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As a movie reviewer, I have always held onto the theory that every film has an audience somewhere. Not every film can have a Star Wars sized cult following that spawns infinite amounts of memorabilia sales and conventions. But I believe that with the amount of people in this country (303 million, according to the Census Bureau) that there is no reason why a movie like Pathology can’t not only find an audience, but find some success in the process.

From the writing team that brought us Crank, Pathology follows Dr. Ted Grey, played by “Heroes” star Milo Ventimiglia, as he moves into a new hospital morgue to work alongside a bright young crew of pathologists. What he soon finds out is that there is more to his new group of co-workers than meets the eye, and that they are all caught up in the sick and twisted game of trying to commit the perfect murder. A reluctant participant, Grey finds himself eventually immersed in this disturbing new world filled with sex, drugs and dead bodies. But he soon realizes that if he doesn’t put a stop to the madness, he may put those he cares about most in harms way.

It is a simple premise, to say the least. In fact, the big draw here is not going to be a completely original and deeply engrossing story, but rather a little bit of shock factor courtesy of the twisted minds of Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the aforementioned Crank scribes. As we’ve seen in their previous work, Neveldine and Taylor have a penchant for the sexual and a severe lack of restraint when it comes to showing off some wicked imagery. Here, the sexuality is in full form thanks to the likes of Lauren Lee Smith and Alyssa Milano (who are both smoking hot) and the wicked imagery is courtesy of plenty of cadavers (which are fake, but you get the point). For their fanbase, those who relish in the shock trauma of anything from Crank to Saw to Hostel, Pathology delivers in spades.

As well, there are performances here that stand out above the rest, including that of Michael Weston. As Dr. Jake Gallo, the unofficial leader of the group of doctors who have gone overboard with pleasure killing, Weston is as insane a character as you may see all year. Having normally played more tame roles in films such as The Last Kiss and Garden State, it was quite a surprise to see Weston let loose with the fury of an Al Pacino at his peak — think Pacino in The Devil’s Advocate, seriously.

Unfortunately, Pathology cannot succeed on the great performance of Michael Weston and the shock-and-awe factor alone. It certainly could have used a better pace, and for lack of a better term, a few more snips and cuts in the editing room. There are moments down the home stretch of the film where the audience is left to sit through unnecessarily melodramatic moments. This unfortunately goes on the shoulders of director Marc Shoelermann, who is making his first major directorial effort with Pathology. My hope is that he is able to look back at the film and see where a few more edits could have been made in order to keep the tension rising in the film, so as to not make the same mistake again in the future.

All-in-all, Pathology is not a film that is going to break into the mainstream and find ferocious box office success, but it does play well for its limited audience. If you are the kind of person who went to see a midnight screening of Saw II on opening night after falling in love with the first Saw film, this movie is for you. If you are the type of moviegoer that loves to be shocked with gratuitous violence and raw sexual energy, this movie is right up your alley. Unfortunately, if you don’t fall into either of those categories, you may find yourself disappointed with it. To say the least, this isn’t a movie for all of the 15-year old female Milo Ventimiglia fans across the world — but if you’ve seen the trailer, you probably already know that. As movies go, Pathology isn’t the most engaging experience, but it will sure show you something you haven’t seen before, whether you like it or not.