The Original Faces of Death

Starring:Samuel Berkowitz, Michael Carr (II), Adolf Hitler, Thomas Noguchi
Studio: Gorgon Video
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

Is it real or is it Memorex?
"THE ONE, THE ONLY, THE ORIGINAL FACES OF DEATH"
Great for the fans of the gruesome and macabre.
As long as I find it ENTERTAINING, I'm happy!
Not bad at all!!!

The Original Faces of Death
Starring: Samuel Berkowitz , Michael Carr (II) , Adolf Hitler , and Thomas Noguchi
Manufacturer: Gorgon Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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( O ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Faces of Death 2/ Worst of Faces of Death
Faces of Death III: Scenes From the Underground
Faces of Death Collection (Vols. 1-4)
Faces of Death IV
Faces of Death 2

ASIN: 0788601245
Release Date: 1999-10-19

Customer Reviews:

Is it real or is it Memorex?.......2007-05-16

Look at that lurid DVD cover art! How could anyone take this movie--a movie that purported to show dozens of real life deaths caught on camera--seriously after looking at that cartoonish image? Nonetheless, millions of impressionable dupes bought into "Faces of Death" for all it was worth. I was one of them, of course, scurrying about town back in the late 1980s trying to track down a copy of this elusive film. I actually had to sign up for a membership at some dinky mom & pop videostore just to rent this sucker. That the store wasn't located within the city limits only heightened my anticipation. "Surely," I thought to myself at the time as I drove home with the precious cargo sitting on the seat next to me, "the fact that I had to leave the city means that this movie is real, that the prominently displayed "Banned in 46 countries!" sticker on the video box must really mean something! Wow! Am I gonna have fun or what?" Uh huh. Needless to say, "Faces of Death" fell short in several areas. The cheesy narration from "Dr. Francis Gross" (Michael Carr) didn't seem to fit with a death flick, and a lot of the scenes looked staged for the camera.

I recently decided to revisit this old "classic" when I noticed I could rent it online for a song. Funny how times change, isn't it? I had to storm the gates of heaven to find a copy less than twenty years ago, and now the same movie is everywhere. That's one good thing about the decline of Western Civilization, I guess--depravity is only a click away. Anyway, I tossed the DVD into the player when the disc arrived and set down for a couple of hours of pure schlock. I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I'm surprised I remembered many of the film's "shocking" segments. It's important to remember that almost everything you see in the movie is staged. That electric chair execution? Phonier than a three dollar bill. Remember the infamous "monkey brain" scene? Fake! What about the poor sap trying to catch that crocodile out in the lake? Fake, although it might actually be stock footage of a real event if you use your imagination. Unfortunately, it isn't real. Almost nothing we see here is. If you watch "Faces of Death" with an open mind and open eyes, you'll likely notice that most of what's going on looks mighty suspicious.

Of course, there is real death in "Faces of Death". The problem with this is that most of it consists of stock footage of non-human atrocities. Expect to see a lot of animal killings in this film. Sick sequences include scenes inside a slaughterhouse, animal attacks, and a disturbing look at seal hunting. These clips are doubtless real, and they do disturb on many levels, but we're not exactly renting/buying this movie for animals, are we? It's the human stuff we want to see. An assassination in France looks absolutely ridiculous in its execution (pun intended). A bear attack on some poor sap, complete with background voices saying things like, "Be careful" and shaky camera work, initially looks intriguing but ultimately proves obviously false on a second viewing. A lady doing a header out of a high-rise building, I thought, must surely be real. Maybe the police standoff with a disgruntled man, which results in a hail of gunfire, is also real. Or how about the protestor self-immolating outside of a nuclear power plant? Is it real or is it Memorex? I quickly wearied of trying to figure out what was real and what was a sham.

The ultimate problem with "Faces of Death" is actually a simple one. In this day and age, with atrocity becoming the norm in the media and on the Internet, this movie comes off as almost prissy in its look at death. I'm serious. Considering the explosion of "real death" documentaries and DVDs that clog the market, along with an exponential increase in violence even on public television, "Faces of Death" just isn't that interesting when you can check out the real thing on the Internet or at the local videostore. I'm not even going to get into the media and their morbid fascination with all things dead and dying. The evening news often touches on events that overshadow most of what we see in "Faces of Death". If you want uncut, nauseating scenes of real death and destruction, pick up "Traces of Death" or one of the other documentaries that doesn't flinch when showing us real world carnage. Forget "Faces of Death". This film is only worth watching if you're taking a trip down memory lane, like I did, or if you want to scare the pants off of a stuffy friend. Go elsewhere to feed your cravings for blood and guts.

The DVD version of "Faces of Death" is an intriguing one. Not because of improved picture quality (the movie looks worse here than on the old video tape I watched it on back in the 1980s) but because we get a very cheesy faux documentary called "Faces of Death: Fact or Fiction?" included as an extra on the disc. According to this documentary, the original narrator Dr. Francis Gross has passed away. Don't know what that means, but in his place we get some hammy actor calling himself Dr. Louis Flellis talking to a reporter about his fascination with death. We also see the director of the film, Conan Le Cilaire, talking about the trials and travails inherent in any quest to bring real death to a film audience. The fact that he hides his face behind a hat and sunglasses, and even disguises his voice with some sort of sound effect, only adds an extra layer of ridiculousness to the proceedings. Let's give "Faces of Death" three stars just for old time's sake, eh?

"THE ONE, THE ONLY, THE ORIGINAL FACES OF DEATH".......2006-09-10

I first saw this movie on video cassette in june 1985 as a teenager. I admit I thought it was real. Not only real but it did scare the hell out of me. I thought the electric chair scene was real. This movie as bad and fake as most of the scenes are, did make me look at death in a whole new way. As a teenager I was shocked and horrified by this movie. My friends and I would watch it and talk about it. Faces of death made me realize I should be greatful for everyday I have on this earth. This movie despite all the controversy of it being staged and being fake is really a facinating look into death. As gross as the morgue scene was to watch, it was interesting and I believe authentic. The chriogenic suspension scene was really facinating. The music by gene kauer is very effective, and goes with movie very well. Actor Michael Carr who portrays Dr. Francis B. Gross plays a believable doctor with an obsession with death. Faces of death was a mid 1980s fad, that people still talk about today. Faces of death written and directed by John Schwartz is a pioneer of the reality shows of today including (jackass). Faces of death is not for the weak hearted but really a facinating look into our ultimate end.

Great for the fans of the gruesome and macabre........2006-09-04

This is the kind of movie that you have a hidden interest in. This movie has over 25 scenes of suicide, animal death, executions, and more. This movie is known to have very little actual death scenes, however does have a few. DO NOT watch this movie if you are expected to see something like a typical horror movie, or even a Mondo Cane movie. This movie is not for the squemish.

The features on this DVD contain the documentary: "Faces of Death: Fact or Fiction", which proves if the Faces of Death series is real or not. It also has the theatrical trailer, and trailers for other Gorgon Video releases.

As long as I find it ENTERTAINING, I'm happy!.......2006-08-12

Well, "fake"/"staged" or not, I found Faces Of Death (the original and its sequels) entertaining. In fact, I found it a decent, if not a great, "stress reducer!" If I'm "having a bad day," instead of "lashing out" or "blowing up" (at someone,) other than playing/listening to hard rock/metal music or watching horror films ("old school" horror for me, please!), I'll watch Faces Of Death.

Not bad at all!!!.......2006-05-10

Personally I didn't think it was that gross. Most of the stuff I saw in the movie were things you see in movies with special effects and make up artists. It just happens that some of this footage is real. I think it was a documentary for people who are curious about death. It wasn't gross or shocking. The animal footage was a bit much, but that's called the food chain. And if you eat meat then this is what animals go thru for you to have meals. I heard that only some of the human death footage was real and some was fake. I really thought it was interesting and I didn't feel like I was a bad person for watching it. If u are a curious person about morgues, animal death, and human death then this might be a good movie for u to watch. Death is a part of life. And when someone dies, somebody has to clean up the mess, and in this movie u get to see what mess they are cleaning up, that's all. I think it's worth watching one time atleast for answers u may have about death. Hope this helps!!!!