Haute tension (2003)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Alexandre Aja

Writers:

Alexandre Aja (writer)
Grégory Levasseur (writer)

Release Date:

10 June 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Hearts will bleed.

Plot:

Two college friends, Marie and Alexa, encounter loads of trouble (and blood) while on vacation at Alexa's parents' country home when a mysterious killer invades their quiet getaway.

Plot Keywords:

Student | Blood | Chase | Bound And Gagged | Unrequited Love

Awards:

4 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Cécile De France	...	Marie
Maïwenn Le Besco	...	Alexia (as Maïwenn)
Philippe Nahon	...	Le tueur
Franck Khalfoun	...	Jimmy
Andrei Finti	...	Alex's Father
Oana Pellea	...	Alex's Mother
Marco Claudiu Pascu	...	Tom
Jean-Claude de Goros	...	Police Captain
Bogdan Uritescu	...	Gendarme
Gabriel Spahiu	...	Homme voiture

Also Known As:

Switchblade Romance (International: English title) (UK) (DVD box title)
High Tension (USA)

MPAA:

Rated R for graphic bloody killings, terror, sexual content and language. (edited version); Rated NC-17 for strong graphic violence.

Runtime:

91 min | Germany:85 min (DVD version) | South Korea:84 min (re-cut version) | USA:89 min (edited version)

Country:

France

Language:

French | English | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS (US version) | Dolby Digital (US version) | Dolby Digital EX (original version)

Certification:

New Zealand:R18 | USA:NC-17 (original rating) | USA:R (edited for re-rating) | Canada:R (Manitoba) | Australia:R | Czech Republic:15 | Sweden:15 | Malaysia:(Banned) | Argentina:16 | Portugal:M/18 | USA:R (cut) | USA:Unrated (DVD rating) | South Korea:18 (re-rating) (cut) (DVD rating) (uncut) | Germany:18 (SPIO/JK) (cut) | Austria:18 | Canada:18A (British Columbia/Ontario) | Canada:R (Alberta) | Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:R-15 | Norway:18 | Singapore:R21 | South Korea:Limited (original rating) | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R (edited version) | Germany:18 (cut) | Canada:16+ (Quebec)

Filming Locations:

Bucharest, Romania

Company:

Alexandre Films

Trivia:

According to 'Alexander Aja' the scene where Marie hides from the killer in the gas station restroom was a homage to a similar scene in the movie Maniac (1980).

Goofs:

Continuity: The interior light of the yellow Ford during the car chase

Quotes:

Le tueur: You can't escape from me, bitch!

Movie Connections:

References Halloween (1978)

Soundtrack:

A2

Irregular but intriguing

This film seems to me to lack balance between the combination of elements that it blends together: the thriller-suspense factor, the gore, and the "surprise" factor. It is a very irregular film, but it still boasts good style and good manners in atmosphere-building, even if it doesn't really live up to meet the expectations, at least for me.

The story goes about Marie and Alexia, best friends who drive up to Alexia's parents' countryside house, hoping to find some peace for studying. Instead, they'll have to fight a psychopathic killer in a macabre cat-and-mouse game.

The best part, in my opinion, is the mise-en-scene and the introduction of the characters and the storyline. Everything in those first sequences tells us that something horrible is going to happen, not only because we already know that we're watching a horror film. The dusty road, the scorching weather, the big corn fields... the real feel of a horror story scene is there. It increases with the night scenes, the shots of the house, the staircase, the corridors. The gloominess and inherent darkness of the place and the quiet surroundings perfectly do their job of preparing us for what's to come.

The story-telling loses steam after this part. Not being a big fan of gore, I didn't really care for the bloody murder scenes, but I'm sure that they'll be appreciated by many -they're rather truculent and well filmed. The duel between Marie and the killer didn't really work for me; in fact, I found it a little boring. On the whole, I thought the story was unoriginal and predictable, but, contrary to what many say, I don't think it's deceitful -I didn't feel that the director cheats on the audience with the ending. (I won't elaborate on this so as not to spoil the film for those who want to see it).

I have mixed feelings about "High Tension". On the one hand, for me, it is ineffective as a thriller, and flawed as an exercise of story-telling. On the other, however, the murky atmosphere and the darkness of the story and of its subtleties stuck with me for a while after seeing the film. I wouldn't watch it again, but I understand why many like it so much.