Pathology (2008)

43% of critics liked it
(21 reviews)
43% of users liked it
(48,632 ratings)

Milo Ventimiglia (of the blockbuster TV series Heroes), headlines this dark crime thriller, which marks the sophomore directorial outing of Marc Schoelermann, following the 2006 telemovie Hexxx. Ventimiglia portrays a young intern, newly arrived at the University Hospital in Philadelphia, who… More Milo Ventimiglia (of the blockbuster TV series Heroes), headlines this dark crime thriller, which marks the sophomore directorial outing of Marc Schoelermann, following the 2006 telemovie Hexxx. Ventimiglia portrays a young intern, newly arrived at the University Hospital in Philadelphia, who stumbles onto a psychopathic group of colleagues playing a vile game. They regularly select one of their members (on a rotational basis) to commit the "perfect murder," while the rest use forensic methods to try to determine exactly how the homicide was executed. Alyssa Milano (of TV's Who's the Boss? and Charmed) co-stars as Ventimiglia's fiancée, while thesps Johnny Whitworth and Lauren Lee Smith are among the perpetrators. Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (of Crank fame) scripted. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 34 min.
Directed By: Marc Schoelermann
Written By: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Genres: Mystery & Suspense, Drama

In Theaters: Apr 18, 2008 Wide
On DVD: Sep 23, 2008
Studio: MGM

Critic Reviews

Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times
Gleefully brimming with body parts and bad behavior, Pathology is a fun piece of flamboyant tastelessness.
Peter Debruge, Variety
Like its characters, the pic is too clever for its own good, allowing the meticulously researched scenario to be undone by implausible behavior and gaping plot holes.
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
A particularly nasty slice of medical-themed horror, Marc Scholermann's film is the sort of thriller in which the tenderest scene depicts an autopsy.
Sandy MacDonald, Boston Globe
Even squeamish viewers are apt to be captivated by the tight, credible scripting; these 20-somethings talk and behave like today's irony-clad young sophisticates. And whatever your opinion of the subject matter, you can't fault the filmmaking.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...a sporadically compelling yet hopelessly inconsequential piece of work.
Lucius Gore, ESplatter
To put things into perspective, the campier "Saw" films are all better -- and more clever ...
Jules Brenner, Cinema Signals
Comes off as a semi-absurd variant of the horror mystique cheating the potentials of impeccable production values.
Pete Hammond, Boxoffice Magazine
Existing somewhere in a world between Flatliners, Saw and Last Tango in Paris, this oversexed, over the top, underwritten medical horror flick won't come anywhere near the success of those films.
Frank Lovece, Film Journal International
As dull as a conversation with a corpse.
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Cinematical
It's as if [director] Schoelermann and screenwriters Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had more of a concept than a concrete idea.
Scott Tobias, AV Club
Much like Crank, it's the guiltiest of guilty pleasures.
Scott Weinberg, FEARnet
Not exactly a great movie, but it's sick, slick, and strange enough to warrant a 90-minute look.
Luke Y. Thompson, OC Weekly
When a movie opens with the diner scene from When Harry Met Sally as performed by cadavers, and later proceeds to sex scenes involving scalpels and needles, the actual plot becomes inconsequential.
Frank Swietek, One Guy's Opinion
An inordinately sleazy medical thriller operating on the erroneous belief that the combination of hot sex and cold corpses constitutes a real turn-on.
Peter Sobczynski, eFilmCritic.com
This is the film that should have been called "Coma"
Geoff Berkshire, Metromix.com
Slickly made but utterly gratuitous, this wannabe-edgy thriller was an odd choice for Ventimiglia to make during his first Heroes hiatus.
Brad Miska, Bloody Disgusting
If you are a hardcore fan of films like FLATLINERS, I guarantee that you'll dig this flick... PATHOLOGY is really a gem that doesn't deserve to be overlooked.
Todd Gilchrist, IGN Movies
One of the more effective and chilling thrillers released this year.

Read all 18 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Lee ?

A grim and morbidly twisted thriller about a group of medical students who partake in a sick game of "guess how they were killed" as each take turns to go out and murder a person in a complicated way to make it look like there was no foul play. It's gory and sexy but… More
A grim and morbidly twisted thriller about a group of medical students who partake in a sick game of "guess how they were killed" as each take turns to go out and murder a person in a complicated way to make it look like there was no foul play. It's gory and sexy but without being too sleazy so you can go onto this and watch in all seriousness and enjoy the ride. Not for the squeamish though.
Dead A

This was sick. Not boring but not entertaining either. I did felt curious to see what happens next. Does people really get used to a dead body that they can even eat while watching it? Not that the dead body was just lying there. It was cut! The special effects were eye-popping. It… More
This was sick. Not boring but not entertaining either. I did felt curious to see what happens next. Does people really get used to a dead body that they can even eat while watching it? Not that the dead body was just lying there. It was cut! The special effects were eye-popping. It looked so freaking real. The ending (in my opinion) was nice. And of course there were some (or many?) moments that will make you feel like you just bought/downloaded a porn movie. Jeez.....
Ginny

A conversation @ work about folks who deal with death as a profession 24/7 lead my co-worker suggesting this movie to me. Im just curious really about the mindset of people that deals with cadavers on a daily basis. --- Finally got to watch it. Twisted, dark & porny. lol!
Bruce B

This one had about the same theme that a lot of slasher movies seem to run with these days. Some College students who are going to be pathologist start a little club of there own and start killing people wanting the others to figure how they did it. 2 Stars
Crash E

just .... inhumanity
Nicki M

Started off pretty well - compelling viewing, if not actually well done, even if it was relying too much on graphic scenes for shock value, But all goes downhill in the second half. Anyone watching this to see Alyssa Milano will be disappointed - she is not in it until 50 minutes… More
Started off pretty well - compelling viewing, if not actually well done, even if it was relying too much on graphic scenes for shock value, But all goes downhill in the second half. Anyone watching this to see Alyssa Milano will be disappointed - she is not in it until 50 minutes in, and even then for only about 25 mintues. Lauren Lee Smith is very good, though.
Dean !

A pretty decent thriller if all a tad too obvious, not too mention just slightly bizarre?! Very gory, gruesome in places baring in mind the title. Ok for a watch once but far from great.
Luke B

Interesting idea which takes itself far too seriously. Characters are absolute aresholes, even without the whole killing thing they've got going on. The script makes a few feeble attempts at deep and philosophical conversations, but just comes off as a tad crap. A lot happens… More
Interesting idea which takes itself far too seriously. Characters are absolute aresholes, even without the whole killing thing they've got going on. The script makes a few feeble attempts at deep and philosophical conversations, but just comes off as a tad crap. A lot happens with little explanation and the ending turns into some kind of weird pissing contest. It's very well made, with flawless special effects creating gruesome but not graphic autopsy scenes. Certainly a fine watch with good performances.
Al S

A sick, twisted, disturbingly original and addictive edge of your seat thriller. A nerve-wrecking, suspenseful, smart and bone-chilling adreniline rush fuelled with gore and steamy sexuality. Milo Ventilimiglia is sensational.
Dean M

Good and the most chilling thriller of the year with Milo Ventimiglia and sexy Lauren Lee Smith. There's all the requisite autopsy and analomy class mayhem, plus ample sex, in this high concept, R-rated thriller that plays like the aforementioned Anatomie meets… More
Good and the most chilling thriller of the year with Milo Ventimiglia and sexy Lauren Lee Smith. There's all the requisite autopsy and analomy class mayhem, plus ample sex, in this high concept, R-rated thriller that plays like the aforementioned Anatomie meets Flatliners.
Steve K

Never boring but also never fully believable. Borrows ideas from several films but doesn't glom them together in a way that supports logic. Director has a good eye for visuals and did a decent job of getting performances for characters that were underwritten. Some potent gore… More
Never boring but also never fully believable. Borrows ideas from several films but doesn't glom them together in a way that supports logic. Director has a good eye for visuals and did a decent job of getting performances for characters that were underwritten. Some potent gore imagery. Worth a rental.
Curtis L

Woa. This movie made me have to go pray and pet kittens afterwards. Movies need to be careful not to make ALL the characters disgusting a-holes, or else you just don't give a crap. For example, when the main guy's life was falling down around him I cheerfully got up to… More
Woa. This movie made me have to go pray and pet kittens afterwards. Movies need to be careful not to make ALL the characters disgusting a-holes, or else you just don't give a crap. For example, when the main guy's life was falling down around him I cheerfully got up to get a drink instead of mourn his situation (as I am prone to do in movies). It was kinda like, "good you deserve it". Like O.J. Simpson. Anyways, this movie is a depraved nightmare.
Roy G

If you are a hardcore fan of films like FLATLINERS, I guarantee that you'll like this film... PATHOLOGY is really a gem that doesn't deserve to be overlooked.
Lorenzo v

This might be the most underrated, unappreciated horror film of the 21st Century. I thought it was very really superbly good. The script comes from the fantastic duo of Neveldine and Taylor who also brought us the adrenaline-on-screen flick Crank. If you saw Crank then you might… More
This might be the most underrated, unappreciated horror film of the 21st Century. I thought it was very really superbly good. The script comes from the fantastic duo of Neveldine and Taylor who also brought us the adrenaline-on-screen flick Crank. If you saw Crank then you might probably know its full of energy and loaded with man-aggression. Take that energy and aggression and make it into a horror film and you'll get Pathology. The ever present gore didn't feel like it was over the top and the interaction between the characters might feel a bit weird at first but then the character development establishes them as weird and freaky so yeah they were supposed to say and do things like that. The performance of lead Milo Ventimiglia is passable. If I were to give him a grade I'd probably settle with B. His character here is pretty much the same with his character in the TV show Heroes. A dark, creepy and ominous character who at first might seem pretty shallow but deep down, horrid and morbid thoughts lies at the darkest pits of his loins. On the other hand though, the yang (or yin, whatever) to Milo's Ted Grey therein lies Dr. Jake Gallo, freakishly portrayed by Michael Weston who I'm pretty sure I've seen in a couple of Zach Braff romantic flicks. His performance is so superbly done it reminds me of some creepy guy that Christian Bale portrayed sometime ago. It was creepy, morbid, horrid, scary, spooky, fantastic, amazing, surprising and the list of all the awesome adjectives goes here. Its a pity it didn't get recognized by the movie-going audience. I salute Michael Weston for doing a complete 180 from cheeky Zach Braff love stories to this. A ghastly tale of murder, lust and corpses. Pathology is an A++ 100%. the ultimate thriller experience. You must go see it now. 5/5
Jani H

"Doctors, let's have a look inside" A group of twisted pathologists start a dangerous game that ends in horrific results. Basically it has an interesting story but it's over the top realization and annoying characters, who act lousy as well, makes this a… More
"Doctors, let's have a look inside" A group of twisted pathologists start a dangerous game that ends in horrific results. Basically it has an interesting story but it's over the top realization and annoying characters, who act lousy as well, makes this a failure. With a more talented director and screenwriter, this could have become something better. Gotta give an "A" for the last minutes though...
Brian D

Sylish thriller with some nice gore to touch.Move along at a stady pace but lack a bit in the middle.Nice ending too which make me give this 4 stars.
Candy R

Good story line and cast. A group of pathologists devise a game where they take it in turn to murder people and make their friends guess how the victim was murdered. Ted (Milo) starts off as the good guy but very quickly gives in to peer pressure, which is disappointing in his instant… More
Good story line and cast. A group of pathologists devise a game where they take it in turn to murder people and make their friends guess how the victim was murdered. Ted (Milo) starts off as the good guy but very quickly gives in to peer pressure, which is disappointing in his instant change of character. Moreover, the autopsy on Gwen is not convincing, that Ted could be so unemotional. The poster is a lot scarier than the movie is. This movie reminds me of 'Flatliners' were medical students use their knowledge to push moral and physical boundaries.
Jacob P

A very interesting horror flick with an outstanding amount of blood and gore. A very interesting story.
Ed Fucking H

Meh. I'm pretty indifferent about this one. Some of the performances were pretty good, had an okay concept, autopsy scenes were pretty good, without getting overly graphic. Also has pretty much no likeable charcters, generic dialouge, and overly predictable outcome. Really you… More
Meh. I'm pretty indifferent about this one. Some of the performances were pretty good, had an okay concept, autopsy scenes were pretty good, without getting overly graphic. Also has pretty much no likeable charcters, generic dialouge, and overly predictable outcome. Really you could take or leave this one. Not the worst movie I've seen in the past week, but far from the best. Probably won't remember seeing it a year from now (or a week from now for that matter.) Does feature a very brief cameo from Keith Morris of Black Flag / Circle Jerks fame, but if you blink you'll miss him, and that really shouldn't be the reason you watch this anyways.
FanGirl B

I got about half an hour in and thought to myself 'Maybe I should just give up on this film' what a shame I didn't take my own advice. Actually felt guilty for having watched the whole thing when I finished and not in good way. This film is without a single redeeming… More
I got about half an hour in and thought to myself 'Maybe I should just give up on this film' what a shame I didn't take my own advice. Actually felt guilty for having watched the whole thing when I finished and not in good way. This film is without a single redeeming quality. No matter how mych you like any of the actors or the the concept SKIP this film! Seriously do yourself a favor and don't watch it - it's just ishy.