Some works of art are disturbing in a profound and moving way, while others are just unsettling, eliciting feelings of revulsion more than anything else. “Jerk,” directed by Gisèle Vienne and performed by Johnathan Capdevielle, falls into the latter category. This one-man puppet show presents horrific subject matter in a novel way, but ultimately ends up turning us off more than drawing us in.

Adapted from a story by Dennis Cooper, “Jerk” is based on the real-life Houston Mass Murders, where Dean Corll raped, tortured and murdered at least 28 boys in the early 1970’s. The premise of the show is that one of his accomplices, David Brooks, has learned puppetry while in prison, and is now recounting part of his gruesome story with the aid of hand puppets. Capdevielle, playing Brooks, wears two grungy puppets on his hands representing Corll and another accomplice. Various other puppets lay strewn at his feet, stand-ins for their victims.

SEE ALSO: Radar L.A. Review: 'Track 3' at LATC

Over the next half hour, practically every sadistic sexual and violent act imaginable is perpetrated by and upon these puppets. At first this is intriguing, as the horror of what is being depicted is met by the absurdist humor of Capdevielle smashing his puppet-sheathed fists against one another. This gimmick quickly grows tired however, as the audience is given no reason to care for the characters, except to pity the victims who are not fully realized.

In the second half of the show, the cavalcade of depravity continues, except Capdevielle uses only puppet-less ventriloquism to tell the rest of the story, performing multiple roles with his mouth essentially closed. This feat, while impressive, failed to compel, in part because Capdevielle’s heavy French accent and pursed lips made it doubly hard to understand him.

SEE ALSO: Radar L.A. Review: “Se Rompen Las Olas"

The size of the theater, although not large, also prevents the kind of intimate experience that this material needs. Capdevielle and his puppets seem lost on the wide stage, their impact waning with each receding row of seats.

Another especially gratuitous element is a “fanzine” passed out at the beginning of the show that the audience is instructed to read at specific times. This not only disrupts any connection established between audience and performer, but it comes off as tastelessly provocative.

Despite the limitations of the production, Capdevielle should be given credit for the intensity of his performance. Overall however, “Jerk” failed to evoke real emotion as much as it inspired a feeling of loathsome exhaustion.

“Jerk” played through September 29 at MOCA (250 South Grand Avenue in Downtown, Los Angeles). For more information, visit REDCAT.org.

More coverage of Radar L.A. Festival 2013 can be found here.

Contact Contributing Writer Matt here or follow him on Twitter here.