Inside

Horrorphile

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À l'intérieur (Inside)

September 17th 2008 00:47

Are you craving a little extreme horror? Have you been feeling a little short-changed by all the anemic and gutless horror movies flooding the shelves? Did you find the Hostel and Saw movies all too bloody predictable, with not enough conviction, no real passion, even. Well, you need to watch the French film Inside (2007). It is a grueling and utterly compelling 80-minute rollercoaster ride of abject horror and desperation. But, I must stress; this is not a movie for pregnant women.

Inside screened as part of the Melbourne International Film Festival this year, however it is very unlikely this movie will receive a theatrical release. It’s distributed by the Weinstein brothers’ Dimension Extreme division, so it will probably surface on DVD down under some time over the coming months. But being a salivating horrorphile I got my copy fast-tracked from overseas.

Alysson Paradis as Sarah

This has to be one of the most brutal horror movies I’ve seen in a while. The kind of harrowing and horrific ordeal that is hard to recommend to anyone who is not afraid to take themselves to a very dark place with graphic violence and lots of bloodletting, not to mention unborn trauma (see maternal warning above!). However it is very well made, and despite a few horror goofs (ie blood not flowing from grievous wound, fingers still moving after massive hand trauma), the execution of the horror elements is handled with style and conviction. The last few minutes reveal a very tenebrous concept which is one of the more satisfying denouements – unabashed evil, yet still pure – in modern horror. Yes, Inside is a movie to be reckoned with.

Beatrice Dalle as the woman

After the movie’s opening image of an unborn baby inside the womb with its mother’s voice-over claiming the baby with heartfelt possession followed by some kind of abrupt and violent impact, we cut to black. There has been a nasty car-crash; two cars have collided. The driver of one, Sarah (Alysson Paradis) has facial lacerations, but she’s still alive. She is five months pregnant. Her fiancé in the passenger seat beside her is dead. We don’t see the passengers of the other car.

Sarah senses an intruder in the house

Sarah has nowhere to run

Four months later and a doctor is telling Sarah to come back in the morning, and if need be labour will be induced. It is Christmas Eve. Sarah is in a depression, having lost the father of her unborn baby. She shrugs off her mother and goes home alone. She arranges to be picked up early in the morning as there is rioting in the nearby streets. The house is lonely and Sarah feels it. Then there’s a knock at the door. An unseen woman (Beatrice Dalle) needs to use the phone as her car has broken down and her mobile phone battery is dead. Sarah is wary, but the woman knows her name and that she is pregnant and lost her fiancé. Sarah is confused, and scared. The woman’s silhouette looms outside the plate-glass window and attempts to break in, so Sarah calls the police. They arrive and assure Sarah she’s safe.

Scissors, scissors! Who's there?!

Sarah goes to sleep. But the woman is inside the house. The woman has an agenda; a mission of revenge and acquisition. The house will become a war-zone. All hell will break loose before the dawn has broken.

Inside Beatrice Dalle and Alysson Paradis

The woman wakes an exhausted Sarah with the kiss of maternal life

Damn! That's gotta hurt!

Essentially a two-hander, with brief support from Sarah’s mother and employer, and a handful of cops, Inside has the workings of a play, but is told with consummate cinematic verve. The two central performances are excellent, with Beatrice Dalle – forever famous as Betty Blue – utterly convincing as the psychotic femme. The stunning use of composition and shadow from directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo really works a treat. Dalle’s unnamed character, dressed in black, is only shown in silhouette and obscured by shadow for her early scenes. The melancholic vulnerability of Sarah (beautifully portrayed by Paradis) is juxtaposed with Dalle’s waves of hysteria. But in the film’s last quarter Sarah snaps and becomes infused with retaliation a la extreme prejudice. This could be viewed as a Hollywood cop-out, but in the dramatic context of the movie it works.

Wounded, but driven, the woman still hasn't got what she came for

A cop prepares for the worst

Inside is driven by a neo-noir electronic score, pulsing and throbbing, providing an intelligent under-current of fear. But if you’re at all squeamish, Inside is not recommended viewing; especially if the use of scissors and knitting needles as weapons of grievous bodily harm, and a heavily pregnant woman in jeopardy, pushes panic buttons. Inside is very tense and in places utterly nerve-jangling. Imagine David Lynch bouncing ideas off Gaspar Noe and Alexandre Aja but then siding with Takashi Miike. You’ve been warned.

A broken woman with a fighting chance

Here's the French trailer (no subs, but it doesn't need them):

To get an idea of the movie's intensity here's one of the murder scenes (squeamish be warned!):

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews

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Comments

10 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by JohnDoe

September 17th 2008 04:18

Film & TV on DVD

Dude,

you have me drooling, I must see this film....maybe a combined watch on our next meeting

Comment by Bryn

September 17th 2008 04:40

Horrorphile

JD, yeah, thought I'd have you in the aisles on your hands and knees ... heh heh ...

Comment by Cibbuano

September 17th 2008 22:14

Hunt Famous
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Fat Cult
Techbreak

coooooool.... it's rare to hear a review that compelling, Bryn. I was squeamish from the beginning, but the movie just sounds wild.

Why are the cops always useless? "Don't worry, Ma'am, I'm sure the psycho killer has gone home for the weekend. They have better things to do than just wait around."

Comment by Bryn

September 18th 2008 05:29

Horrorphile

Cheers Cibby, yeah, keep your eye out (err, pun unintended) for this title in the video stores ...

Comment by Damo

September 18th 2008 06:06

This looks like one of those movies I might enjoy butcertainly not if the wife is around.

I've been to child birth and for some reason women can find super strength. Hence my respect for not upsetting her.

Comment by Bryn

September 18th 2008 07:39

Horrorphile

Damo, this is well worth checking out, extreme violence aside, which I know can put you off, but the production values are very high, and the direction is not gratuitious, just very intense ... But, yeah, wait til the wifey's asleep or out with the girls ...

Comment by JohnDoe

August 27th 2009 03:07

Film & TV on DVD

Finally saw this one Bryn,

To quote Heathers - "Fuck me gently with a chainsaw"...Inside is nothing short of a masterwork...incredible prosthetics, convicted acting and a script full of surprises. Did i mention one of the most intense experiences Ive had in a long time?

The polished cinematography fights the cliched handheld method and the musical score counter acts with its quite emotion.

the kind of film you pray for empty horror porn like Hostel because this one is all to real, and brilliant.

You know what I like and this is it!!!

Comment by Bryn

August 27th 2009 06:02

Horrorphile

Bloody good to hear JD!

Comment by ShaunK

July 13th 2010 05:21

Screen Adventure

I was recommended this by JD - I've also heard that it's an uber-gross out too. I'll pick it up once I find it. I also read your review for martyrs. Which do you prefer Bryn? Inside or Martyrs.

Comment by Bryn

July 13th 2010 22:44

Horrorphile

Hard to say ... There's stuff I really like about both, and they're in different styles. Inside is essentially a house invasion, so it's more realistic, whereas Martyrs plays with supernatural elements. Inside probably played more on my inherent fears, was a more palpable nightmare, but Martyrs was a more intriguing and lingering nightmare.

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