Unfairly buried by its distributors in the US, this film takes what could have been a drab set-up and gives it some real bravado, energy and creativity.
Comment
10/30/08
The Midnight Meat Train (2008)
70
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:27
Fresh:19
Rotten:8
Average Rating:6.2/10
Consensus: A creative and energetic adaptation of a Clive Barker short story, with enough scares and thrills to be a potential cult classic.
Theatrical Release:31-10-2008
Synopsis: Next stop…death. When Leon Kaufman’s (Bradley Cooper) latest body of work – a collection of provocative, nighttime studies of the city and its inhabitants -- earns the struggling photographer... [More]
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Leslie Bibb, Vinnie Jones, Roger Bart
Director: Ryuhei Kitamura
Reviews for The Midnight Meat Train
Top CriticJapanese director Ryuhei Kitamura, who kicked off his career with 2000's impressive micro-budget zombie flick Versus, delivers plenty of stylish visuals and an admirably unrestrained attitude to gore.
10/31/08
Top CriticThe Midnight Meat Train is destined for cult status as an minor horror gem.
10/30/08
The film hurtles towards the final ‘revelation moment’ like runaway train. If only it had stopped to take on board some of Barker’s heavy mythical dread.
10/30/08
Top CriticGoes full speed on ultra-gory rails before slamming to an abrupt stop.
01/28/09
MEAT TRAIN is the first BOOK OF BLOOD to depart from the station in a long time and it's refreshing to see that the film carries that bleak, yet romantic touch of Clive Barker all over it... it's guaranteed to make you squirm, scream and beg for more!
05/02/08
This sharp and brutal little yarn about a photographer who stumbles across a serial killer is a fan film if every there was one -- and only fans will be able to stomach it.
08/22/08
We've all been here before: scarcely-lit, acid-washed cinematography; dreamlike storytelling; absurdly pitched performances; a lauded Asian filmmaker making his American debut; and plenty of CG snap to the bloodletting.
08/02/08
Destined to be a cult classic as a vicious, brilliant, and disgusting horror film...
10/06/08
Manages to maintain that sly sense of dread that permeates the best of Barker's horror tales. Certainly one of the most effective horror films of the year.
07/27/08
It's excessively and imaginatively gory, presented in a straightforward manner, but with the slightest hint of a wink.
03/20/09
More interesting than most of the torture-porn or Asian-inspired thrillers that make it to theaters these days, but its tired combination of incongruously pretty fashion-mag photography and outrageously gruesome digital effects is dead on arrival.
08/08/08
Public-transit terror tale is beyond bloody. Pass.
08/04/08
We hate to side with the big bad studio, but The Midnight Meat Train -- despite a great title -- really does stink like month-old human flesh.
08/11/08
This is the best Clive Barker-inspired movie in a long, long time -- probably since "Hellraiser III" in 1992.
02/09/09
a stylishly bloody descent into madness, murder and Hell itself.
10/24/08
while skimpy on characterization and plot, it should please gorehounds and Barker fans alike
01/03/09
Not at all Butchered.
02/18/09
An efficient slasher with a surprisingly slow build-up and a decent amount of originality. Plus the best use of Vinnie Jones in any movie
08/04/08
The Midnight Meat Train is a real horror film-one filled with dark imagery, disturbing violence, and an ever-present sense of dread.
11/12/08
Latest News for The Midnight Meat Train
February 16, 2009:
RT on DVD: High School Musical 3 or Midnight Meat Train?
It's a good week for mediocre films (Body of Lies, Changeling, Quarantine and Flash of Genius, which all walk a fine line between Fresh and Rotten) and an even better one if... More...
August 28, 2008:
this devilishly ambiguous thriller leaves viewers to decide whether to take the conventional or the less-traveled tunnel through its narrative network 
More...
August 01, 2008:
Lionsgate Dumping Clive Barker's Midnight Meat Train? Updated Theater Listings Here
Clive Barker's The Midnight Meat Train was set up to fail, being dumped in $1 discount theaters, with no theater listing provided, with no explanation on how to even buy tickets. More...
July 10, 2008:
11 new photos, the film's graphic trailer, and a poll that let's you sound off on the trailer.
More...
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