Have to preface this by saying I have a very morbid curiosity when it comes to horror or psychological films. They are by far my favorite genre of films. So with that said here is my review on Martyrs a French horror film.
HORROR CONTENT: Very disturbing images of previous victims or subjects of reaching martyrdom,” the creature” scenes were very intense and effective in making me feel scared and wonder what it would do next to Lucie and when it would stop. Super intense scene of when Lucie shoots and kills an entire family with hardly any hesitation. Suspense lasts only until Anna is captured and her abuse then occurs. The skinned body of Anna’s at the end is truly disturbing and left a very bitter taste in my mouth for days.
PLOT: A young disturbed lady (Lucie) seeks revenge for her abusers attacks on her. The first scene opens with her running with only underwear on, shaved head, and bloodied scratches all over her body. She is running frantically from her abductors and is able to escape and is placed into a mental health facility. There she meets her best friend Anna and enlists the aid of her later on after she shoots to death the family she thinks abused her. Conflicts arise very quickly after the shooting occurs of said family. This psychological thriller starts off intense and remains this way until the bitter tragic conclusion. Lots of gruesome and horrifying discoveries are made throughout this film by Anna.
Characters: Lucie – Mylene Jampanoi is the one of the main characters as the girl who is abused and escapes her captors. She is highly emotionally disturbed (rightly so), hallucinatory, and plays her intensity and anxiety very effectively. You immediately feel lots of emotions toward her character. Lucie is very disheveled and chaotic in her actions that are feed by her seemingly demon like lady that is controlling her and telling her to kill her captors. She is desperate in finding peace that she kills in order to get it.
Anna – Morjana Alaoui is Lucie’s best friend and possible lover. She is highly loyal and protective of Lucie, plus compassionate towards others. They have a very special bond with each other. Anna is more level headed in her actions towards stress and is willing to do whatever it takes to alleviate Lucie’s sufferings.
Mademoiselle – Catherine Begin who is the master of puppet player in all things martyrdom. She has been the head of a study for 17 years in order to find the answer of what you “might” see during a near death experience. She condones and has her “team” carry out intense abuse tactics in order to where down her “subject”. She looks very creepy and matronly for she is a woman of older age who knows all too well of her mortality and wants to know if there is life after death.
Her “Team” – Robert Toupin as Le pere Anna’s abuser and Patricia Tulasne as La mere as the assistant to Le pere. Le pere is a very tall muscular man who is middle aged and does his bidding for Mademoiselle. He is very effective in his actions in beating Anna and breaking her will physically and mentally. La mere is the lady who feeds, bathes and actually seems to care a bit for Anna at the end before her last stage to martyrdom.
The creature – Isabelle Chasse is Lucie’s hallucination come to life and feeds into Lucie’s imagination. This “creature” is highly creepy and can contort her body in any shape she wants to. Her appearance is one of an exposed disheveled wild animal that moves very quickly and inflicts much pain onto Lucie. I could not tell if she was real or not to Lucie until later on in the film.
SETTINGS: old factory, a modest unassuming home in the woods, long ladders that extend out to the basement where tortures chambers occur.
SCORE: Seppuku Paradigm – the score is not really noticeable or note worthy until the very end.
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Lighting perfect to each scene. Camera angles done well at emphasizing emotion in the characters faces, otherwise not much else to mention. The special effects behind “the creature” were well done.
EDITING: Seemed to be lots of breaks between scenes, but nothing to upset the continuity of the film.
HORROR CONTENT: Very disturbing images of previous victims or subjects of reaching martyrdom,” the creature” scenes were very intense and effective in making me feel scared and wonder what it would do next to Lucie and when it would stop. Super intense scene of when Lucie shoots and kills an entire family with hardly any hesitation. Suspense lasts only until Anna is captured and her abuse then occurs. The skinned body of Anna’s at the end is truly disturbing and left a very bitter taste in my mouth for days.
THEMES: Child abuse brought on by extreme physical and emotional trauma brought on by repeated abuse. Insanity. Revenge.
REVIEW SUMMARY: This film left me feeling contempt against Mademoiselle in her quest for using innocent people because of her obsession of needing to know if there is an afterlife. Her selfishness is monumental and she is without any morals to me. I felt much sorrow for Lucie and Anna in their complete and utter suffering for another’s “cause” and that they had no choice in their abuse. In the end, Mademoiselle received the “answer” about the afterlife from Anna which she leads her to end her own life, because Mademoiselle wants to be in that much sought afterlife no matter the cost to others.
RATING: 7/10
REVIEW SUMMARY: This film left me feeling contempt against Mademoiselle in her quest for using innocent people because of her obsession of needing to know if there is an afterlife. Her selfishness is monumental and she is without any morals to me. I felt much sorrow for Lucie and Anna in their complete and utter suffering for another’s “cause” and that they had no choice in their abuse. In the end, Mademoiselle received the “answer” about the afterlife from Anna which she leads her to end her own life, because Mademoiselle wants to be in that much sought afterlife no matter the cost to others.
RATING: 7/10
