In a Glass Cage, released by Cult Epics is another one of those "know the name, not the movie" cult films. Many, many people have heard of this one, but (same as Death Bed) less than half of them have seen it.
FILM- Klaus is a very evil man. An exiled Nazi, his past employment granted him the ability to act out his homicidal fantasies on his favorite victims; boys. He continued this practice, long after the war. All the years of mental and emotional turmoil finally ran their course, and Klaus attempted to leap to his death. The results were not as he intended, and he is paralyzed from the neck down. He now lives confined to an iron lung, his "glass cage", and is cared for by his wife, daughter, and the family maid. One day, and young man, Angelo, enters his life. Immediately his wife hates Angelo, but Klaus insists on keeping him as his nurse. Soon, Angelo and Klaus form a strange bond, and we realize they both have a common interest; preying on young boys.
This film is very successful at two things. One, it successfully shows the fascination and resentment between our two leads. Klaus and Angelo's love-hate relationship is perfectly captured, and not one small detail is missing. The second thing this film does masterfully is create EXTREME suspense. The cat and mouse aspect to this film is brilliant, and you really have no idea what Angelo will do or how far he will go. This film is incredibly intense, more so than anything I have seen in a long time; my heart was actually racing during several points. The subject matter is touchy, but it's presentation is not trashy in the least. Another thing I must add is the ending, which I will not spoil, is FANTASTIC! This is not the film I expected, seeing as how I envisioned something along the lines of a Nazisploitation film (as most European Nazi films were). This film is actually an artistic thriller, and it was a "pleasure" to see a very intense and serious film about a topic that is mainly portrayed in Exploitation flicks. Needless to say I loved this film, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a disturbing, psychological train wreck of a film. 9/10.
AUDIO/ VIDEO- This film is way more artistic than I would have imagined. The motif of blue is used all throughout this film, and it looks beautiful. The picture quality is good; there are some instances of the picture "bouncing", and a few places where the film has a "ghosting" look to it. These problems are minor, and shouldn't affect your viewing that much. 8/10.
The audio is exactly like the picture; small bugs, but for the majority it sounds amazing. There are few pops and cracks, but nothing major. The sound affects of the iron lung really stand out as well. Unfortunately, there are several instance of the volume fading. This is not horrible, seeing as how the film is subtitled, and you shouldn't have to change the volume after pressing play. 8/10.
EXTRAS- Cult Epics has supplied In a Glass Cage with a few extras. On the disk, you get an interview with Agustin Villaronga (the director). Also included is some liner notes, which are very interesting. 6/10
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