By TeeJay Small
| Published
If you’re a fan of violent horror films, you’ve probably seen your fair share of simulated blood and gore. From shootouts, to monster flicks, to brutal car crashes with glass streaming across the dashboard, it can be difficult to shock modern audiences.
Even still, 2015’s Bone Tomahawk is one of the most jaw-droppingly violent movies I’ve ever encountered, offering some truly horrific visual effects, gripping performances, and a terrifying ending that will keep you awake for days.
Squirting And Screaming
Bone Tomahawk was written and directed by brutalist filmmaker and certified sicko S. Craig Zahler. Despite being his directorial debut, and working with a shoestring budget, Zahler managed to drum up tremendous support for his script, courting the likes of Kurt Russell, Patrick Wilson, Richard Jenkins, and David Arquette in the leading roles. The film centers on a small-town sheriff and his gang of cowboys as they attempt to rescue a group of civilians from a clan of bloodthirsty cannibals.
As the gunslingers venture forth into no-man’s land, they realize that they’re being hunted by the cannibal tribe, known only as the Troglodytes. Against the advice of everyone, from the local anthropologist to members of other local native tribes, the gang attempts to save the hostages, only to be dismantled in increasingly horrific ways. As the narrative of Bone Tomahawk progresses, the main characters are scalped, tortured, and dragged through the desert squirting blood and screaming. Most of the horror unfolds in broad daylight, too, which gives the film a very unique and visually interesting palette compared to other horror slashers.
So Beyond Violent, We Can’t Even Show It Here
There’s genuinely no way for me to oversell how violent this movie is. It’s more like a snuff film than a traditional western, making it a perfect watch for the horror fan that feels like they’ve seen it all. After Bone Tomahawk released, it quickly gained status as a cult classic, paving the way for S. Craig Zahler to helm additional ultra-violent outings such as Brawl in Cell Block 99 and Dragged Across Concrete.
Personally, I’ve always been a big fan of the Western genre, though many old school Westerns are too corny and straightforward for modern viewing. Bone Tomahawk takes the idea of a Western and turns it on its head, giving you a shocking change of pace that makes the film feel unlike anything else. Today, the film has a near-perfect 91 percent critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, and no official rating from the MPAA. That’s probably for the best, because I don’t even know how you’d begin to rate something like this.
If you’re interested in checking out Bone Tomahawk today, and you don’t have a particularly weak stomach, be sure to give this one a spin on Hulu. Afterwards, be sure to watch something less gruesome to wind down, like Kill Bill, or a World War II documentary.
