Human Centipede 1 – First Sequence (2009)

AKA: First Sequence
Year: 2009
Directed by: Tom Six
Starring: Dieter Laser, Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie, Akihiro Kitamura
Country: Dutch
Language: English
Runtime: 01:31:58
Genres: Torture, Captivity/Kidnapping, Scat, Body Modification

Plot – Spoilers:
Dr. Josef Heiter is a leading German specialist in conjoined twins surgery. His house is decorated with artwork related to the subject. His passion for the subject however has now sunk into depravity as he imagines creating the ultimate work in modern surgery through a Human Centipede – basically, human beings attached face to ass so that one person’s meal is another’s shit. In this regard, after several experiments and failures, he abducts two American tourist girls and a Japanese man who are perfectly matched tissue-wise.

There are no scat scenes and the revolting thought of such a human centipede scenario is quite neatly and hygienically portrayed. In fact, there is a certain aesthetic to the centipede.

Wikipedia fact: Apparently, the scene where Heiter swims in the nude was Dieter Laser’s idea, borne out of the thought that his character thought of the centipede as his pet and would therefore not feel ashamed to appear nude in front of it.

Favorite scenes:
1. Dr. Josef Heiter (named similar to Nazi doctor Josef Mengele) has chased Ashley Williams’ character into a room and is banging on the door. His response to her calling him a ‘sick man’ is hilarious and brilliant.

2. Akihiro Kitamura’s rants in Japanese lend dark humour to the pathetic scenario he finds himself in. This is probably a tribute to Japanese cinema where humour is often a twin conjoined with misery.

3. When Heiter has finished work of surgical art, he sits back to admire his work and even passes a mirror around for the elements of the centipede to marvel at their new form. The elation he feels is so strong that he sheds a few tears and even narcissistically kisses himself in the mirror :))

Human Centipede Trilogy:
Human Centipede 1
Human Centipede 2
Human Centipede 3