DVD, BLU-RAY & STREAMING – MARTYRS

NOTHING CAN PREPARE YOU…

DVD, Blu-Ray & Streaming – “Martyrs”

Review by Ray Schillaci

If you refuse to check out the spoilers, and not read either descriptions from Amazon or the back of the DVD box, then nothing will prepare you for the onslaught to the senses from one of the most intense and grueling horror movie experiences I have ever set eyes on. This is the very best way to approach this harrowing film that will leave you breathless by the first fifteen minutes. Now I have to somehow skirt any and all spoilers while delivering a review that gives you some sense of the insanity that will be played out before you.

Let me preface this by stating emphatically, I am not a fan of torture porn, and at some point if you decide to put yourself through this film you may think that is exactly what this film is, but in the end, it’s not. “Martyrs” is a masterpiece of madness and sheer terror. It’s not about bloodletting, but there is one helluva grand guignol display that is set before you, and you may want to hold off the refreshments and goodies because they very well could wind up in the air, onto the couch and all over you. I jumped from my seat nearly a dozen times.

Writer/director Pascal Laugier begins his horrific tale by giving a unsettling nod to Tobe Hooper’s “Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” delivering an opening that is similar to “TCM”’s ending. A lone girl, Lucie, obviously been through physical and mental hell, escapes her captors and runs for her life. The image is chilling, and the mystery that proceeds it is riveting.

Lucie is taken to an orphanage where she is cared for, and although very removed from the other children, one child, Anna, in particular refuses to give up and befriends her. Lucie is too traumatized to tell anyone about her ordeal or her captors. But Anna eventually is not only able to gain Lucie’s trust, but also get a glimpse into what terrifies her…an emaciated, disfigured creature of a woman covered in scars that seems to haunt and torment Lucie.

These scenes alone are nerve-wracking at best. We have to wonder if this vision is real or all in Lucie’s head. Our two actresses, Mylene Jamponi as Lucie and Morjana Alaoui as Anna are convincingly devastating as two young woman that are constantly reliving the horror as sisters of dread, pain and compassion. Their bond alone is an emotional whirlpool that sucks us into this unhinged world of theirs.

Fifteen years later, Lucie with Anna’s help seeks out those who brutalized her and exact a swift and horrible death to all. But this is no where near resolved, because it leaves far too many questions in our minds. Is Lucie so deranged that she has sought after innocents? How many times has she done this before? And, has Anna’s misguided love turned her into a cruel and frightening accomplice of murder or a justified vigilante?

The action is swift, the horror is first rate, and the plot zig-zags all over the place, but surprisingly stays on target with each big reveal. For me, to give anymore of the plot away would be a crime to the audience anticipating something really unique. But this review comes with an extreme warning.

After several heart-pounding sequences that will up your adrenalin level two-fold, there is a point of what we feel is no return. It is the most brutal by far, and even though it does not involve dismemberment or rape, it does manage to jar us (at least this viewer) almost to the point of turning away or turning it off. I could not (and you may not) see the point of going any further and felt I was being violated as well with this abhorrent display that I don’t even care to revisit (at least this one particular sequence). It seems to go on far too long, and one cannot help ask, to what end?

But then an even bigger reveal comes our way and damn writer/director Pascal for taking us there. I damn him because somehow he justifies everything our characters have been put through, and raises the horror bar to a whole new level. He’s also not just touched a nerve, but irritated the living hell out of it, giving us one of the most uncomfortable viewing experiences in a long time, but not one we will soon forget.

This is a film that has audiences divided right down the middle. Even its critics have to admire everything Pascal, his cast and crew bring to the screen. But they also damn him as well, questioning if this can even be considered entertainment, calling it “painful to watch”, “sadistic” and “brutally well-conceived”. Then there are the praisers, who have dubbed the film “transcending”, “unique” and “groundbreaking”. Here is a rare and wildly inventive thriller that definitely continues to challenge its audience, and eventually becomes a subjective piece for every viewer that will end up having very strong opinions as to whether they love or loathe it.

There are two versions of “Martyrs”. The R-rated version has up to 58 cuts in its peaks of violence, and believe it or not is hard to find. The unrated French version with English subtitles is now readily available at Amazon. But here’s the weirdest part of all, the DVD apparently is out of print and is selling for close to $200 new and used on Amazon while the new Blu-ray is selling somewhere around $15 depending on the vendor. I cannot find why the disparity in price other than the DVD may be out-of-print. I have the original DVD, and would probably be happy to trade it in for a Blu-ray and $150.

Directed by: Pascal Laugier
Release Date: April 28. 2009
Run Time: 99 Minutes (edited)
Country: France/Canada
Rated: R/NR
Distributor: The Weinstein Company