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39 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A bloody revenge horror/thriller film., April 27, 2008
It seems like France right now have come up with some of the best horror films of the past couple of years, I think it started off with High Tension and the controversial revenge thriller Irreversible. Frontier(s) has come out during a period where horror films right now are going through a decline in quality and it seems like Hollywood are only interested in re-making old horror films, while Frontiers wasn't as brutal as other reviewers have said it still was a great film although I'm not sure why it got an NC-17 rating, there are some gory parts and some extreme violence but I have the feeling that I've already seen this before and there was some cliches in it and the villains are neo-nazi cannibals thats probably the only difference. The film was written and directed by Xavier Gens and his script was outstanding but there were a few problems, it does take a few elements from modern horror films and mixes it up with some older 70's and 80's slasher films. The story follows a group of young bank robbers who are on the run from the law while violent protests and riots are taking place against a current election which is being held. Some of them make it out while others aren't so lucky, the surviving members of the group take refuge in an inn located on the outskirts of town to escape from the cops, this is the point in the film which becomes very familiar if you've seen TCM or House Of 1000 Corpses they meet a group of weirdos two guys and two women and these weirdos like killing, torturing and messing around with their victims. Sure there is some bloody mayhem that happens during the course of the film but I wasn't shocked its as if it was trying to hard however it was still great, one particular scene involves a band saw which was very gory and a guy who has his tendons sliced off with large metal clippers (this was ripped off from Hostel) as well as some other creative torture and death scenes like a large oven there is some slightly disturbing stuff. The victims in the film were quite sympathetic and weren't like the typical characters you would see in this type of film, they were likable except for one guy. There were some great chase scenes and one very memorable scene that takes place in a dark tunnel that raises the level of suspense and tension, the film also kicks into high gear during the second half and the villains were truly despicable nazis which makes it great when the final victim gets his/her revenge I'm not going to spoil it was a surprise. I've seen so many awful horror movies these last couple of days and its nice to finally see something great, its all about the action and gore which was all done with such class that it doesn't feel like a cheap exploitation it has a good atmosphere that draws you in, while not the most original horror film I've seen it was still very tight and fast paced I give this film a rating of 4.5/5 stars. If you enjoyed Haute Tension and Inside then you might like this, it seems like France is the new country for horror flicks. Now I haven't seen Inside but if its as great as the reviews have said then it must be awesome and worthwhile. Check out the excellent reviews done by Dave K., D.Wilson, Clint and Woopak, they've all done a great job of reviewing Inside so I'm convinced. I highly recommend this film to hardcore horror fans but if your the type of person thats squeamish and hates over the top blood and gore then forget it.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well, having this one certainly would have upgraded Horrorfest 2007 big time, May 12, 2008
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.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Worthwhile, April 12, 2008
When this made the top ten of 2007 on BloodyDisgusting.com I was fervently trying to find some way to find it. I looked for months. I kept hearing how brilliant it was. Usually when I put a lot of time into finding something that I know so relatively little about, it ends up in a huge letdown. This absolutely broke that rule. Some nice viscera gets sprayed around, but the compelling acting and character nuances are what really sink the hooks in deep when the blood starts flying. There's a shaky camera technique that gets irritating only a little bit during some driving sequences, but overall the production and the director's sensibility are sharp. I'd describe it as having some classic 70s and 80s horror trappings (cannibals, nazis, freaks, backwoods family) that are wrapped up in a nice art-house package.
Go out of your way to watch this movie. You'll be glad you did.
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