French Horror Has Me Entranced

I’ve come over all Gallic recently. For some time now, French horror seems to be leading the way when it comes to taking risks, courting controversy, while delivering some outstanding shocks and lingering torment!

For me, It started with the stunning Livide, one of my favourite modern horrors – beautiful and hideous in equal measure, deftly weaving horror staples with beautiful imagery and gloriously depicted gore.

This was followed by Inside, by the same directors, Julien Maury, Alexandre Bustillo, actually their first feature, with a terrifying performance by Beatrice Dalle (Betty Blue herself) as a vengeful mother. Exquisite though the film was, I did find myself questioning my morality as the wincingly sick ending unfolded. I would recommend all pregnant women avoid this film like soft cheese.

Anyone offended by sexual stereotypes should probably avoid Switchblade Romance (Haute Tension to give it its original French title.) It starts off with great promise as two young women, one obviously secretly in love with the other, battle a bloodthirsty serial killer. And then the appalling twist is revealed – a twist so unbelievable, so out of kilter with the rest of the film, it’s not so much a plot hole as a plot Grand Canyon! I won’t reveal it, and you won’t see it coming, because it’s so ridiculous it defies detection.

Les Diaboliques is a far more sedate horror from 1954 with more than a subtle nod to Alfred Hitchcock – it’s all moody looks, clever camera work and features a far more plausible twist than Switchblade (albeit a lot more predictable).

Possibly the most brutal horror movie I have ever seen, Martyrs (The French version obviously, not the tepid US remake) is a difficult, but rewarding watch. It combines extreme violence with creepiness and still manages to fall into the elevated horror category. There are so many twists and turns, it feels like you’ve been watching for hours (in a good way) when its actually only around 90 minutes long. Every time you think its coming to an end, there’s another plot development that’s as horrific, and often unexpected, as the last.