Excision was dubbed as one of last year’s best horror films and while it’s certainly an original and occasionally disturbing flick, calling it a “horror” film is a bit unfair. It centers around a surgery-obsessed teenage girl, Pauline, who struggles with her status of being an outcast while plotting to save her sister from the terrible effects of cystic fibrosis.

AnnaLynne McCord was fantastic as Pauline and a joy to watch on screen. I have to hand it to the make-up artists because they did a phenomenal job at ugly-ing her up for the film. McCord’s performance was often chilling as she portrayed a disturbed and delusional high school student who wants to some day become a surgeon. She really carries the film scene after scene and the last 15 minutes is an absolute blast to watch as her character finally goes over the deep end.

The best way to describe Excision in one word is to say that it’s… strange. Very strange. The horror aspect of the film just fell through for me which is why I say that it’s unfair to call it such. It plays more like a dark-comedy than a horror flick simply because despite the random disturbing scenes thrown in here and there, they never really get under your skin the way you hope a horror film will. That being said, the last 15 minutes of this film are brilliant and truly scary as you finally see just how sick and twisted Pauline is. It’s times like that where you wish the rest of the movie lived up to those final moments because the rest of the movie just felt less important afterwards.

The film’s biggest strength is its story. It’s very original and not for the simple-minded as it presents a fantastic character in Pauline which dives deep into her troubled mind. It will leave you feeling uneasy at times, and while it’s not for everyone, it’s an ultimately rewarding flick for those that dig an odd indie film every once in a while and is willing to look past a little bit of period blood.

3/5