High Tension: Movie & DVD Review (2005)

(Originally published 2005)

Who knew that studying in the French countryside could be so hazardous to your health?

In the slasher film "High Tension," college students Marie (Cecile De France) and Alex (Maiwenn--yes, just Maiwenn) flee the city to cram for their upcoming finals in the presumed quietude of Alex's country farmhouse.

Trouble is, when they arrive, so does a homicidal maniac (Philippe Nahon) who brutally abducts Alex, but not before resourceful Marie slips into hiding with some rather sharp hardware at the ready.

What ensues is a cinematic bloodbath from director Alexandre Aja.

The movie is lean, mean and initially focused; it wants to repel you with gore and it might just succeed. The bizarre, fractured ending is a disappointment, so much so that some will wonder what Aja was smoking when he conceived it. Still, the ending shouldn’t negate what comes before it--a visceral thrill ride.

Grade: B-