Frontiers

 

 

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The first time I watched "Frontiers", going in with these huge expectations, I was not only amazed (and somewhat appalled) at what I was watching, but how the film had surpassed the hype. I was genuinely shocked at what was unfolding before me. "Frontiers" is horrendous, but in a truly positive sense. It's hateful, and brutal, and violent, and anti-human. But I loved it! I was so happy I had bought the DVD from Amazon instead of renting it.

Last night I re-watched it with three of my friends, none of which had heard of the movie and who barely knew the plot other than what I vaguely explained while the commericials were rolling. At the end one of my friends was crying, and she couldn't even tell me why. Another said he didn't feel like doing anything, that he was emotionally-drained and felt like going to bed, while the last one said she felt "weird" and for the rest of the night remained silent. Without exaggeration... that's how powerful and gritty this film is.

Some bash it for being derivative of things such as "Texas Chainsaw Massacre", "The Hills Have Eyes" and even "House of 1000 Corpses", and while there are parallels and I cannot fault them for saying so, the movie does what it does very well (better than those three installments) and I think it was more of a homage to those other quality horrors.

It's fair to say when watching a movie with such a shock factor involved, things like acting and direction fall leeway; taking up the passenger seat and letting the violence lead. Such is not the case in "Frontiers". The acting on all levels is great, even stupendous in a few cases -- each character adding his or her own little bit to the story and cranking up the believability. Katrina Testa as Yasmine deserves mad props especially, during the film's second half her acting is just so raw and real you want to hug her and never let go.

The characterization is great. Before the craziness sets in the film devotes a good 30 minutes or so to acquainting us to the characters and really making you like them. This makes what eventually happens to them all the more devastating.

The cinematography is very crisp and fresh -- especially notable during the opening scene. It captures the bleak atmosphere of the film beautifully, to the rolling hills of the France-Luxembourg boarder to the depths of the Von Geisler chambers.

I feel like I'm rambling, and quite honestly I feel at the same time I have not written enough of how AWESOME this movie is.

All lengthy paragraphs aside, and if you can stomach brutality -- watch, buy, love "Frontiers".

10/10

By the time "Frontier(s)" was over my teeth really hurt. That was because I kept clenching them during the moments in this French horror film (the correct spelling of which would be "Frontière(s)"). This 2007 film is being promoted as the ninth of the 8 films 2 die 4 for last year's After Dark Horrorfest, because when it earned an NC-17 rating in the States it had to be pulled from the lineup. So it has the whole vibe of being too much horror for Horrorfest, which means the expectations are pretty high when you sit down to watch this one. On the other hand, the second crop of Horrorfest films were rather disappointing so you figure this one has to be an improvement, and the good news is that it certainly delivers. I am not the sort to close my eyes while watching the gory parts of movies (although I did close one of them in sympathetic reaction to the opening game of "Saw II"), which is why I went the clenched teeth part. A bad case of the measles as a child took out some of the calcium in my permanent teeth, so I am surprised some of them did not crack.

France is in the throes of some political upheaval having to do with the election of a hard line government, and while a century ago this might have sent young people to the barricades, in these trouble times they turn to crime. With the cops on their trail they decide to hole up in this filthy little bed and breakfast. This, of course, turns out to be a really bad mistake, and while the victims are not deserving of our sympathy on the basis of their characters, they are the hope of the future compared to their tormentors. There is really nothing more to say in laying out the plot, because you should just enjoy the ride, if you sense of the word "enjoy" encompasses what happens in this film. The film breaks down into three acts and how much you like the movie will probably come down to whether you think the final act tops the second.

Writer-director Xavier Gens ("Hitman") gets the credit for coming up with all this sick stuff, but credit also goes to cinematographer Laurent Barès, who gives the film is visual style, and especially film editor Carlo Rizzo, who crafts some moments of bizarre beauty through his creative use of montage. A few horror films of recent vintage have attempted to be "arty," and "Frontier(s)" certainly has some moments where you can argue it is cinema rather than just a horror movie.

The obvious cinematic touchstone here is supposed to be "Hostel," but I was reminded more of the original version of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." You will pick up echoes from a lot of other films, but it speaks to the film that I never got the feeling this was a pastiche. I still think "Wolf Creek" is at the top of the list for the torture-porn genre, although I am sure I have not seen everything that is out there. But "Frontier(s)" is closer to that than it is to the "Hostel" movies or "The Saw Trilogy," where there are mystery element in play that divert your from the blood, guts, and whatnot. This is just one of those bloody movies where you wait to see if anybody is going to get out alive.

All I can say now is: What a difference a movie makes. "Frontier(s)" was replaced in the Horrorfest 2007 lineup by "Unearthed," which means that what would have been my highest rated one of the 8 films 2 die 4 was replaced by the one I rated the lowest (although you have to grant that they were right not to have included "Unearthed" in the first place). The original Horrorfest lineup earned an average rating of 3.7 from me and this year's were a step lower at 3.0; but replace "Unearthed" with "Frontier(s)") and the average jumps to 3.4. I had sworn that next year I would rent the Horrorfest movies rather than go ahead and buy them when they came out on DVD (we did not get the festival the second time around), but I am glad I saw enough of the buzz about "Frontier(s)" to go ahead and pick it up. The only real complaint is that there are no DVD extras. Final Note: I wonder if the people behind the After Dark Horrorfest have noticed that their best flicks are being made in foreign lands, because that's certainly what has happened so far.

The French have a great reputation for making super horror films that are uncensored, full of non-gratuitous gore, and a 'pull you in' storyline. This movie does not stop with the action from about 15 minutes in, until the end. This movie is much in the way of a typical horror-type storyline, but the gore and brutality and actual realism set this movie apart from many north american made films. Highly recommend this movie, but it still does not compare to the greatest two french horror films - Martyrs and Inside (L'Interior).

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