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High Tension (Unrated Widescreen Edition) (2005)

High Tension (2005)

Art House & International movie directed by Alexandre Aja

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Watch out for ugly French rednecks...

Nov 9, 2008

by Schtinky

Rating:

High Tension is for horror aficionados only, great cinema it is not. At a horror event, I received some very cool promo material for this movie and couldn't wait for it to come out on DVD. After a sweet titillation near the beginning (head jokes will roll), the movie slows down. Keep watching...it gets better.

Marie (Cecile de France) is invited to visit the French countryside by classmate and pal Alexia (Maiwenn le Besco) and stay with her family at their old French manor house. Needless to say, Marie is bored before they even arrive.

Enter the ugly French redneck, who brutally and without reason butchers Alex's family before taking Alex away in his filthy, rattling delivery truck. Marie escapes his notice and follows. Marie must get Alex away from said ugly French redneck before something horrible happens to her, too.

I say no more. A typical horror plot turns into a twisting tale of obsessive love and inner conflict. When this happened, the movie quickly jumped from three stars to four.

The FX gets better as the movie progresses, so the best gore is near the end, when we are introduced to a decrepit circular saw (a wonderfully vile toy in the hands of the insane).

I had no idea at first this was a French movie, and the English dubbed version is pretty bad. I recommend watching it in the original French and using English subtitles, you will pick up more of the emotion and won't miss out by using subtitles. Even in the English dubbed, some of the movie is still in French.

All in all, a nice, bloody tidbit to add to your cheesy horror collection, suitably gory with a "gutsy", twisted ending. Enjoy!

High Tension (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

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QUEENBFLIX January 26, 2009

I have to admit that this movie was over for me within the first 15 minutes or so--when the lead says to her friend that she felt like she was running from herself in her nightmare. Oh God, I thought. She's a psycho and she's doing all the killings herself! Sure enough. Never disregard lines like that--they always mean something. Usually they mean that they've just spoiled the movie for me!

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review by ryguy4738. January 19, 2012

posted in Movie Hype

A nice bloodbath dipped in truly grueling suspense.

*** out of **** Alexandre Aja's "High Tension" ("Haute Tension" in its native country of France) is the rare slasher flick that truly draws the line between the exploitation of violence and truly bloodcurdling suspense. Indeed, there is a high body count - and each and every one of those bodies is soaked in blood, mutilated, and perhaps even cut up a bit - but there is also the desire to make the audience wait for big events to unfold. That may seem like a bit of an uneven … more

Comments (1) Compliments (12)

Quick Tip by cyclone_march. January 04, 2012

posted in Movie Hype

A Quick Tip by cyclone_march

If you like your slasher movies not to make sense then this is THE movie for you. But make sure to watch it with the subtitles ON because if you don't speak French then you're going to try to make sense out of it. Better just read the nonsense and bathe in senseless sang du couchon or it could be real people blood, by the time you hit your blood limit you won't care.

Comment Compliments (6)

review by cenobite7. May 16, 2009

posted in Movie Hype

Horror Retention

Just when I thought the Horror industry was in dire need of some great assistance, Aja delivered the goods & saved the day. In fact, he delivered them so well the film garnered an NC-17 rating which is quite impressive. thankfully, we are able to get this unedited version on DVD. High Tension has all the great elements which make a perfect suspense thriller or even great pyshcological Horror masterpiece. There's gore, edgy terror-filled scenes, & even repressed sexuality which works … more

Comments (7) Compliments (40)

review by MzJen_2_review. August 27, 2006

Aja gave us a graphic and brutal film without any remorse.

Alexandre Aja takes us to a roller-coaster of horror in a movie that lives up to its name. "Haute Tension" keeps the tension to the max as we see a return to the visceral gory violence without being vulgar or void exploitation. In fact, the film manages to hold a perfect equilibrium between the elegance and beauty of French film-making and brutal grim horror of movies like Hooper's "Texas Chainsaw Massacre". Cécile De France plays Marie, who is visiting her college friend … more

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review by liago4. February 07, 2006

posted in Movie Hype

Ending Still Needs Work

After seeing High Tension you start to think why people were making such a big deal about Hostel because this movie goes crazy with the gore. The film was going in a good direction until the amazing but horrible end. The ending is lazy and you'll see what I mean when you see it. Basically your being leaded to believe one thing and that belief is ripped right from under you when they switch everything up. They give the story away very obviously in the beginning and I think they thought nobody was … more

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review by liago4. February 06, 2006

posted in Movie Hype

Ending Needs Work

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review by rmurray847. November 30, 2005

It's the real deal...a psycho killer movie with TENSION!!

This is what psycho killer thrillers should be like! Actually INTENSITY, actual fear...actually making the viewer uncomfortable. Marie and Alexa, two college roommates, are off to visit Alexa's parents in their new country home. Alexa is a bit boy-crazy, and Marie is obviously smitten with her friend. They arrive at the quaint home late at night, briefly meet the parents and little brother, and then go to bed. Suddenly, the peaceful, remote house is descended upon by a true … more

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see all High Tension (2005) reviews (8)

About the reviewer

Schtinky
Ranked #30

I want to thank Everyone for welcoming me back! :) I'm here to stay folks, my sabbatical on writing reviews is over and I'll continue to review for Lunch. It's great to be back, too! Thanks again for … more

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About this movie

Wiki

Home to some of the world's best food and fashion, the French also have the wonderful habit of producing some of the world's best movies. WithHigh Tension, French director Alexandre Aja offers up a bloody buffet of terror; a violent concoction of style over substance, with a bloody French twist. Two college girlfriends, Maria and Alex, take a weekend to study at the secluded country home of Alex's parents. Shortly after their arrival, a mysterious killer appears, and things take a shockingly terrible turn for the worse. As the horror and body count rises, Maria and Alex find themselves fighting for their lives, and it's revealed that things are not exactly as they seem. Essentially a one-act cat-and-mouse affair,High Tensionis an explosive bloody thrill ride that rarely lets up. Oozing style in every color-saturated frame and boasting some intense performances, Aja mainly succeeds in sustaining an intense momentum throughout the film. The plot occasionally suffers from a thin, flimsy storyline, and the abundant graphic scenes of violence will either thrill and delight, or simply disgust. Nonetheless, this adrenalin-fueled addition to the genre gives the American slasher flick a real run for its money.High Tensionis high-art horror, and comes highly recommended.--Matt Wold

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