During a stopover in Germany in the middle of a carefree road trip through Europe, two American girls find themselves alone at night when their car breaks down in the woods. Searching for help at a nearby villa, they are wooed into the clutches of a deranged retired surgeon who explains his mad scientific vision to his captives' utter horror. They are to be the subjects of his sick lifetime fantasy: to be the first to connect people, one to the next, and in doing so bring to life "the human centipede."
It would be nice to report that Six ... has an eye for horrific imagery and a head full of fresh ideas - or, barring all that, that he's simply a hard-working hack. But this is lazy moviemaking based on the thinnest of concepts.
– Wesley Morris,
Boston Globe,
6 May 2010
rotten:
There are terrible movies and there are loathsome movies. And then there's that rare breed so idiotic, exploitative and sickening one wishes they could be scrubbed from memory.
– Michael Ordona,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2010
rotten:
A film that, in bare description, sounds like the greatest outrage ever put to screen, but ends up being fairly tedious when watched.
– Keith Phipps,
AV Club,
13 May 2010
rotten:
This horror show from Dutch director Tom Six will be heaven for devotees of four-star torture porn and zero-star hell for everyone else.
– Peter Travers,
Rolling Stone,
14 May 2010
rotten:
The problem is that this slick piece of schlock is dull, risible and, ultimately, boring.