Modify

December 11, 2007

Rated: Unrated Runtime: 85 min Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Do you think pierced belly buttons are sexy? How about pierced hoods? eyebrows? noses? All of those are forms of modification, but are on the low end of what can be done. Modify is all about the more extreme measures people will go to to modify their bodies, from horn implants, to penile splitting.

modify.jpgMany (I’d say most) people think negatively of a person covered head to toe in tattoos, or with their earlobes stretched, or with facial piercings beyond the usual. They either think they are stupid, or if of a religious bent think they are “evil”. I’ve personally been around folks like this, those who think that doing anything unusual with their bodies makes them a “vessel for evil” or some such crap. Amazing how intolerant some people are. Modify deals with issues like this, issues of acceptance and tolerance, prejudice and just plain stupidity, and does so in an intelligent way.

The vast majority of the modified people interviewed for the movie present themselves as very articulate and intelligent, proving that you really can’t judge a book by it’s cover… most of the time. There are a couple of people who after hearing them talk, they’re just idiots. Watch it, I bet you can spot them. For others though it’s very interesting to hear them discuss why they’ve made modifications to their bodies, whether it be for spiritual or sexual reasons, or just because they think it looks cool.

Now, about those modifications. If you have a weak stomach, you won’t be able to watch large chunks of this movie. There’s a surgical section about 15 minutes in that will get rid of most people as this is full blown plastic surgery shown at a rapid fire pace to some rock music. Plenty of blood and gore, plenty. If that doesn’t get you, watching a guy insert steel balls into his penis might, or, people putting giant hooks in their skin so they can be suspended on stage for people to gawk at. There a guy who flayed his penis. Picture what a hot dog looks like when you’ve left it in the microwave too long, and that’s what the underside of this guys dick looks like. To balance off the effect, he put in horizontal rod like implants on the top side. Just.. ouch.

Then there are those that actually look kinda cool. Tattoos can be quite attractive, and there are some stunning examples of the art here. And there’s the “laces up the back” look that’s done by putting in rings along the spine and lacing them together as if the skin was a corset. That’s the image I chose for this review, and it’s a rather artistic effect. You get to see it being done too.

There’s way too much in this movie for me to catalog here, but it’s all interesting in one way or another. If you’d like to see to what extremes some people will go to to make themselves stand out, be sure to give Modify a look. I’m only giving it 3 stars because it’s not something you’re likely to want to watch again, though showing it to some unsuspecting guests could have some rather amusing results.

Posted by John | Filed Under 3 Stars, DVD, Documentary, Dr. Gary Alter, Dr. Julio Garcia, Jim Ward, Steve Hayworth, Trigger, Unrated 

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Comments

One Response to “Modify”

  1. Mack Guffin on December 11th, 2007 7:29 pm

    But I have to wonder if some of these people aren’t going to feel pretty silly in 20 years when their bodies start to sag….

    There was a guy here in Atlanta who ran a store that made reproductions of medieval swords and armor and whatnot (he recently passed away). I remember him once saying, “I was really interested when I heard that body piercing had become a big fad. Then I found out that it was YOUR OWN body that got pierced. That’s what all this armor is for! To keep your body from getting pierced!”

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