The Midnight Meat Train is about the freelance photographer Leon (Bradley Cooper) who wants to capture on the film the emotions of people in his home town New York City.  His career as a photographer has been at a standstill until an opportunity to work with a legendary art dealer Susan Hoff (Brooke Shields) is given to him.  At their first meeting she rejects his works telling him to dig deeper into human emotions using film.  After an encounter in a subway tunnel with a gang member, Susan is thrilled with the photographs and encourages humble Leon to dig even deeper into the dark side of New York City.    Soon Leon encounters Mahoany and by accident shots a chilling photograph of him.  Mahoany (Vinnie Jones of Smokin Aces fame) works as a butcher by day and a demented killer at night.  Mahoany stalks the subways with a metal cleaver at night killing for no apparent reason with all of his tools tucked away in an unassuming leather brief case. 

Leon feels he needs to follow up on Mahoany with his only weapon a camera.  Adding to the mood of the movie, the police are investigating Leon for his link to a super model that has disappeared.  To prove them wrong, our hero, like a knight preparing his sword for battle, adjusts his simple film camera before every night photo shot hoping to solve a murder mystery before the police frame him.  He alienates his girlfriend and friends in the process, leaving him hopelessly obsessed with the strange happenings below New York’s streets.

The overall pacing of the movie is very fast and will keep you on the edge of your seat.  Since the villain, Mahoany, cannot talk a lot of the useless dialogue has been removed and instead the director focuses on the star to communicate the emotion of fear.   The final 30 minutes of the movie are a grisly ride of terror that only the mind of Clive Barker could dream up.  The ending of the movie caught me by surprise.  I never read the short story, The Midnight Meat Train, by Clive Barker so I was unprepared for the unexpected ending.  Some viewers may not appreciate it but I certainly did and liked how it brought the whole winding series of events together.

Acting
The Midnight Meat Train has a rich cast of experienced actors and actresses who come together to deliver great performances.  In fact only a few of them were hard for me to recognize while watching the movie.  I strongly believe this is the reason why this movie came together so well on the silver screen.  Vinnie Jones’ performance was particularly compelling.  His stoic personality and imposing figure in the rail car was all he needed since he has no dialogue in the movie.

Several other well known actors make appearances in this movie. Brooke Shields staring as Susan Hoff an art gallery director.  Ted Raimi stars as Randle Cooper.  Peter Jacobson, mostly known for his role as Dr Chris Taub on House MD stars as Otto a diner cook.  Peter does a good job in the role and is actually did a better job of acting than Leslie Bibb.

Gore
Gore fans rejoice!  20 minutes into the movie there is triple murder scene that could only be described as disturbing.  While the initial kill that featured both eyeballs popping out of the deceased's head like marbles is technically impossible it still is a revolting scene to watch while chewing on a hamburger. 

Other horror treats like removing infected growths from the body and storing them casually in a mason jar are enough to make anyone’s stomach churn with revulsion.   Yet at the same time, the scene was the most confusing in the movie for me because its purpose was never fully explained later in the movie.  Why would Mahoany do this?

Cinematography
Every scene is rich with detail that I found to help add to the shock of the movie.  The camera angles are superb and never left me wishing for more.

Sound
The soundtrack to this movie is very well done.  Several of the scenes in the movie feature a deep bass line that will rumble most home theatre systems creating a suspenseful mood.  In fact without some of the audio work done on this movie is so critical it may have not come together as well as it did without it. 

Summary
I had fun watching this movie last night.  The supporting cast of recognizable actors also helps to weave together a very believable story.  The unrated version of this movie should only be watched by those 17 years of age and older.  Several scenes of the movie can give younger children nightmares and lead to questions that are not easy to answer.  The movie does have its plot holes which leave the viewer wondering why some grotesque acts were performed.  For this reason, I give the movie a strong 4 star rating and hope a sequel is planned for future release.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age