by Nia Edwards-Behi

Created on: June 10, 2009

The French film Martyrs (Laugier, 2008) is an incredible piece of filmmaking, that truly breaks the boundaries of its genre. It's not an easy film to watch and it has certainly split critical opinion, earning both high praise and vocal opposition. Martyrs hit the festival circuit last year with a wave of anticipation - it was the first film to receive an 18+ certificate in France without any scenes of sexual content - and was received with great excitement by fans of genre filmmaking. I was lucky enough to catch a screening at a horror festival last year and firmly consider myself to be a supporter of the film.

Martyrs opens with a very young girl running down a street. She is beaten, her head shaved, and screaming wildly. We learn that she is Lucie, and has been missing for a year. She remembers nothing of her abduction, and while horribly mistreated, she bears no signs of sexual abuse. She is placed in an orphanage, where she befriends another girl there, Anna. Skip to 15 years later. A normal family is breakfasting when their home is invaded by a young woman carrying a shot gun. The woman is Lucie, convinced she's discovered her captors. Joined by Anna, there is a monster in the house that follows Lucie and the two women must stave it off. This is the first half of the film, after which events take an even stranger turn.

This is not your average horror film. Martyrs is brutally violent, yes, but the violence is never without reason in the story. The story is character-driven throughout and the violence committed is never entertaining, never titillating, but always emotionally draining. There is a philosophical edge to the film, which, for me at least, has a devastating effect.

The two lead actresses masterfully carry the film, handling very difficult roles with ease. They play damaged, confused women yet it's very easy to sympathise with them throughout. It's also very refreshing to see an almost completely female cast - all the significant main characters are women.

This is writer-director's Pascal Laugier's second feature film and it shows a very original filmmaker at work. The direction never sexualises the violence of the film, as is often the case with American horror films, but neither does it portray it in such a way that the grime and the grit simply becomes a stylistic tool. Laugier's characters are superb and wholly believable, even at moments of the film that seem unreal. The special make-up effects on display in Martyrs put to shame bigger-budget films. There is no reliance here on digital effects and the film is all the stronger for it.

I must make special mention of the film's wonderful and judicious score, by the band Seppuku Paradigm. The score can be downloaded for free from their official website.

Martyrs is by no means a film for everyone. It's not just for horror fans, but it's not for anyone with a weak stomach. On a personal note, watching Martyrs for the first time was one of the most incredible cinema experiences of my life. I'm a big horror fan and used to cinematic violence, but Martyrs left me genuinely speechless as its credits rolled, and truly in a state of shock. There is such a powerful story behind its images.

I highly recommend the film to anyone who enjoys being challenged by cinema. It comes riding a wave of recent French horror which is proving to be some of the most exciting around. You may love it, or you may hate it, but chances are Martyrs will provoke a strong response, either way.

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