THE MASK OF THE MUTILATOR

Mod Mutilator - Himself
Harry Gross - Rock Savage

Leave it to Rock Savage to be one of the first underground filmmaker to stick it to the Taliban. Rock is a true-blue Patriot, and so are his fellow members in the Savage Film Group, Rock's Washington, D.C. based collection of Retro-minded filmmakers. THE MASK OF THE MUTILATOR is satirical examination of how nonsensical the minds of terrorism can work, especially when it comes to limiting the freedoms of life to those that follow the Muslim faith.

There is an old Middle Eastern proverb that says the end of world will occur when the mask of the last gladiator is removed. Through events presumably left on the cutting room floor, it is revealed that this last gladiator is none other than Retro City's own masked wrestler-turned-crime fighter, The Mod Mutilator (Double-M to his friends). What ensues is a series of action sequences where Double-M opens a Stone Cold Steve Austin style can of wup ass all over the Taliban.

The secret to enjoying one of The Savage Film Group's retro-noir outings is to forget about the story and enjoy the characters. Story and plot have always been of secondary concern, growing out of the pulp novels from Rock's childhood. This time around the story is nonexistent. Outside of the set-up, there's no growth, or even resolution, to the plot line. Once Double-M delivers a final boot to the ass of terrorism, the movie stops cold.

Double-M is easily my favorite character in the Savage Film Group canon. He's Mexican wrestling icon Santo crossed with Dusty Rhodes, that American old-school wrestling scoundrel from the early 1980's wrestling heyday. I would love to hear what fans of the Mexican hero would say if they ever found out that their beloved Santo was being ridiculed and reduced to the trash that is Rhodes.

THE MASK OF THE MUTILATOR is the shortest Savage Film Group production I've seen, clocking in around 10 minutes. It suffers from a lack of development and focus. Part of Double-M's charm is how he interacts with those around him. He's the Shakespear of the trailer park, delivering wrestling catch phrases with Confucius-like insight. THE MASK OF THE MUTILATOR offers a number of opportunities for Double-M humor, including the introduction of a new Femme Fatale to the SFG stable, but none of these moments go anywhere. Viewers don't even get to see Double-M open his can of wup ass on the Bin Laden wanna-be villain, just one of his monkey-boy lackeys.

Also, the Taliban humor never goes far enough. From the SFG, I almost expect a sort of "pie in the face of terrorism" approach to the subject matter. The irony is that some other websites have chastised THE MASK OF THE MUTILATOR for being offense to middle easterners. I'm not sure what movie those people saw, but it couldn't have been this one. Hell, there's isn't a phlegm joke or a 7-11 gag anywhere.

Damn it Rock, I want more MUTILATOR! The action is all here, now how ‘bout some interaction? I hope this is just a rough cut.

Savage Film Group
Count Gore DeVaul

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