Blood of the Beasts

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06/28/2016 Le Sang de Bêtes holds the viewer in a morbid fascination. It's a graphic glimpse into places we would never want to visit or work in - slaughterhouses. See more 10/24/2015 To a vegetarian, this is essentially a snuff film. Animals die in a slaughterhouse. However, director Georges Franju treats the topic in a way that is not too far afield from David Lynch's Blue Velvet. That is, we see Paris and its tranquil daily life and then we go behind the façade to find out how meat is made available. Of course, in 1949, the killing is done by hand, by trained professionals (who nevertheless get cysts and other injuries in the course of their work). The film (only 20 minutes) is sometimes referred to as surreal and perhaps a pile of calves heads (after they are slaughtered to make veal) is an unusual image - but it is all too real, not surreal. Franju went on to make Eyes Without a Face, which is definitely surreal and horrific. In that film, a surgeon preys on young women in order to find a new face for his daughter (after a car accident). Perhaps the same moral coldness underscores both films. See more 06/08/2015 A stark, unflinching look at how a slaughterhouse operates. It's affecting and filled with harrowing images of cruelty that will burn into the viewer's mind for long after the short running time and may even have the power to turn some vegan. See more 01/09/2015 This very aesthetic portrayal of Post-War Paris slaughterhouses will turn your stomach. The director was right when he said color causes a physical reaction, if this flick wasn't black-and-white it would be incredibly disturbing. The Act of Seeing with One's Own Eyes was tough to watch, and I stopped watching Earthlings when they got to the cow-flipping-throat-slitter. Without the rivers of crimson, scenes that would be horrific are just fascinating and depressing. The butchers whistle as they go about their business with a hammer and a hacksaw. It's a major bummer, but it's interesting to see how things were done so long ago. Pairs well with Aborted's Archaic Abattoir. See more 04/16/2014 An amazing and horrific look at what goes on in a slaughterhouse. You may consider becoming a vegetarian afterwards. Shocking vintage documentary. See more 01/23/2012 Not for the faint-hearted, this is a no holds barred depiction of a 1940s abbatoir, contrasted against the world outside in Paris. See more Read all reviews

Blood of the Beasts

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