Torched (Video 2004) Poster

(2004 Video)

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6/10
Short and sweet tale of rape and revenge
The_Void15 May 2007
Torched doesn't reach feature length at only 44 minutes, but it's 44 minutes well spent if you like this kind of thing as director Ryan Nicholson starts the film off nasty, and manages to carry this on throughout. Right at the start, we witness a nurse being raped and from there she decides it's time for revenge, as someone else tries to attack her, but she manages to get the better of him with a stun gun - and then the fun starts! The film takes obvious influence from the classic seventies crop of 'rape and revenge' films, such as I Spit on Your Grave. The film also takes influence from this new wave of modern day Video Nasties, which includes films such as Murder-Set-Pieces and August Underground. Nicholson gives the film a hard rock score, which works rather well when it's put against a backdrop of grisly and vile torture. There isn't very much of this film, and what there is of it is unlikely to make anyone want to stand up and applaud; but Torched is a more than decent way to spend three quarters of an hour for fans of sick and twisted horror movies.
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4/10
Not very good.
poolandrews25 April 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Torched starts one evening as a young woman named Deanna (Michelle Boback) leaves her city apartment to go to work, before Deanna is able to leave the elevator though a masked man overpowers Deanna & brutally rapes her. Deanna is devastated but doesn't phone the police & goes to work as normal, the next evening Deanna wakes up in her apartment to find a masked intruder on top of her raping her. Deanna manages to overpower him & takes great delight in torturing him over the next few days, however it seems that the first & second rapist are not the same people & in a quest revenge Deanna sets out to find the identity of the first attacker using a DNA swab & is shocked to learn who it is...

This Canadian production was directed by Ryan Nicholson & is a fairly sleazy yet straight forward tale of rape & revenge in the style of MS. 45 (1981) as the main lead is raped twice, once outside & once in her apartment & I Spit on Your Grave (1978) with the general theme of a woman gaining strength from adversity & setting out to wreck bloody revenge on those who raped her. Obviously nowhere near as good as those two classic rape revenge flicks Torched offers up a few painful looking but brief torture scenes, some crude gore effects & a plot where all the men are cheating rapist scumbags & the women are evil two-timers which is simply not the case in reality & it's a really depressing view of society actually that makes it very hard to like Torched. There's obviously no feel good factor here but there's no message or personal journey for any of the character's either, this is really just 40 odd minutes of rape, sex & torture which may in itself be a recommendation for some but I was pretty bored watching it & the double twist ending is very predictable, I don't want to boast but I actually figured it out within fifteen minutes.

Apparently filmed in 2004 it was edited into the anthology horror film Hell Hath No Fury (2006) before it was edited into a single short & released in 2010. Besides not being a particularly strong entry in the rape revenge sub-genre Torched is horrible to watch from a technical point of view, the makes go for that twitching camera look where the damned thing never stops jerking around for no good reason & the soundtrack of hip-hop & rock is awful, I actually turned the volume down & muted it on a few occasions just because the music was so bad & annoying. There's a some gore here, a woman has her head cut off with a saw, a guy's head is bashed in, a rapist has hypodermic syringes stuck into his penis & body & has the skin on his leg, penis & balls burnt with a blow torch. The rape scenes are fairly tame actually, they certainly aren't as full blown or as long as those seen in I Spit on Your Grave for instance.

Going direct to video Torched was shot in Vancouver in Canada, the whole thing looks as cheap & rough as any film you are likely to see with none existent production values although some of the special effects are decent enough for a low budget indie film such as this. The acting is dire, the pathetic screams from people as they are supposedly in great pain are embarrassing (why didn't Deanna's neighbours call the police when they heard all the screams coming from her apartment?), no-one seems to resist any attack or behave in a way that i found believable.

Torched is a soulless & pretty meaningless showcase for some crude gore effects & torture scenes, at just over 40 minutes at least it's short but there's nothing here of any substance or depth & save for those torture scenes you won't remember a thing about it once it's finished.
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6/10
Shish Ka Balls
ElijahCSkuggs5 February 2007
Heading into Ryan Nicholson's Torched, I was aware that it was a short flick, some of my horror pals enjoyed it, and that there's some cool torture scenes. It was short, there were some cool torture scenes, but I wouldn't say I enjoyed it as much as the other reviewers on here.

Story is about a chick that gets raped. Later on the same day another attempt is made, but this time chicky-poo turns the table and takes the attacker out of commission. Now he's tied up in her apartment, and she's looking for some payback. All the while she's playing detective/party girl. What follows is a slightly above average revenge tale with some pretty awesome make-up and blood fx.

I understand how people are saying for this type of movie (low-budget indy horror) the acting was much better than average. Well, I suppose it is. The lead actress did an alright job when acting normal but when she got mad and yelled...I couldn't take it serious...it was laughable. Her co-worker chick was pathetically average, the apartment dude and the doctor were probably the best actors in this movie. The worst actor by far in this flick was the dude getting "Torchered." He was getting some serious pain dealt on him and all he'd do was some loud half yell/half moaning? I'd be screaming bloody murder, writhing, throwing myself all over the place. And the ending, it was sudden, felt kind of jumbled and kind of silly. It was nothing incredibly shocking, but I guess it was kind of unique.

Even though I've dissed this movie some, Torched is definitely a flick any self-respecting hardcore horror fan should check out. I'm not saying I'll be recommending it, unless someone asks me for an extreme movie with a short running time. But it's an extreme, gritty, low-budget independent horror flick that will appeal to a lot of horror fans. Unfortunately I wasn't one of them. But I do have to say again that the fx was pretty sweet. The skin melt scene especially. 6.5 outta 10
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3/10
Ouch!
horizon20081 July 2013
What happens here after a girl gets raped in an elevator (actually not very extreme) is gonna be pretty gruesome for some. The movie also contains the best fake penis I've ever seen on screen (not that I spend my time looking for fake penises of course), and said penis is wholeheartedly attacked with syringes and a blow torch. Hmm...nice (ouch!).

There's no doubt that rape is a horrible thing for any woman (or man - there's a bit of that in here too) to endure, but its obviously just been set up here so the makers could have an excuse to offer what comes after. Burnings, be-headings, and rivers of blood abound. Yep, its a pretty nasty affair, but as with most of these kind of movies I spent the time laughing out loud at its madness.

The acting by the girl who plays the main character is actually not bad for a flick like this. Usually the acting is terrible in these kind of films. I do enjoy a good gory horror show as Hollywood just cant make anything worth a shock at all any more so you really gotta go to the independent scene to find real "horror".

The film is quite short at around 45 minutes and its probably enough, even gore gets boring after some time. Apparently the makers of the August Underground movies were involved in this and it certainly shows. But I cant help thinking.... can anyone actually make a movie that scares people nowadays? Sure its easy to offend and shock (some of us) but scare...? I doubt it.

Anyway, I wouldn't watch this again, not because its gross (or whatever) just because once seen its not worth watching again. You wont find it on Netflix I doubt however, so if you get a chance check it out if this is your kinda thing.
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5/10
watch your balls
trashgang30 March 2010
Torched, what's in a name. The movie suffered some torture. It is released in 2010 but was made in 2004 so what happened? It was one of the first sleazefests of Ryan and his Plotdigger theme but somehow things went terrible wrong. It was never edited and some workprint or a finale copy was released without the clearance of Ryan himself. It was released as Hell Hath No Fury. The fact that HHNF was 113 minutes long and the directors cut 45 minutes says enough. Ryan did his best to withdraw the release but failed. Meantime Plotdigger released Live Feed and Gutterballs. Ryan was fed up and stated to re-release HHNF as it should have been, he re-edited the flick and put a new score on it. But even then things went wrong. The release should have been in 2009 but some factory mistakes while pressing delayed the flick again. But fair as he is, Ryan kept in touch with everybody and the release was made in march 2010. Only available at Plotdigger itself limited to 666 copies. Mine was signed by him so I watched HHNF again as it should have been. What he brings in 45 minutes is of course the best thing. Not a lot of blah blah but a lot of, euh, torched scene's. I won't spoil what is being torched but in fact if you are a guy you will be impressed. It's gore galore in this flick. The red stuff flows frequently. I was a bit disappointed by the fact that there wasn't any nudity in it. HHNF had a lot of it. And knowing Plotdigger, normally they have that, remember Gutterballs. Still you can see that it is a low budget flick. There are some shadows from the boom (sound) watchable. But nevertheless, it delivers what you expect from it. And be advised. If you are easily offended or squeamish, don't watch it. You will need your balls to see it, if you know what I mean. Just like Run Bitch Run one of the better rape/revenge ones this year.
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3/10
Too Many Technical Problems Ruined An Otherwise Fair Film
redrobin62-321-20731118 August 2019
I acquired this title because of Gutterballs, a "film" that surprised me with its realism and brutality. I figured "Torched" would also deliver. In a way, it does, but poorly. Quite a few scenes were framed poorly, as in unnecessary long close-ups of talking heads. Some of the dialog also couldn't be heard because the mics were too far way from the actors. The violence was fairly decent but the editing was just so poorly done that the film just came off as a student exercise in Editing 101. Was this a "must watch" film? Nope. If you've seen the original "I Spit On Your Grave" or "Irreversible" you've seen this flick before. This outing is better than, say, any of Lucifer Valentine's stuff, but not by much.
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You will get yours. *** outta ****
fudgepax2612 June 2006
Torched is a interesting little short film that is so brutal that will probably make you hide your family jewels deep somewhere and well…can we talk about the plot holes? Maybe not,Deanna a nurse who works at night you read what I just typed,who works at night as a nurse who walks out of her apartment in the day,yes she picked the wrong day to go out,when she approaches outside a masked man throws her back in and proceeds to rape her,traumatized and shaken after,she runs back to her apartment and goes to sleep. The next night Masked man walks in and tries to rape her but (oh yes!)Deanna has a taser and takes him down

This film was directed by Ryan Nicholson who worked in the August Underground sequel,this film isn't the least misogynistic as the awful I Spit On Your Grave but she does take the law or blowtorch for that matter,in her hands but she does do the brutal revenge very violently,Deanna a nice pretty woman who could've had been doing well in her life loses her mind and by a nice thoughtful twist but all is finally explained in an appropriately a lot of series of climaxes, which left me thinking how 1.Does anyone else besides her and Trevor live in the apartment building,since the captor screams loud enough that could've made a neighbor complain about it or 2. if she captured the assailant how did she managed to get a taser since she stayed in her apartment even the day before she was raped (3.)Why leave the door open or leave criminating evidence around (4.) have sex with the woman's friend since you already had sex with her.

But anyways I kinda have more questions but besides that we can still see Deanna descend into madness and maim,toast nuts(pun totally intended) and decapitate because we got to know her at inopportune time,poor girl she needs someone to love.
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4/10
Brutal
Seaoftreachery9322 April 2011
Warning: Spoilers
I usually consider myself a hardened horror movie veteran. Nothing in horror movies ever seems to both me. I've seen all the "extreme" horror movies i.e; A Serbian Film,Re-gorgitated Sacrifice but torched is the only one that really bothered me. The gore in this movie is done quite well and if your a male then this movie will make you squirm. My main problem with the film is the dialogue and the acting. They are both very poor but I kind of expected that coming in to it. All and all its not terrible if your a fan of extreme horror movies or just a fan of Ryan Nicholson's movies then you should like it. If your new to the genre then I would skip this one and try something a little less extreme like Re-animator or Eden lake.
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7/10
Not that bad.
Pandaloonie15 April 2005
Warning: Spoilers
Unlike the kind person who posted before me, I found this to be an most interesting short.

Forget how bad you think the acting is, the script and/or the plot. For me the dialog is chilling. A young nurse is brutally raped and she gets revenge but at a huge cost. She loses contact with reality.

I identified with this woman in more ways than one. OK, I never captured a rapist and tortured him to death but that doesn't mean I didn't want to. Maybe it because I'm a woman, maybe it is because I've been raped twice and survived. On a level of visceral empathy, this is something I've dreamed about doing. Someone has taken our life slowly and we want to give the mental and physical torture right back.

'Dems my thoughts and comments.
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8/10
Brutal,bloody and shocking.
HumanoidOfFlesh26 June 2005
This 44 minute film is quite the nasty piece of filth.It starts with a woman getting raped and then soon after someone breaks into her home and attempts to rape her again.She awakens and manages to stop the attack before it begins and,believing her masked assailant to be her rapist from 5 minutes earlier in the film,she knocks him out with a stun-gun and sets about keeping him as her torture slave for the rest of the 30 minute running time,burning his bare testicles with a blow torch,sticking syringes in his penis and other horrid punishment!"Torched" was actually made by Ryan Nicholson,one of the FX guys on the grim "August Underground" series.The film is obviously inspired by "I Spit on Your Grave" and Abel Ferrara's wonderful "Ms.45".It's competently acted and the violence is extremely disturbing.The score by Necrophagia,Macabre and Necro is awesome and perfectly captures the nihilistic feeling of the film."Torched" is even better than "August Underground's Mordum",but you'll need an iron stomach to watch it.8 out of 10.
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8/10
Very Decent Low-Budget Rape/Revenge Offering
EVOL66613 November 2005
I honestly didn't expect much from this one. All I had heard about this film was that director Ryan Nicholson was involved with AUGUST UNDERGROUND'S MORDUM, and about the infamous "nut toasting" scene. I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised by the execution (no pun...) of this film.

TORCHED is about a woman who is raped leaving her apartment building. Later that evening she is attacked again but wards off the attacker with a stun gun. She restrains him and spends a week torturing him in some pretty brutal fashions (including some of the aforementioned blow-torch fun, and some pretty twisted penile-needle torture...).

TORCHED is actually a pretty strong film in all respects. The acting is above par for a film in this budget range, the story is decent and has a couple of twists, and the gore FX are pretty top-notch. I personally dig the rape/revenge genre as a whole, and TORCHED is another good entry. I'm very interested to see what else Nicholson brings to the table in upcoming features, and am anxiously awaiting LIVE FEED. Also, the soundtrack features some great music, including NECRO and ILL BILL. Recommended - 8.5/10
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10/10
Brutal,sick and twisted. A BRUTAL GORE MASTERPIECE
chriskousis14 February 2007
After a woman gets raped she seeks for revenge against her rapist. When a guy breaks into her apartment thinking he is the same who rape her she imprisons him and this is where the party begins.. Someway in her path of revenge her mind gets totally twisted and things start to get really nasty. This film disposes some great deal of gore scenes. Brutal suffering and killing as well as nudity and violence. The soundtrack is total representative of the scenes the film provides. Despite its small length 44 minutes it has everything someone would expect to see from this kind of film, even more...! Low budget BRUTALITY AT ITS FINEST Be prepared
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8/10
A real shocker!
BA_Harrison14 November 2013
Torched, a 45 minute shocker from indie director Ryan Nicholson, is a brutal rape revenge tale that goes straight for the jugular, assaulting the senses with a non-stop barrage of horrific imagery which is definitely not for those of a nervous disposition. From the opening savage sexual assault to the movie's blood-drenched climax, Torched will sear itself into your memory.

Far from being the poorly acted and amateurish production I was expecting, this confidently directed and well acted piece of extreme movie-making was a pleasant surprise (well, maybe not pleasant, but it was far better than I thought it would be!). The cast are great and the whole production is well put together, with a cool metal soundtrack and some pretty impressive (and nauseating) special effects.

Michelle Boback plays Deanna, a pretty nurse who is raped by a masked attacker outside her home. The next night she is attacked in her home, but manages to subdue and constrain the intruder. Believing the man she now has tied up in her flat to be her rapist, she begins to torture him in a manner of particularly nasty ways.

This film certainly knows how to pack a punch, with graphic scenes of mutilation and a particularly mean-spirited moment where Deanna employs a junkie to help her with her revenge! After a lot more violence (including a juicy power-saw beheading), the film ends well, with a pretty good twist.

Torched sets out to shock, and shock it does. Whilst this is not going to be to everyone's taste, fans of exploitation and gore should find it hits the spot.
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Shocking rape revenge movie
ultra_tippergore2 December 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Torched is 45 minutes of pure exploitation, skocking stuff, gore and revenge. A woman who works in a hospital is raped at the beginning of the movie, and off course, she gets traumatized. But a couple of days after that, she caught a man that entered in her apartment. So she started to torture him, day by day, increasing the brutality of the tortures(includes some penis torture that its hard to stand for a man) Then the violence and revenge rampage continues...the chick is out of control and she is now a torture machine! A very cool movie for fans of exploitation and gore. Very well done gore FX, good atmosphere, nice photography, and also the lead actress delivers a good performance.

8/10
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10/10
Michelle Boback Is the Ultimate Villain/Victim
leeann-84 May 2005
Warning: Spoilers
Michelle Boback's performance in Torched was by all means a visual account of what many women wish they could do their rapists and abusers. I could totally related to her character - doing the unthinkable to a rapist and abuser is much less a pipe dream to many women who have lived through such circumstances I am sure.

Michelle Boback is convincing a the role of Nurse/Victim and Villain and the effects were all together not that bad considering this is a film that was obviously made on a smaller budget. Michelle Boback is a talent that I would love to see in horror, gore, suspense or whatever. I think that there is a lot of potential for her in these types of genres as not many women can pull it off and not be type cast for the rest of their careers.

Another Film that may compare to Torched is a film I recently watched called MAY - I am not sure who is in it but it is suspenseful and leaves you with the same creepy, disturbed feeling.
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