Just so...so bad

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

I liked this film. I have seen the first one too and unlike what others have said, I don't think it mattered that much, I still enjoyed both. The worst scenes are not as scary or shocking as I had expected, still, on a par with the first movie so you won't be disappointed! I didn't find the film slow at all, the story was actually quite interesting and filmed with such a macabre/melancholy atmosphere that it worked well. Pity the English dubbed version I watched would have taken away the atmosphere from hearing the original audio track and dialogue. Still, it managed to convey the feeling. I am now going to get the third one and I expect it to be worse than either of the first two as there are only so many ways of telling the same story right...?

LABORATORY OF THE DEVIL is basically just a re-hashed and more exploitative re-telling of the original MEN BEHIND THE SUN FILM - obviously created to cash-in on that films success while putting forth a minimum of originality. That's not to say that I hated the film - on the contrary, I found it relatively enjoyable, it's just nothing you haven't seen if you've seen the original.In LABORATORY OF THE DEVIL, we get the same "historic" content of the Japanese using mainly Chinese, Koreans, and Russians as guinea-pigs for chemical warfare during WWII. The main difference between this film and MEN BEHIND THE SUN, is that it's told from the point-of-view of a soldier who is forced to work in the camps and we see his obvious guilt and disagreement with the atrocities portrayed. There's also a romantic side-plot regarding the fiancée he left at home during the war...Those that hate this film are justified. The acting is often wooden, the English dubbing (as there's no subtitle option) is laughable, there are a few moments of "humor" injected into the film that are completely unnecessary, etc...As to the good points, though the film is every bit as exploitive as MBTS (if not moreso...), the general information on Unit 731 is still portrayed and is relatively accurate. For those interested in this one only for the gore/torture scenes - they're in this one as well. A couple of real autopsy scenes (one "live" one that looks suspectly authentic) and a few of the original tortures from MBTS are recreated in this film. Basically, LABORATORY OF THE DEVIL treads no new ground that wasn't already handled better in MEN, but if you enjoyed the first one and haven't seen it in a while, give this one a look and you may dig it. I definitely DO NOT recommend watching the original and then watching this one back-to-back - it's essentially much like watching the same film twice and I'm sure will be tedious to the viewer. But on it's own merits, LABORATORY is a relatively decent "historical-exploiter" that may be of interest to fans of the original film...7/10

Watched the original Men Behind the Sun, and then this sequel. This was English dubbed though. Cantonese version may have been way better. Anyway, from the 1st 2 minutes I felt this is some awkward attempt to ride on the "success" of the first movie.Story about Japanese biological weapons development with some off-topic (maybe I missed something?) autopsies. Some shots are clearly ripped from the first one, like the liquid nitrogen demonstrations and when the leader dude stands in front of the japan flag & his "army". If you haven't seen the original movie, you may like this, anyway I was so much disappointed I recommend watching "Men Behind the Sun" or even "Mermaid in a Manhole" instead, and skip this one.

He nailed this movie right on the head...I agree with everything he says. I found this movie at the Cleveland Public Library's audiovisual department,and being a lover of foreign horror films,I had to see it. I wound up fast-forwarding past all the talking and watching the nasty bits,which are laughable beyond belief. Of course,if you're not a nutcase like me,this movie may sicken you,but the special effects aren't quite special enough to even do that...