Director: Coralie
Fargeat
Notable Cast: Matilda
Lutz, Kevin Janssens, Vincent Columbe, Guillaume Bouchede
There is a current movement in horror, among some of the
younger directors particularly, that sees the exploitation films of the past as
a leaping point to create a new sense of artistry. The directing combo of
Cattet and Forzani are breathing new life into giallo, for example, and now
there is a new name on the scene making her mark: Coralie Fargeat. With her
debut feature length film, Revenge, Fargeat
is out to modernize – in an artful manner – the rape n’ revenge flick. Seeing
as the genre has seen its fair share of terrible films to balance out the more
impressive ones like Ms. 45 or the
original I Spit on Your Grave, this
is a welcome movement. Rest assured, Revenge
is a BEAST of a film. Salaciously stylish, horrifyingly uncomfortable, and
unafraid to embrace its exploitation roots with an artistic flair for the
modern. It will make you squirm, gasp, cover your eyes, gag, cheer, and white
knuckle the arm rest on your chair. Not only is it an effective film to bring
the sub-genre back, it most certainly brings it back with a wicked vengeance
that allows it to overcome its own flaws.