Frontier(s)

Written & Directed by:  Xavier Gens

Starring:  Karina Testa, Samuel Le Bihan, Aurélien Wiik, Chems Dahmani

I originally came across this movie because it was being compared to some of my favorite horror films, Inside and Martyrs.  After seeing it, I would best compare it to a mix between The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Hostel.  However, Frontier(s) was a bit more enjoyable to me than both of those.  While the French film lacked a good dose of Biel, and the sick humor of Eli Roth, it more than made up for it with the buckets of blood that single handedly caused theaters to pull this NC-17 gem.

As mentioned previously in my review of From Within, this movie was originally part of the “8 Films to Die For” in the 2007 After Dark Horrorfest lineup, but was replaced in theaters because of the NC-17 tag.  That rating is known as ‘box office suicide,’ but I was surprised that the Horrorfest would pull their best movie in order to gain a few more viewers.  Regardless, I made sure I saw it and you should too.

Frontier(s) is about a group of small-time hoodlum teenagers named Yasmine, Alex, Tom, Farid, and Sami.  They just stole a bag of money during the riots in Paris and decide to flee to Amsterdam to get away from the fighting.  Since Sami was somehow shot, his sister Yasmine (Karina Testa) and her ex-boyfriend, Alex (Aurélien Wiik), take him to the hospital.  Meanwhile, Tom and Farid get head start on the trip and drive for the border, or frontier, with the money.  They ultimately decide to stay at a small cottage for the night.  While at the cottage, Tom and Farid are treated like royalty so they tell the others to join them for the night.  Before they arrive, shit hits the fan and Tom and Farid are running for their lives.  It turns out the Inn is being run by a deranged Nazi family that kills everyone that stays at the cottage.  When Yasmine and Alex arrive, they have no idea where their friends are, but soon find out they must too fight for their lives.  

While not the most original story, the action starts almost immediately and the bloodshed is constant.  There are plenty of cringe-worthy scenes, but it is not pointless ”torture porn” like in Hostel.  The entire time, the characters are fighting and clawing for survival.  They are always close to getting away, only to be thrown right back into the mess of things.  The director, Xavier Gens (Hitman), did a fantastic job with the pacing and at keeping the tension high throughout the film.  The last 15 minutes is pure, nonstop, bloody entertainment.  It also contains what could be the best death scene I’ve ever seen.

Like with all films, there were some minor drawbacks.  The back story involving the heated political race and the ensuing riots seemed pointless.  While there needs to be some story to how the kids get to the death cottage, it just seemed like it was overly done.  With most horror movies, there are some ‘what were you thinking?” moments.  There was the typical escape routine where the victim gets in the first car she sees on the property.  Obviously the person driving to where you just came from is a bad guy.  Or the great decision to hide in an oven when you are fleeing for your life.  When has that ever been a good idea?  Regardless, I forgive their mistakes.  You can’t expect people to make cold, calculated decisions when they are being chased by a crazed Nazi. 

In conclusion, Frontier(s) is a fantastic example on how to make a good horror movie.  The actors did a great job, and story was constantly engaging all the way up to the great finale.  Also, the death scenes were all fantastic and there was no shortage of blood.  If I had to recommend any horror film out of all the “8 Films to Die For” series, this is the one to see.  In terms of French horror, I’d rank this only behind Inside, Martyrs, and High Tension.  While they are all entirely different movies, they are all prime examples of horror at its finest.  Highly recommended!

Total Score:  8.5/10

Buckets:  5/5

Deadgirl

Directed by:  Marcel Sarmiento & Gadi Harel

Written by:  Trent Haaga

Starring:  Shiloh Fernandez, Noah Segan, Michael Bowen, Candice Accola

Getting away from the mainstream horror genre, I decided to give a film called Deadgirl a try.  I’ve read a few positive reviews online (and a few negative), so I tracked it down and watched it after work last week.  This is a common routine for me, and it’s a gamble whether or not the film turns out to be good.  That’s part of the rush for me; finding an unknown film with a cult following and not reading much more into it.  I find it better to watch a movie that you don’t really know much about, and not letting the trailer show you half of the movie.  That way, nothing gets ruined for you and the movie develops the way it was intended.  While this methodology tends to waste your time every now and then (i.e. Jack Ketchum’s The Girl Next Door), it also brings along some pleasant surprises.

Deadgirl is one of those movies that really doesn’t fit into a certain genre.  The best way I can describe it is being a high school/horror/romantic comedy/zombie flick, in that order.  That’s one thing I really enjoyed about the film, it’s not something I’ve seen before.

The movie follows two loner high school students who stumble upon a mysterious girl while doing one of my favorite past times, skipping class to roam the basement of an abandoned mental hospital.  As they soon find out, the girl cannot die.  Since she is chained to a table, one of them seems to think it would be fun to make her his personal sex slave.  The rational student, Rickie (Shiloh Fernandez), finds what his friend, JT (Noah Segan, Brick), is doing to be insane and obviously wants nothing to do with his activity.  Unfortunately, word spreads about what they have found and their sex-depraved classmates want to see the ‘deadgirl’ for themselves. 

The viewer is put into Rickie’s corner from the start, since he is the lonely romantic who always does the right thing.  He’s the familiar high school kid all of us know well, the one that loved the girl that he couldn’t get.  Being an outcast is all he’s been known to be, and the same goes for JT.  The main difference between the two is that JT was willing to give up trying for the girls he couldn’t get.  He had found his salvation chained to a table in an abandoned basement, and that was good enough for him.  He was happy with her no matter what Rickie said.  In the end, ‘deadgirl’ consumes him and creates a whole new monster.

While this movie does cross some lines, I couldn’t help but enjoy the ride.  The acting was a little sluggish at the start, but everyone ends up putting in a great effort.  Noah Segan is the standout for this movie as JT, but the other actors played their characters superbly as well.  Some questions were left unanswered, like where the girl came from and what she truly is, but I feel that it didn’t really hurt the film.  In fact, a little mystery is great.  Sometimes I don’t like it when everything is spelled out for me.  

While it does have its flaws, I recommend Deadgirl because it is something truly different.  It definitely won’t please everyone; in fact it probably won’t please many.  While it may sound hard to believe, this movie has a lot more under the surface than just people having sex with a dead girl.  I feel sorry for those who don’t take anything more out of this film, since I believe the writers did a great job creating an original story here.  It really questions a humans capabilities and moral standings, but it makes you laugh at the same time.  While there is a strong element of romance involved, I wouldn’t have this movie penciled in for ‘Date Night’ if I were you.  It does contain someone having their penis bitten off and shitting out their insides (sucks to be you).  So there’s that…


Total Score:  6.5/10
Buckets:  2.5/5