Jack Ketchum is a first-rate horror writer, undoubtedly one of the best in the business today, but the decision to translate his Offspring for the screen is a perplexing one. For starters, Offspring isn't one of Ketchum's strongest books, so of all the stories this scribe has committed to the page, the material here barely hints at his true powers. But perhaps more importantly, Offspring is actually a continuation of the events in Ketchum's first novel, Off Season, which has not been made into a film as of this writing. So what we get here is the sequel to a movie that doesn't exist, which obviously causes numerous problems right from the get-go.
It's not impossible to gather the general plot line of Off Season from the meager hints dropped in this film, and Offspring has enough of a presence of its own to be an enjoyable ride despite its absent back-story, but since our de facto hero here ends up being former Sheriff George Chandler, the fact that this outing shares almost nothing about him will make it challenging for viewers unfamiliar with the source novels to fully immerse themselves into his battle and navigate through the who's and what's.
The version of Offspring this write-up is referring to clocks in at a lean 74 minutes minus the credits, which forces a judicious presentation of the happenings that unfortunately leaves many important details out of the mix. Some members of the feral cannibal clan aren't even given names, and with only a few sections of translated dialogue to clue us in on their dark purposes, the meticulously crafted inner thoughts, gruesome origins, and intricate familial relationships outlined in Ketchum's book are completely absent. All we really end up knowing about the animalistic brood from what's portrayed here is that they kill people, which is certainly enough to usher in the gore-fest that follows, but also fosters an unsatisfying understanding of exactly why the events in the film are taking place. Likewise, there isn't much time for character development to help us get a better grasp on the tormented victims in the piece, and since they're all essentially simply introduced then slaughtered or tortured, none of the horrific scenarios skated through here have nearly as much impact as they should.
Apparently, the German release of Offspring runs an even 100 minutes, so this choppily truncated version is clearly missing some crucial pieces. I'm not sure exactly what was excised for American audiences, but the whip-crack pace of the Offspring I saw never allows it to slow down long enough to generate any tension. All of the most harrowing sections of Ketchum's novel are either missing entirely or dealt with so quickly that they are stripped of their resonance, which effectively removes most of the actual horror from the equation.
In its place, we are treated to an overtly senseless but generously graphic bloodbath, and on that front at least, Offspring is largely successful. Since Ketchum himself wrote the screenplay for this offering, the salient elements of the carnivorous cave dwellers' hideous habits are all on the menu, and it is a credit to the film-makers that they had the cajones to maintain the author's vision, leaving in even the most unsavory aspects at the risk of alienating viewers not acclimated to Ketchum's often nauseating prose (the intestine munching scene, in particular, is a doozy that will make even the most jaded splatter fans stand up and take notice). Since the film deals openly and explicitly with the slaughter of infants, and children butchering and devouring people, the disturbing and unrelenting tone of Ketchum's tale remains intact, and the faithful adherence to that facet of the book is especially welcome since so much of the thematic and exploratory meat has been omitted.
Though the look of the homicidal moppets and their psychotic matriarch sticks fairly closely to what Ketchum describes in his text, I was a bit disappointed by how plain their ensembles are in the film. The members of the cannibal tribe are essentially garbed in stereotypical Lord Of The Flies attire, wrapped in skimpy loincloths and decked out in indeterminate tribal jewelry that mostly looks like the kind of stuff you'd find at any farmer's market. I would have hoped that a prolific and resourceful band of killers such as this would be a bit more creative with their adornments, and since there isn't anything particularly ghoulish or noteworthy about their appearances, the children aren't nearly as menacing as they could have been, and often look downright goofy despite the admittedly sickening deeds we see them partake in with glee.
Offspring can only be enthusiastically recommended to people who have read and enjoyed the book; at least they have the luxury of being able to fill in the blanks, since what's on the screen is far too brief and incomprehensible to adequately encompass this tale. Those who are merely looking for a gory and slippery romp will find plenty to keep them amused here, but even with the ample red sauce on display, the terse and befuddling presentation will make this a tough sell for the uninitiated.
As a whole, Offspring simply feels incomplete. However, considering that more than twenty minutes of potentially important footage was unceremoniously hacked away, that parting impression is perhaps the lone aspect of the film that truly makes sense.
It's not impossible to gather the general plot line of Off Season from the meager hints dropped in this film, and Offspring has enough of a presence of its own to be an enjoyable ride despite its absent back-story, but since our de facto hero here ends up being former Sheriff George Chandler, the fact that this outing shares almost nothing about him will make it challenging for viewers unfamiliar with the source novels to fully immerse themselves into his battle and navigate through the who's and what's.
The version of Offspring this write-up is referring to clocks in at a lean 74 minutes minus the credits, which forces a judicious presentation of the happenings that unfortunately leaves many important details out of the mix. Some members of the feral cannibal clan aren't even given names, and with only a few sections of translated dialogue to clue us in on their dark purposes, the meticulously crafted inner thoughts, gruesome origins, and intricate familial relationships outlined in Ketchum's book are completely absent. All we really end up knowing about the animalistic brood from what's portrayed here is that they kill people, which is certainly enough to usher in the gore-fest that follows, but also fosters an unsatisfying understanding of exactly why the events in the film are taking place. Likewise, there isn't much time for character development to help us get a better grasp on the tormented victims in the piece, and since they're all essentially simply introduced then slaughtered or tortured, none of the horrific scenarios skated through here have nearly as much impact as they should.
Apparently, the German release of Offspring runs an even 100 minutes, so this choppily truncated version is clearly missing some crucial pieces. I'm not sure exactly what was excised for American audiences, but the whip-crack pace of the Offspring I saw never allows it to slow down long enough to generate any tension. All of the most harrowing sections of Ketchum's novel are either missing entirely or dealt with so quickly that they are stripped of their resonance, which effectively removes most of the actual horror from the equation.
In its place, we are treated to an overtly senseless but generously graphic bloodbath, and on that front at least, Offspring is largely successful. Since Ketchum himself wrote the screenplay for this offering, the salient elements of the carnivorous cave dwellers' hideous habits are all on the menu, and it is a credit to the film-makers that they had the cajones to maintain the author's vision, leaving in even the most unsavory aspects at the risk of alienating viewers not acclimated to Ketchum's often nauseating prose (the intestine munching scene, in particular, is a doozy that will make even the most jaded splatter fans stand up and take notice). Since the film deals openly and explicitly with the slaughter of infants, and children butchering and devouring people, the disturbing and unrelenting tone of Ketchum's tale remains intact, and the faithful adherence to that facet of the book is especially welcome since so much of the thematic and exploratory meat has been omitted.
Though the look of the homicidal moppets and their psychotic matriarch sticks fairly closely to what Ketchum describes in his text, I was a bit disappointed by how plain their ensembles are in the film. The members of the cannibal tribe are essentially garbed in stereotypical Lord Of The Flies attire, wrapped in skimpy loincloths and decked out in indeterminate tribal jewelry that mostly looks like the kind of stuff you'd find at any farmer's market. I would have hoped that a prolific and resourceful band of killers such as this would be a bit more creative with their adornments, and since there isn't anything particularly ghoulish or noteworthy about their appearances, the children aren't nearly as menacing as they could have been, and often look downright goofy despite the admittedly sickening deeds we see them partake in with glee.
Offspring can only be enthusiastically recommended to people who have read and enjoyed the book; at least they have the luxury of being able to fill in the blanks, since what's on the screen is far too brief and incomprehensible to adequately encompass this tale. Those who are merely looking for a gory and slippery romp will find plenty to keep them amused here, but even with the ample red sauce on display, the terse and befuddling presentation will make this a tough sell for the uninitiated.
As a whole, Offspring simply feels incomplete. However, considering that more than twenty minutes of potentially important footage was unceremoniously hacked away, that parting impression is perhaps the lone aspect of the film that truly makes sense.