Before there were The Strangers, there was a French film doing it better, and its name was ILS. I loved this movie when I saw it for the first time. Maybe it was the fact that it was a different language, it added a different edge to it. I can’t explain it, but you if you have dated me I may have shown this to you.
We start off with this mother and daughter in a vehicle. Mom sees something in the road, swerves and she hits a utility pole. So mom goes out and checks under the hood, and daughter is talking to her, and then mom ain’t there. Now mud is being tossed at the windows, the hood finally shuts, and somebody was behind the seat all along and chokes daughter out. BAM, now that is an opening to a film.
Now, I encourage you, readers, not to be discouraged because this is a French film. The reason why is simple, the dialogue is minimal. Better yet, the dialogue isn’t terribly important in this particular film. Our main characters are Lucas and Clemintine, and they live in a sweet house out in the country. Sometimes that is a great thing. Other times, shit goes awry. Clementine is a teacher. I love that name by the way. I would absolutely name my daughter that, it’s a solid name. Lucas is a boring-ass writer.
So shit really doesn’t get interesting until 25 minutes into the film. Aside from the opening, once past the daughter dying, seriously, fast forward to 21 minutes. You’ll thank me. Backstories and character development are great when it is utilized and helps in telling the story. The fact is, the only things that matter is that her and him are in a pretty secluded house. Their professions, their characters don’t even matter. If this was 2 homeless bums living in a dilapidated house in the middle of nowhere, it would still work just fine. Nice panty shot of Clem as she gets out. Usually white doesn’t do it for me honestly, but the cut of the panty was nice. I’m just saying what most guys are thinking.
So Clem hears a noise outside. She naturally wakes up Lucas, and I can tell you now, he’s probably pissed. Ladies, make sure you hear something before waking a dude out of a sound sleep. And if nothing is out there, you need to make it up to him, sexually. Fortunately for her, and unfortunately for him, her car has been moved, and it is raining out. This guy’s night is already shot. He gets close to the car to investigate, no weapon, no nothing. The lights turn on, and the car drives away. At this point, I’m gonna shut up. Just gonna try to enjoy the 77-minute nugget of horror. There is seriously 40 minutes left, and the tension just mounts, slowly. I don’t dig cheap jump scares, but if the tension is built, the jump scare isn’t necessarily cheap, it’s been earned. Most movies simply suck at building legit tension. Oh, and the power is now out and the fusebox ain’t working.
One thing that aggravates me is when the guy isn’t defending himself. Women, you are free to do whatever it is that you do, typically panicking, putting men in danger, going upstairs, in the basement, in closets or under the bed. It happens. Guys, there’s no reason to not be defending yourself and being logical. Really, if I am in this situation, I am finding 3 weapons. One blunt one that can buy you time, that goes to the girl. Don’t ever give her a gun or knife, because she will panic and potentially wound or kill you. Guys need a great damaging weapon and a quick secondary weapon that you can use in a pinch, like if your weapon is knocked away or is stuck inside of somebody. People never break enough picture frames. Shards of glass are great for this purpose. I guess the point is, one needs to be resourceful and smart.
Another thing, if there is a leg wound, this does not make a great opportunity to leave your house and try running to escape. Be like Kevin McAllister in Home Alone. Defend your home. I can’t run for shit anyway, so I’m staying, I’m finishing my coffee (thank you, Walter, from Big Lebowski).
It’s over, and I still love the movie for its simplicity. I am not one of those people who try to feel superior by saying “I watched a foreign film today”. No, as a matter of fact, by and large, I avoid anything that isn’t American or Canadian. I just don’t want to deal with subtitles, I want to focus on the presentation, not read a fucking novel. With that said, for people who loved the original Halloween and give the reasoning that it’s so scary because we don’t know why Michael is doing what he’s doing, this is a movie you can absolutely get behind. If you like a ton of tension mixed it with people making dumbass decisions, this is for you. If you want a 75-minute film that really doesn’t focus on the gore, but rather the scares and tension, you may enjoy this. It’s not the greatest, but it’s solid. The ending may feel underwhelming to some, and I get that. Different mindsets for different people.
Final rating: 7.4
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The truth is, I don’t know. I looked on IMDB and on Wikipedia and found nothing conclusive. On the back of the DVD case, I see “A coproduction ESKWAD STUDIOCANAL CASTEL FILM with the participation of CANAL _ AND CINECINEMA”. Nobody can accuse me of not trying to get this accurate.
Please go find a copy and support the creators.