Autopsy: Through the Eyes of Death's Detectives, the version I saw also had the on screen subtitle 'Voices of Death', sees pathologist Dr. Thomas T. Noguchi M.D. who was apparently responsible for autopsy's on Marilyn Monroe & Robert F. Kennedy according to the DVD box I have & two assistant's or two students or one assistant & one students conduct an autopsy in unflinching detail. First the body of a woman is placed on a metal table & a basic examination of the body takes place, the corpses face & genital area are both blurred throughout. Noguchi takes a scalpel & cuts the corpses chest & stomach & peels the skin back, he then uses what looks like a pair of garden clippers to cut through the ribs after which he removes the sternum which exposes the main organs. Noguchi then proceeds to cut out & examine in closer detail the heart, lungs, liver, intestines, brain & finally the spine & spinal cord. One of the assistant's/students then sews her back together again & pops her back in the freezer. This made-for-video documentary was co-produced & directed by Michael Kriegsman & according to the IMDb has the tag-line 'The Dark Side of Medicine' & the DVD I own features artwork that depicts two surgical saws set against a blood soaked background which leads me to think that it is being advertised as a Faces of Death (1979) style exploitation shockumentary. Well, I can tell you now that this was intended as a serious documentary as it's full of dry medical terminology & facts. There is no narration, no music, neither Noguchi or his students/assistants are introduced & feels more like a medical training video. No explanation is given for any of the medical jargon or what's happening on screen & as I'm not involved with the medical profession at all I found myself becoming lost & losing interest. One other thing I really need to say in this regard is that Noguchi obviously isn't American or a native English speaker, he mumbles often in broken English in his accent behind a surgical mask which makes the problem even worse! I could barely understand a word he was saying & couple this with the constant bewildering medical phrases I found it incredibly frustrating to listen to & try to understand. The autopsy itself is presented with graphic detail & only those with strong stomachs need apply, the scene where he slices her scalp & saws her cranium to expose her brain is pretty hard to watch. That's about it really, you get an autopsy complete with live sound as it happens until it's over & then the credits run. There is no context given to anything, it's what you see is what you get. I can't say I particularly enjoyed it but at the same time there is a certain morbid fascination & I definitely have the stomach for this sort of thing which helps. It's fine at what it does but the lack of any explanation, questions, narration or reasoning leaves a very empty somewhat pointless feeling to the whole thing. Could have been better but does what it promises I suppose, worth a watch for those with the stomach.
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