out, seeing that Sassy is very sensitive.
After a few days, during which Matool gets used to his new surroundings, and after a few fights with zombies lurking outside, Nathan and Matool become fast friends, and Matool is shown a shed behind the house where Nathan keeps a naked female zombie that he likes to "look at", prompting Matool to remark "Yeah, she'd be pretty fucking hot if she weren't decomposing."
Shortly thereafter, a small group of soldiers arrive in the rain. Two are carrying a third, who is badly injured. Their leader is Mandel, the other is Vega, and the wounded man is Sepulveda, who talk their way inside. A flashback reveals that they were part of a larger unit surviving on the roads after the zombies overran civilization until a zombie attack (including what they call 'hyperzombies, which can move faster than normal zombies) cost them two soldiers (one, a male, was eaten alive and another, a female, was dragged screaming under their truck), and wounded Sepulveda. Mandel becomes acquainted with Matool who tells him that the house is well-supplied, has power from an electrical generator
Electrical generator
In electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
, a well, as well as "more". Sepulveda is placed in an unoccupied bedroom where Mandel and Vega take turns watching him, knowing that death and reanimation are inevitable. Also, Vega becomes acquainted with Sassy, who later admits to Mandel and Matool that the face on her side is "disturbingly sexy" (prompting Matool to call him "disturbingly weird").
Later, Mandel and Vega begin having sex with Dexy while Nathan watches, causing him obvious frustration, leading him to, while the others are having breakfast, sneak back to his shed and have rough sex with his chained female zombie. A flashback reveals that the female zombie was one of two survivors who had arrived sometime earlier (the other being a male), who, after seeing Dexy's attraction to them both, shot the man and strangled the woman, keeping her for sexual purposes.
As the days pass, Vega and Sassy begin a relationship, while Sepulveda continues to die in agony, while Mandel resists Matool's suggestion that he be put down right away. Nathan and Matool continue to fight and destroy zombies (Nathan with a Beretta
Beretta
Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta is an Italian firearms manufacturer. Their firearms are used worldwide for a variety of civilian, law enforcement, and military purposes. It is also known for manufacturing shooting clothes and accessories. Beretta is the oldest active firearms manufacturer in the...
pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
, Matool with his trademark hammer and spikes) as they show up at the house.
Things inevitably fall apart, however, as the quiet boy who has not yet said a word begins feeling an attraction towards Dexy, and takes Nathan's keys and frees his female zombie, leaving it contained in the shed. Meanwhile, Sepulveda wakes up and sees Sassy for the first time, as well as her conjoined twin, freaking out at how disgusting it is, causing Sassy to lose it and kill him with a pair of scissors. Mandel, who was watching Sepulveda, instinctively shoots Sassy, killing her. Nathan goes out to the shed for a tryst, but is killed and devoured by his zombie companion. Meanwhile, Matool, Mandel, and Vega take Sassy and Sepulveda's bodies out before they reanimate as zombies, while attempting to reassure Dexy that it was "an accident". Matool smashes Sassy's head with a cinder block over Vega's objections who is then attacked and killed by a reanimated Sepulveda.
As more zombies begin to gather at the house, Matool demands that Mandel go back into the house to get his MP5 submachine gun, but he can't, as the boy has locked them out. Mandel then kills the Sepulveda zombie with his knife. Then they head to the shed to find Nathan. They open the door and see him being devoured by his female zombie and proceed to lock her back in. As more and more zombies arrive, Mandel punches Matool, claiming Dexy as his own, but Matool fights back. As they fight, they find themselves surrounded and are forced to run down the same road to escape. Dexy, meanwhile, looks out the window as the zombies approach the door while the boy comes up to her, still not speaking or expressing any emotion. She looks at him and says "Nathan will be back." The boy then holds Dexy's hand.
The movie ends with Matool and Mandel running down a gravel road together, making their escape.
DVD Extras
The DVD includes a 46-minute film detailing the adventures of the cast and crew over the twelve days of shooting.Seven minutes of especially funny outtakes are featured.
There is also a ten minute film showing the premier of The Stink of Flesh at the Guild Theater in Albuquerque, where many independent movies, especially those made in and around Albuquerque, are shown.
Also featured is a short called "Rainville, the Early Years" in which Bob Vardeman, who played Rainville, essentially goes on a random, foul-mouthed rampage while driving, walking around his front yard, petting his cat, and trying on hats for the movie.
Trivia
The character of Sassy was played by Kristen Hansen,the niece of Gunnar HansenGunnar Hansen
Gunnar Milton Hansen is an Icelandic-born actor and author best known for playing Leatherface in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre .- Early life:Hansen was born in Reykjavík, Iceland, and moved to the United States when he was five...
, who played Leatherface
Leatherface
Leatherface is the main antagonist in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre horror-film series and its spin-offs. He wears masks made of human skin and engages in murder and cannibalism alongside his inbred family. He is considered by many to be one of the first major slasher film villains alongside Michael...
in the original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
.
Kurly Tlapoyawa (Matool) and Billy Garberina (Mandel) are both accomplised martial artists
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
who did their own stunts and choreographed many of the film's fight scenes.
The film served as a springboard for actor Kurly Tlapoyawa's career as a stunt performer
Stunt performer
A stuntman, or daredevil is someone who performs dangerous stunts, often as a career.These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be...
. After Crank directors Mark Neveldine and Bryan Taylor saw The Stink of Flesh while filming Gamer (film) in Albuquerque, they brought Tlapoyawa on to the film as a stuntman (Tlapoyawa is one of the slayers who fight Gerard Butler in the film's climax). Tlapoyawa also performed stunts for the duo on Crank 2: High Voltage.
The military truck shown in the movie was borrowed from a friend of one of the crew.
While filming the scenes in which Matool is hiding in the abandoned house with Rainville and the girl, a deputy from the Bernalillo Country Sheriff's Department arrived, responding to reports of a woman screaming, called in by passing motorists.
Referenced in Necroville, also shot in Albuquerque, with Billy Garberina in the lead role. At the beginning of the movie, Garberina's character, while working as a video store clerk, is causally reading a newspaper article showing a still shot from the end of The Stink of Flesh, the article explaining that a soldier and carpenter have a story to tell about their experiences of debauchery. In Necroville, zombies (as well as werewolves and vampires) stalk the streets of the town, but are regarded as pests more than anything else, while businesses and private citizens hire a company of exterminators to deal with them.
Partial cast
Kurly Tlapoyawa as MatoolRoss Kelly as Nathan
Diva as Dexy
Billy Garberina as Mandel
Kristen Hansen as Sassy
Devin O'Leary as Vega
Andrew Vellenoweth as Sepulveda
Bryan Gallegos as the Quiet Boy (referred to in the credits as "Spooky Kid")
Bob Vardeman as Mr. Rainville
Soundtrack listing
Score byChris Alexander and Carrie Eliza
I Bought You Some Roses,
Walking Alone,
A Love More True
By
Angry Johnny and the killbillys
Hell's what I’m used to,
Through The Devils Eyes,
By
LONESOME KINGS
Love Her with A Feel,
Rio Grande Blues,
Matool’s Smooth Groove
By
RUDY “BOY” JARMILLO
July,
Sinnerman,
Christine,
Lakeshore,
By
SODA AND HIS MILLION PIECE BAND
Code of The West,
Go-Go
By
BOOT HILL
Sassy’s Theme
By
NOAH WOLTERS
External links
- The Stink Of Flesh at DownloadHorror.com