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in
Two days into half term, and I'm already bored out of mind 
so I'll probably be reviewing like mad over the next week (maybe) 
anyway, I'll only be posting this review here because I'll be talking quite extensively about it, and I wouldn't want to ruin it for anyone in the Euro horror thread. Anyway, I'll be reviewing the 2007, French-Swiss horror Frontier(s).
The plot follows a group of four, Muslim teenagers who intend to flee to Amsterdam amidst Parisian anarchy over Presidential elections. They do so, and make it close to the Belgian border, where the group decide to rest at a B&B. However, the hosts are in actuality, a cannibalistic family of neo-nazis intent on creating an Aryan master race.
Positives
Well, where to begin
this was very gritty, and extremely bleak in everything it depicted and portrayed. It's depressing, yet it's a lot of fun, and one heck of a ride. The pacing is terrific, it allocates just the correct amount of time in establishing the characters and their environment, so we can understand their justifications for fleeing, before really delving into the horrific elements. And once it does, the pace never drops, and all of these macabre and malevolent things just keep on getting presented to us over and over, yet it's never overly repetitive or dull, because some of the horror lies in the dialogue and not just the executions and violence.
Obviously, the dialogue wouldn't be so striking if it hadn't been for the actors, and one the whole, they do a very good job. The deformed concubine of the family, Eve, played by Maude Forget was brilliant, everything about her fragility, charisma, and overall innocence was strangely enchanting and she stole the vast majority of the scenes she was in. The remainder of the cast were okay, but nothing exceptional really, but I have to admit, by the end, I despised Estelle Lefébure's character, Gilberte (pictured above, holding the gun), and I think that's because she really did embody her sadistic, vicious, Ilsa-esque character very well.
I genuinely did feel quite queasy in parts too, namely where Yasmin has to crawl through pig excrement in order to escape. Various scenes like this also achieved similar effects, and for me, I thought it was a very clever way to bridge the primarily horror filled elements whilst also maintaining a very heightened sense of uneasiness and tension. The violence is raw too, and quite heavy in places, which combined with an already uneasy ambiance creates quite a difficult viewing experience, meaning that (for me anyway) it accomplished what every horror sets out to do, but only a few actually managed to do successfully.
Finally, it's fun! Like with Farm House and You're Next, it is flawed, but if you take it at face value for what it is, it is a good, enjoyable horror film, with superbly enticing action scenes, just perfect for this time of year
Negatives
It's not a very original film, the concept of modern nazis has already been utilized, and cannibals have been used consistently for decades. It's also evident that this film was inspired somewhat by The Texas Chain Saw Massacre since they dedicate a whole scene to it, so basically, don't expect something innovative with this
Kind of developing on this, I think some of the characters could have used a little bit more development, but this is nothing major, for the film always manages to evoke strong feelings of either pity or resentment for every single character at one point or another.
It's not entirely realistic either really, and I say this in regard to Yasmin's ability to take down heavily built men about twice her size on multiple occasions in the space of twenty minutes or so. Don't get me wrong, I'm a massive feminist, and I'd be proud to call myself one even as a male, but even the most able modern female warriors like Nancy Wake weren't capable of achieving what a normal, civilian, pregnant woman did here. I don't even think she miscarries after being stomped in the stomach on multiple occasions... mhm. Also, for a neo-nazi, the leader of the gang weirdly overlooks Yasmin's ethnicity, he cites this as making the best of a bad situation but France is hardly Siberia, it's a country filled with young, blonde women, so I don't necessarily understand his reluctance to accept that fact, because even though he does de-humanise and value her only on her ability to reproduce, there's also no way such a dedicated Nazi intent on developing the Aryan race would be willing to marry off someone who didn't fulfil every necessary criteria.
Conclusion
It's quite flawed, and turns into more of an action film towards the conclusion, but it is a lot of fun, and good for a thrill and a scare. It also features some terrific performances, and is structured extremely carefully. So overall, this gets:
so I'll probably be reviewing like mad over the next week (maybe) anyway, I'll only be posting this review here because I'll be talking quite extensively about it, and I wouldn't want to ruin it for anyone in the Euro horror thread. Anyway, I'll be reviewing the 2007, French-Swiss horror Frontier(s). The plot follows a group of four, Muslim teenagers who intend to flee to Amsterdam amidst Parisian anarchy over Presidential elections. They do so, and make it close to the Belgian border, where the group decide to rest at a B&B. However, the hosts are in actuality, a cannibalistic family of neo-nazis intent on creating an Aryan master race.
Positives
Well, where to begin
this was very gritty, and extremely bleak in everything it depicted and portrayed. It's depressing, yet it's a lot of fun, and one heck of a ride. The pacing is terrific, it allocates just the correct amount of time in establishing the characters and their environment, so we can understand their justifications for fleeing, before really delving into the horrific elements. And once it does, the pace never drops, and all of these macabre and malevolent things just keep on getting presented to us over and over, yet it's never overly repetitive or dull, because some of the horror lies in the dialogue and not just the executions and violence.Obviously, the dialogue wouldn't be so striking if it hadn't been for the actors, and one the whole, they do a very good job. The deformed concubine of the family, Eve, played by Maude Forget was brilliant, everything about her fragility, charisma, and overall innocence was strangely enchanting and she stole the vast majority of the scenes she was in. The remainder of the cast were okay, but nothing exceptional really, but I have to admit, by the end, I despised Estelle Lefébure's character, Gilberte (pictured above, holding the gun), and I think that's because she really did embody her sadistic, vicious, Ilsa-esque character very well.
I genuinely did feel quite queasy in parts too, namely where Yasmin has to crawl through pig excrement in order to escape. Various scenes like this also achieved similar effects, and for me, I thought it was a very clever way to bridge the primarily horror filled elements whilst also maintaining a very heightened sense of uneasiness and tension. The violence is raw too, and quite heavy in places, which combined with an already uneasy ambiance creates quite a difficult viewing experience, meaning that (for me anyway) it accomplished what every horror sets out to do, but only a few actually managed to do successfully.
Finally, it's fun! Like with Farm House and You're Next, it is flawed, but if you take it at face value for what it is, it is a good, enjoyable horror film, with superbly enticing action scenes, just perfect for this time of year
Negatives
It's not a very original film, the concept of modern nazis has already been utilized, and cannibals have been used consistently for decades. It's also evident that this film was inspired somewhat by The Texas Chain Saw Massacre since they dedicate a whole scene to it, so basically, don't expect something innovative with this
Kind of developing on this, I think some of the characters could have used a little bit more development, but this is nothing major, for the film always manages to evoke strong feelings of either pity or resentment for every single character at one point or another.
It's not entirely realistic either really, and I say this in regard to Yasmin's ability to take down heavily built men about twice her size on multiple occasions in the space of twenty minutes or so. Don't get me wrong, I'm a massive feminist, and I'd be proud to call myself one even as a male, but even the most able modern female warriors like Nancy Wake weren't capable of achieving what a normal, civilian, pregnant woman did here. I don't even think she miscarries after being stomped in the stomach on multiple occasions... mhm. Also, for a neo-nazi, the leader of the gang weirdly overlooks Yasmin's ethnicity, he cites this as making the best of a bad situation but France is hardly Siberia, it's a country filled with young, blonde women, so I don't necessarily understand his reluctance to accept that fact, because even though he does de-humanise and value her only on her ability to reproduce, there's also no way such a dedicated Nazi intent on developing the Aryan race would be willing to marry off someone who didn't fulfil every necessary criteria.
Conclusion
It's quite flawed, and turns into more of an action film towards the conclusion, but it is a lot of fun, and good for a thrill and a scare. It also features some terrific performances, and is structured extremely carefully. So overall, this gets: