So there is a movie called Holy Shit! (Ach du Scheisse!) and it is a comedy-mystery thriller that takes place in a porta-potty. Sounds completely ridiculous and full of crappy jokes right? It is sure to be full of nothing but low-hanging fruit poop jokes and hardly anything else of substance. Well, hold on to your butts folks because this is a film with a clever plot and fantastic cinematography. and genuinely cleaver toilet humor. From the slow reveal of the mystery to the ever-growing tension as our protagonist begins to run out of time is all incredible.

In a painful daze, Frank begins to regain consciousness where is he, how did he get here, and what is that horrible smell? All questions that he can’t remember the answers to, but they will have to take a back seat to the pain in his arm that appears to be a piece of rebar that has not impaled his are but seriously impaired his movement in his smelly prison.  As he slowly begins to piece together the mystery of how he got into this situation he makes two startling revelations, his porta-potty is located in a construction area, and he is in the middle of a zone set for demolition via explosives. So it is a race against time to escape the pit his toilet has fallen into or risk dying in this shit hole.

Poop puns aside what is truly impressive is how well Holy Shit! takes the mystery of the film and delivers new information in such a satisfying way. From the beginning, it comes across as a simple mystery to solve by a man who is in a dire situation and can’t remember how he got there. That is before the ticking clock is introduced of the active demolition zone which takes the stakes to the next level as even more information is gathered and the revelations behind his situation become more apparent.

Single location movies can be difficult in the sense that if the location doesn’t feel fully utilized or simply isn’t interesting then it going to be a struggle to keep the audience engaged. The beauty of it though is not only from a budgetary standpoint but it is a time where actors and really how their chops and Holy Shit! finds a way to not only show off the performances but explore a porta-potty in more ways than you could have ever imagined. The lead performance by Thomas Niehaus perfectly captures the comedic as well as the thriller aspects of the plot. On top of the wonderful acting, the story takes the audience through every inch of that porta-potty and is constantly finishing new ways to use the space in so many fascinating and interesting ways.

Holy Shit! is really one of those films that on paper it sounds like it shouldn’t work or at the very least will not fully realize its own concept but it is incredibly well-executed, acted, and just a surprisingly fun experience all around, I am not shitting you.

8 out of 10