Martyrs is a 2008 French language Revenge/Horror/Thriller written and directed by Pascal Laugier, not to be confused with the abysmal 2015 American remake. It stars Mylène Jampanoï as Lucie and Morjana Alaoui as Anna
The film opens with a young girl, who we later find to be Lucie running down the street badly beaten and clearly in distress before we jump to the present day then the film follows Lucie and her friend Anna as they seek revenge on Lucie’s captures until thing take a unsuspecting and sinister turn.
Now first of all I was recommended this movie by my good friend Craig so shout out to him. And all he really said to me was “It’s awesome, but it’s really fucked up” and just like that I was like sure i’ll watch it…and yeah it was fucked up and a little visceral and surreal, but my god is it amazing. Laugier has crafted a movie that tells 3 different stories each with a different genre for each, but somehow makes each story work so concisely with one another it doesn’t feel muddled and tells a compelling if not disturbing story of these two characters, Lucie and Anna. The first act of the movie is a revenge story, the second turns into a full blown horror and the last is a thriller and each act is just as masterful as the last, the first act is tense and bloody, the second carries those two aspects over and adds a horrifying plot that deals with mental anguish and PTSD with some monster movie vibes thrown in and the last act slows things down and delivers traumatic and downright disturbing thriller that keep you hooked right to the end.
Now when i say it splits it up into three genres that doesnt mean its an anthology movie such as Trick ‘r Treat or Ghost Stories for example (Both great watches if you haven’t seen them). Despite the difference in the acts it tells one continuous narrative it’s just hard to pinpoint exactly what sort of single genre this is.
The acting is sublime, especially from Mylène Jampanoï as Lucie she delivers a emotional and disturbing performance as a woman who has gone through more anguish and trauma than one could even believe and even though the movie is in french, a language for one that i do not speak. If you were to ignore the subtitles you would still be able to feel the characters emotions as the physical acting is much more powerful than the dialogue and it tells a story of its own.
The movie is also beautifully shot using visceral and dark imagery, combined with the bright interior of the main set piece of the capture’s luxurious home. There is one shot in the movie which actually gave me goosebumps and i will drop a quick reference image down below, though i’m not so it will hit home the same if you haven’t seen the movie as it the context of the scene that pairs so beautifully with the shot.
Everything about this movie is incredible, however if you are not great with sensitive subject matter such as Torture, Kidnap, Religion etc. Martyrs may not be for you, but if you love movies no matter the concept and can appreciate how masterful this movie is made from start to finish then i recommend you give it a watch…you will not be disappointed.
Final Score.
Title: Masterpiece
Martyrs is a disturbing and visceral look into many sensitive subjects such as mental health and torture,but french film maker Pascal Laugier somehow takes something that you should not want to watch and crafts something that i couldn’t take my eyes away from. Disturbing? Yes,Masterpiece? No Doubt.
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