Masters of Horror: Pelts

While denying Dario Argento his place at the 'Masters of Horror' table would seem almost blasphemous, he is knocking on a bit now. And this utterly bizarre story about the fate of some fur traders who dare attempt to make a profit out of the skins of some mystic raccoons unfortunately goes some way to demonstrating that the glory days of Suspiria are far, far behind him now.

The central character is so utterly ridiculous, and his relationship with a lesbian lapdancer-cum-wannabe-model is so unbelievable that there's little to no emotional involvement with their fates. The gruesome deaths of several innocent minimum wage seamstresses are pretty horrific -- there's a lot of gore in this episode, and more than one moment that'll make you want to hide behind a cushion; that's a plus point, incidentally -- but by the time the episode reaches its climax, everything has become so utterly absurd that it's laughable, rather than scary.

Also, just by the by, Meat Loaf should always, always wear at least two more layers of clothing than Pelts lets him get away with. Oh dear.

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