Well I know how we all hate to read on the net, in fact it has been proved that it's harder to read than with books, so I will put this review backwards(ish) for all those with itchy mouse-wheels ...
It had been a while since I had heard about Haute Tension, to when I finally got to see it, and I was very impressed! It is a taut horrific thriller with buckets of blood and shocks that don't go for "cheese" because it can't pull off reality. Haute Tension is one of those films I am glad I didn't watch with other people. I am not a social film watcher, and this film is so involving that, to it's credit, and my irritation, it creates too many opportunities for the more vocal out there to shout, "don't go in there!", or "are you stupid?"! Fantastic film - well for the first 90% of it anyway. That is not to say that the last 10% is terrible - it isn't, it's great - but nearing the end, the film stumbled ever so slightly and I never truly recovered.
The last scene is still impactful, though, and the ride you take to get there is thoroughly rewarding and gripping. After buckets of blood, and several nail-biting scenes of mayhem, the film ended ... but rather abruptly. Maybe because I was so enthralled by this film, that didn't notice the passage of time, but I actually checked my watch at the end - this is indeed a short film at only 1 hour and 27 minutes.
The blood and gore was great, though I don't know if I am just desensitised, but was it all that extreme? From the hype, I had expected more, which led me online to see if I had watched a cut version. I looked at Beaver and Rewind and saw that the answer was no - it was full. Maybe I should take a break from horror films for a while. However, I guess that since this film aimed for a mainstream release, the general public was MUCH easier to shock than horror veterans.
I am a huge fan of horror, and I loved the visuals and sound for this film. It is a gorgeous film to behold, and it isn't marred by MTV editing, or cheap manipulations (though there are a few scare-standards in there, that I wish directors wouldn't use anymore, because we can see right through them!) The music is great, and besides the more fevered playing of the song by Muse, the soundtrack supports the film very well, rather than just providing more marketing options for CDs, which over the other side of the world, has too long been the "Hollowood" trend.
I won't go into the story, as I there are multitudes of resources online that will explain it all better, but it is interesting to see the reaction of viewers to this film. They are truly divided, some proclaim this film to be shear genius, and other's, derivative. All I can say is that apparently the film is a remake (or re-imagining?) of a Deen Koonzt novel turned 1997 TV miniseries called "Intensity" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118350/). At least this fact could help stem the claims that this film has copied in more ways than one from some other, lessor films.
Go and see it! Enjoy! Go in as BLIND as you can (not literally, as the soundtrack is more minimal than most). I mean, have no expectations, or prior knowledge as to the story, and you will be surprised by this gem of a film.
It had been a while since I had heard about Haute Tension, to when I finally got to see it, and I was very impressed! It is a taut horrific thriller with buckets of blood and shocks that don't go for "cheese" because it can't pull off reality. Haute Tension is one of those films I am glad I didn't watch with other people. I am not a social film watcher, and this film is so involving that, to it's credit, and my irritation, it creates too many opportunities for the more vocal out there to shout, "don't go in there!", or "are you stupid?"! Fantastic film - well for the first 90% of it anyway. That is not to say that the last 10% is terrible - it isn't, it's great - but nearing the end, the film stumbled ever so slightly and I never truly recovered.
The last scene is still impactful, though, and the ride you take to get there is thoroughly rewarding and gripping. After buckets of blood, and several nail-biting scenes of mayhem, the film ended ... but rather abruptly. Maybe because I was so enthralled by this film, that didn't notice the passage of time, but I actually checked my watch at the end - this is indeed a short film at only 1 hour and 27 minutes.
The blood and gore was great, though I don't know if I am just desensitised, but was it all that extreme? From the hype, I had expected more, which led me online to see if I had watched a cut version. I looked at Beaver and Rewind and saw that the answer was no - it was full. Maybe I should take a break from horror films for a while. However, I guess that since this film aimed for a mainstream release, the general public was MUCH easier to shock than horror veterans.
I am a huge fan of horror, and I loved the visuals and sound for this film. It is a gorgeous film to behold, and it isn't marred by MTV editing, or cheap manipulations (though there are a few scare-standards in there, that I wish directors wouldn't use anymore, because we can see right through them!) The music is great, and besides the more fevered playing of the song by Muse, the soundtrack supports the film very well, rather than just providing more marketing options for CDs, which over the other side of the world, has too long been the "Hollowood" trend.
I won't go into the story, as I there are multitudes of resources online that will explain it all better, but it is interesting to see the reaction of viewers to this film. They are truly divided, some proclaim this film to be shear genius, and other's, derivative. All I can say is that apparently the film is a remake (or re-imagining?) of a Deen Koonzt novel turned 1997 TV miniseries called "Intensity" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118350/). At least this fact could help stem the claims that this film has copied in more ways than one from some other, lessor films.
Go and see it! Enjoy! Go in as BLIND as you can (not literally, as the soundtrack is more minimal than most). I mean, have no expectations, or prior knowledge as to the story, and you will be surprised by this gem of a film.