Martyrs

 

Date Of Release: May 2008 (Cannes) and 3rd September 2008 (France)

Director: Pascal Laugler

Producer: Richard Grandpierre & Simon Trottier

Starring: Morjana Alaoui, Mylene Jampanoi

Running Time: 94 minutes

Distributor: Canal Horizons

Review

This film is one of the many of a wave of new French extremity movies. This was one of the first in that genre that I watched and it is the movie that got me hooked on it too. The film has a very simple premise, they are a secret society that are trying to make someone into a martyr so that they can learn the secrets of the afterlife. In some countries, this was a very controversial plotline. When you watch the film you can see why it may ruffle a few feathers!

What I love about this film most is that it doesn't fuck around. The plot is brilliant and the story moves at a fast pace. The 2 main actresses are brilliant in their roles also. The passion and emotion that they portray is certainly worthy of an Oscar in my opinion. The look and feel of the film is very gritty. You could not blame someone for almost confusing it with a supernatural horror in some places. There are no over dramatics and out of place special effects. The film is just perfect in every way.

I don't want to give too much about this film away, it really is something you have to see for yourself. My favourite scene is the ending where Mademoiselle asks Anna what it is that she sees. It is a subtle warning to many people out there that the answer is best not knowing until it is your time to find out. A lot of scenes in this are extremely brutal and you really feel for the main character. You go from anger to sadness to relief. That is what I call the sign of a good movie.

You can imagine how much it annoyed me however, when I found out that the film is in the process of being remade for American audiences. Some films should not be touched and I am beyond pissed off about it. To make matters worse, the producers of twilight are the ones that are over seeing the project. I shall be expecting sparkly martyrs then...

Rating: 10/10 - You should own this movie no martyr what!!

 

　

Nosferatu (1922)

Date Of Release: 4^th March 1922

Director: F.W. Murnau

Producer: Enrico Dieckmann & Albin Grau

Starring: Max Schreck, Gustav von Wangenheim, Greta Schroder, Alexander Granach, Ruth Landshoff, Wolfgang Heinz  

Running Time: 94 minutes

Distributor: Film Arts Guild

Review
 

This iconic German horror movie was an unauthorised adaption of Bram Stokers Dracula. The studio was not able to obtain any rights to the novel so names, places and other little details had to be changed. Count Dracula became known as Count Orlok and a Vampire became known as the Nosferatu. Despite this and all of the legal battles that went with it, it not only became one of the first vampire movies, but developed an enormous cult following that kept it alive as one of the most popular horror movies ever.

What many people from our generation don’t realise is that, the film is a silent film in the sense that it has no speaking parts whatsoever. There is music that helps to set the scene and written dialogue to help you with what is going on in the story. This unfortunately, puts a lot of people of, and in turn, the film is not given a chance and brushed to the side as boring. For those who do give the film a chance however, are not disappointed. The scenery is amazing. They were shot in various places in Slovakia. The film had a whole dark romanticism to it, making it very appealing for horror fans.

One of the most iconic scenes in the film is where you see the shadow of Count Orlok ascending a stair case with his arms almost stretched out. Scenes like this may not scare today’s audiences but back then, it would have certainly caused a few sleepless nights. This image of this devil like creature, breaking into an innocent persons home to feed upon them had many people in hysterics. The vampire myth was almost being relived again.

This is the only film of its kind. If I’m being honest, I could not watch another film made in this way. I unfortunately have grown up in a society that likes noise! This film however has stayed with me ever since I first watched it, due to the fact that it used to scare me but now that I can appreciate its beauty. This film has managed to stand the test of time and I’m pretty sure that it will continue to do so.

Rating: 9/10 – If this film is Nos-fer-you then I suggest you give it another try!