"That's a nice-a donut."
Thursday, May 04, 2006
High Tension (2003)
It's rather perplexing that Lions Gate managed to botch the U.S. theatrical release of French horror thriller High Tension so badly. In case you don't recall (and judging by the horrendous box office, you surely don't), most of the movie was poorly dubbed into English, was edited down for an R rating, and the marketing wasn't handled well at all. It's a real shame because director Alexandre Aja's movie is one of the purest and best horror movies in years. However LG has since seen fit to rectify its mistake and earlier this year released a fine DVD that includes both the English dubbing and the original French language tracks.
The movie opens with a dream. Marie (Cecile De France) is bloodied and being chased by a madman. It is an ominous and very cryptic opening, but she awakes and we then follow her and Alex (Maiwenn Le Besco) - two law students headed to Alex's family's farmhouse for the weekend to study. They arrive late at night and are only there for a very short time, after settling into bed, when the insanity begins. A crazed bloodthirsty killer (Philippe Nahon) arrives at the house and immediately starts murdering Alex's family. And with very gruesome and violent methods. He captures Alex and ties her up and the rest of the movie is a creepy mad dash, with Marie on the chase trying to save her.
The film is marred some by a very puzzling ending. It's obviously not an entirely original idea, but it will likely have you scratching your head quite a bit. I mean, it ends up turning much of what we have previously seen on its head. In a way, Aja's twist is a cop-out. Many people will be disappointed by it, and I was at first too. That said, it doesn't ruin the movie; it's wild enough that it will encourage repeat viewings and much discussion and reminiscence. In fact, after much thought I'm not sure the movie would have quite been as memorable if it had a more conventional finish.
Aja does make good on the promise of the title. Once the scary music and, soon enough, the blood-curdling deaths begin, it is an emotionally tense thriller that calls to mind many of the great horror films. There are only very brief pauses in the action here and there. De France is masterful as Marie - coupled with the other fine pieces such as the direction, editing, and intense music, we are living her nightmare right with her. A bathroom hiding scene rivals the brilliant scene in Peter Weir's Witness. There is plenty of violence, and some of it is a tad gory, but not overtly so and it didn't need to be either; the atmosphere and high tension are more than enough. It's almost everything you want in a true horror movie.
The Verdict: B+.
Michael Bentley 1:31 PM
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