High Tension (2003)
Wow. Just when I thought the word “intense” could no longer be used in describing a new genre film, along comes director Alexandre Aja’s “High Tension” to prove me wrong. Anyone in the mood for a full throttle, balls-to-the-fucking-wall slasher embedded with hints of “TCM”, “Maniac” and “Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer” under it’s sticky, gore soaked nails would be wise to track down an UNCUT version of this baby. Did I mention Gianetto (“Zombie”, “The Beyond”) De Rossi did the special effects? Whew. Lame stateside slasher fare like “Valentine” and “Urban Legend” best be taking notes…this is how it’s done my friends.
Two college friends, Marie and Alex, are off to Alex’s family home in the rural French countryside for a little study time. Once night approaches, the family home is invaded by a fat, sweaty psycho (Philippe Nahon in a wonderfully creepy performance) who wastes no time in delivering Alex’s family a lesson in “the old ultra violence”, massacring mom, dad and kid brother with gleeful, blood soaked abandon, and tying up Alex to take home for dessert. Marie, meanwhile, hides in the house where she witnesses all of the murders but remains undetected by said psycho killer. Once our killer takes off with Alex in his “Jeepers Creepers” styled truck, things start to take a rather unique twist…
“High Tension” is so frigging cliché’ that it’s almost unique. In a day and age of self-referential, “hip” slashers making fun of their own (and oftimes limited) conventions, Aja delivers a swaggering, knee-to–the-nuts flick that practically out intensifies almost every Stateside horror film of the past 10 years in the first 30 minutes alone. No shit. The initial “home invasion” sequence is just so unabashedly violent and gory, with legendary fx man De Rossi delivering the grue like it’s 1980 and he’s back on the set of a Lucio Fulci film. Ax-whackings, head smashings by table and barb wire, power saw mayhem, and, to top it off, one of the nastiest throat slittings ever committed to celluloid. Way to go Gino, you even had my jaded ass flinching a time or two. Along with all of the righteous gore, “High Tension” proves it’s is more than a lesson in onscreen sanguinary spillage. Director Aja servers up a heady brew of tension along with the violence, while filming with various sepia hues that give everything a nice n dirty vibe ala “TCM” and “The Hills Have Eyes”. Films like those just looked mean, and here it’s no exception. Things do become a little muddled and the pacing sorta bogs down once the film moves from the home invasion sequence to the road, but after such an intense opening half hour nothing can really follow. Many have complained about the “twist” ending not making any sense, but if you watch this baby a second time you’ll pick up on all sorts of homo-erotic/psycho sexual undertones that explain (at least to me) everything. Definitely worth a view for slasher connoisseurs looking for some blood, guts, and brains to combat the squeaky clean gloss and stupidity of every stateside slasher since Craven pussed out with “Scream”.