À l'intérieur (Inside) 2007

From time to time a film comes along that absolutely disturbs you while at the same time completely enthralls you. Pascal Laugiers Martyrs was the last film to do this to me, and now Inside or À l'intérieur in its native tongue has come along and done exactly the same.

The plot, which has been stripped down to its bare bones for maximum effect, tells of Sarah (Alysson Paradis) a heavily pregnant woman, who at the beginning of the film loses her husband and is herself injured in a serious car accident. Four months on and very near the end of her term, Sarah spends Christmas eve alone at home. In the middle of the night the doorbell rings and a strange woman (Beatrice Dalle) is at the front door demanding that Sarah let her in. While really not wanting to give much more of the plot away lets just say the stranger at the door makes her way into the house and Sarah must fight relentlessly to keep both herself and her unborn child alive.

With just about all of the film set within the confines of Sarahs home, one would think the film could run out of steam quite early on. This, however, could not be further from the truth. Directors Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury get more out of their claustrophobic setting than I thought was possible. The dim lighting and many dark corners of the house are all used to magnificent effect. This also gives the viewer an almost dream like visual throughout the film which again works very well in creating an absolutely terrifying atmosphere.

The directors also pull no punches when it comes to the levels of violence that are used. There are someone genuinely gory moments in Inside, but in my opinion the violence is never over the top and the graphic effects employed are visually stunning. The two actresses at the centre of Inside are both fantastic. Alysson Paradiss performance as the heavily pregnant Sarah is completely believable and the horror she is going through is portrayed with immense power. Beatrice Dalle, possibly best known from Betty Blue, is totally unrecognisable as the deranged stranger. Her performance is terrifying but there is also a vulnerability and almost sadness about her character that Dalle masterfully blends together.

Inside is a punishing film and I was definitely feeling its effects as the end credits rolled. Saying this, I cannot recommend Inside highly enough. It is a beautifully crafted, original film with outstanding performances and will stay with you for some time after.

Frontière(s) 2007

Even wondered what could happen if, while on the run after a failed robbery, you seek refuge in a seedy motel in the middle of nowhere and it turns out the motels owners are a family of neo nazi cannibals. No? Well writer director Xavier Gens has, and his film Frontière(s) delves into this scenario.

Set in the not too distant future, with France on the verge of electing an extreme right wing president, riots are charring the slums of Paris. Seizing their opportunity a small gang rob a bank and shoot their way out of the ghetto. Seeking somewhere to hide out the gang stumble across a small motel hidden away in the countryside. Its owners (the above mentioned neo nazi cannibals) happily check in their new guests and soon the Parisian thieves find checking out from the motel a lot more difficult.

Director Gens serves up an adrenaline pumped survival dash of a movie, which certainly owes a debt to American slasher films such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre among many others. Frontière(s)knowingly recycles the various horror cliches - an exploding head, bodies on meat hooks and enough blood to fill an Olympic sized swimming pool, but Gens gives the viewer something that seems quite fresh.

As with other French horror films of the last few years such as Martyrs and Haute Tension, it is a strong female performance that stands out in Frontière(s). Karina Testas's portrayal of Yasmine is excellent, and she is definitely an actress to watch out for in the future. The families dear old demented dad (an unnerving Jean-Pierre Jorris) is another highlight.

Visually Frontière(s) is first rate and while sometimes its disturbing brutality is downright nasty, even a little cartoonish, if your stomach can handle it, this is certainly one ride recommended to take.

Martyrs 2008

Martyrs became the most talked about and divisive movie at the Cannes Film Festival of 2008. Although it wasn't entered in any of the competitive categories and only screened twice, it quickly became the hottest topic of every conversation. Fans of the film absolutely loved it and those who hated Martyrs saw it as a degrading new low in film making. Being a fan I would completely disagree with these opinions and see Martyrs as a breath of fresh air in a genre of film that has become stale and repetitive.

The film opens with a young girl, scared and disorientated, running away from a seemingly disused warehouse. The girl, Lucie (Mylene Jampanoi) is then placed in an orphanage where she forms a close bond with Anna (Morjana Alaoui).

Jumping forward fifteen years we see Anna and Lucie arrive at a families home with a loaded shotgun seeking revenge for what Lucie had suffered in the warehouse.

I really don't want to reveal anymore of the plot as I believe it would ruin it for future viewers. Let me just say that the first half of the film is incredibly brutal and violent, what could be seen as the second act, while absolutely harrowing, becomes in some way oddly spiritual.

With Martyrs I feel director Pascal Laugier has created a work that while thoroughly uncompromising and disturbing, is also extremely thought provoking and beautiful. The two lead actresses Jampanoi and Alaoui are excellent, both providing strong, believable performances.While Laugier's direction of the film is masterful. Martyrs is, in my opinion, one of the best horror films of the last ten years and clearly shows that today's French horror is pushing boundaries while Hollywood sticks to the safe, routine option.

Upcoming French Horror releases...

The following French horror movies are due to the released in the coming months. Click the links below to see the trailers or info about the film:

Mutants

La Horde (The Horde)

Dans Ton Sommeil (In their Sleep)

In the Shadow

La Meute (The Pack)

Lady Blood

Le village des ombres (The village of shadows)

Stranded

Ils (Them) 2006

Except for a very creepy opening scene, where a mother and daughter break down on an isolated, dark road, Ils concentrates on just two characters Clementine (Olivia Bonamy) and Lucas (Michael Cohen). Teaching at a school in Bucharest they live in an old house in a remote forest outside the city. The plot centres on one quiet night where, after returning home, the couple become terrorized by an unknown presence - Ils (Them). It begins with a late night phone call where all that be heard on the other end is an eerie scratching noise. Clementines car is then driven away seemingly of its own accord, leaving the couple helpless in their isolated surroundings. After the power is cut and the house plunged into darkness, the couple are left to struggle against unseen enemies who seem intent on causing them harm.

What I found brilliant about this film is the way that suspense is created from very little - a flickering light, a creaking floorboard and how the audiences imagination is called on to fill in the blanks. The directors David Moreau and Xavier Palud are very good at what they do and successfully create and sustain an extremely tense and claustrophobic atmosphere throughout the entire film.

This film has obviously created something different, and this is evident in how Ils has inspired such films as 'Eden Lake' and 'The Strangers' which have serious similarities to Moreau and Paluds picture. A friend of mine reckons Ils is the most unnerving film he has ever seen and while I might not go that far it is still a masterclass in suspense and comes highly recommended.

Sheitan (Satan) 2006

When are young people going to learn that the French countryside is not as peaceful and idyllic as they might believe. As with Alexandre Ajas Haute Tension, Kim Chapirons film 'Sheitan' shows us another side to the French landscape, this time giving us an inbred psychotic hillbilly village not too welcoming to visiting outsiders.

The set up of the film is pretty standard, on Christmas Eve three young men hit the clubs and bars looking for some fun. After getting involved in an altercation at one of the clubs, the guys are kicked out. Then then stumble across two girls, one of whom Eve (Roxanne Mesquida) invites them all back to her house in the country to continue the party.

On arrival at Eves village the boys are introduced to Joseph (Vincent Cassel)and some of the villages other colourful characters, and their night slowly begins to take a terrifying but oddly humorous downward spiral into chaos. It is only when they get to Eves house, a crumbling old mansion eerily inhabited by a huge collection of dolls, that Josephs real plans for the three men are unveiled.

First time feature director Chapiron handles the direction like a seasoned pro, using the setting of the dilapidated mansion to its fullest effect. The performances all round are strong, but it is Cassels performance as Joseph that absolutely steals every scene he is in. It is a performance from an actor who is certainly on top of his game. I find it hard to take anything away from Chapirons film, which is very original in its oddness but, if I had to say something negative, it would be that the plot may just be too odd. A number of times throughout the film I found myself thinking "that just didn't make any sense". This said, Sheitan is a very enjoyable, darkly disturbing film and for Cassels demonic performance (excuse the pun) it is well worth checking out.

Calvaire (The Ordeal) 2004

Calvaire, which could be seen as a strange bedfellow for Kim Chapiron's "Sheitan", again delves into the village in the middle of nowhere overrun by psychotic hillbillies scenario.

This time, we see Marc Stevens (Laurent Lucas) a lounge singer at the wrong end of his career traveling from small town to small town playing gigs at nursing homes. After a bizarre performance at one of these homes, Stevens sets off in his van to keep a prior engagement, a Christmas gala a few hundred miles away. He soon finds himself lost on a remote woodland road at nightfall as a thunderstorm closes in, and of course his van breaks down. However help is at hand in the form of Boris (Jean-Luc Conchard) who is out searching from his lost dog. Boris convinces Stevens to accompany him to a nearby inn so he can take shelter and find someone to fix his van, huge mistake.

Stevens is greeted at the inn by its owner Mr Bartel (Jackie Berroyer) and after a while both men bond over the fact that they are entertainers, Bartel used to perform stand-up comedy. As Bartel shows him around the village, it doesn't take Stevens long to realise that things are not quite right with the locals and soon finds himself in a bloody game of cat and mouse with the villages unhinged inhabitants.

Director Fabrice Du Welzs use of shaky camera work and naturally lit locations works well and with little in the way of a soundtrack, the viewer is quickly drawn into the sense of impending dread. I find it also gives the film quite an edgy feel, and captures a palpable sense of claustrophobia. The films location also adds to the feeling that something really bad is going to happen with director Du Welz using the dark forests of Belgiums Fagnes region to excellent effect.

The performances too are all excellent, Laurent Lucas's portrayal of Mark Stevens is captivating, you are never sure if you actually like the singer or just feel extremely sorry for him. My favourite performance however is French comedians Jackie Berroyer, who slips into the role of Mr Bartel with unnerving ease.

Calvaire is definitely not for the faint hearted, prompting several walkouts when it was screened at Cannes in 2004 and contains shocking scenes including bestiality, crucifixion and male rape. However I think if you can sit through Mr Du Welzs debut film, you might find that while it is shocking and at times very brutal, it is ultimately a film about love and loneliness.