Deep in the Woods --Review--

[Zach]

**THIS USER STEALS REVIEWS. THIS POST ONLY REMAINS INTACT FOR EVIDENCE PURPOSES. SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.** - Bojangles

Deep in the Woods

Directed By: Lionel Delplanque

Cast:
*Marie Trintignant ... La mère
*Suzanne MacAleese ... Pélagie
*Maud Buquet ... Mathilde
*Alexia Stresi ... Jeanne
*Denis Lavant ... Stéphane
*Vincent Lecoeur ... Wilfried
*Michel Muller ... Le policier
*François Berléand ... Axel de Fersen
*Clotilde Courau ... Sophie
*Clément Sibony ... Matthieu
*Thibault Truffert ... Nicolas



Plot:
The film opens with a long traveling shot of a woman reading "Little Red Riding Hood" to a child, and it's a dazzling introduction, with the camera peering through a keyhole and gliding into the room, leading up a truly unsettling murder. We are then introduced to our lead players, a quintet of actors hired to perform Red Riding Hood for an eccentric millionaire, Axel de Fersen(Berleand), and his autistic grandson, Nicolas ( a spooky kid named Thibault Truffert) . As the title suggests, Axel's home is an isolated castle deep within the woods, and from the moment the group arrives, there is an immediate sense of dread, with Axel displaying a rather nasty temperment,( as well as a bit of "affection" for Wilfried (Lecoeur)), a bizarre "game-keeper" named Stephane (Denis Levant) who hovers over Axel protectively, and, of course, the autistic Nicolas, who manages to be creepy just by sitting there. Meanwhile, the police are in hot pursuit of a serial rapist who has apparently taken up residence in the 10 kilometers of woods surrounding Axel's estate. Before long, we are thrown headlong into a Giallo-like murder-mystery that works quite well until the final act, where the film seems to run out of gas. Still, it's quite a ride while it lasts!

Review:

Five sexy french young actors receive an invitation to perform their controversial retelling of Little Red Riding Hood myth for the mysterious Axel de Fersen. As the beautiful neurotic young girls and boys drive ever faster, ever nearer to the remote venue - the air thick with jealousy, ego, and sex - their bitching is constantly interrupted by relentless and insetting news bulletins. Disquieting reports of savage rapes and bloody serial killings. Something ugly is stalking this remote neck of woods. The tension grows. Deep in the Woods (akaromenons-nous dans les bois) is a sort of French spin on the glossy post-Scream teen slasher. All the ingredients are present, from the cast of beautiful young men and women, the hip soundtrack, right on down to the film's packaging, which looks straight out of Dimension's art department. However, all similiarities end there. Judging this "book" by it's cover would be a big mistake, because Deep in the Woods is more Argento than Craven, and is one of the finest examples of European horror to make it on to DVD.Understanding that every one has their own opinion, I was shocked to find out that this movie only has a 4 point rating. Forget the rating and give it a chance. The movie is photographed extremely well. You rarely see this, especially in horror movies. I like to say it reminds me of Raimi. Along with the visuals, the story will keep you guessing. The last horror to do that for me was SCREAM. This is the non-literal adaption of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD and is poorly marketed as an English teen slasher. I expected to laugh at this rental, as I love to do with every other B-movie. This is more. Simply, a great horror movie. Oddly enough, I am usually the one jumping in horrors and not my girlfriend, suprisingly we both were this time. Cough, but I did it in a manly way. Regardless of the majority rating, take in consideration those who liked it. This movie is worth it if you like the genre. Oh, and watch it with sub-titles. Normally, I would say it wouldn't matter THAT much; however, like MONONOKE it is much better with it's original performances. I hope you give it a chance and enjoy the photography, suspense, and playfully amusing (read: gory) deaths. As a whole, I highly recommend Deep in the Woods. It's leagues better than any of it's American counterparts (although so is sleeping or watching paint dry), and is sure to please fans of Argento, Bava, et all. The only complaints I have are the same complaints I always have with Giallo's and that is the cardboard characterizations and lack of logic in the script, although Deep in the Woods is actually pretty consistent in the latter. So for all that might expect me to dislike this movie. Wrong! I truly enjoyed it for a number of reasons. It's gaudy look and big-budget visuals (it really is a feast for the eyes). One of the first shots is a bird against a slightly cloudy sky and that image is almost worth the price of admission alone. The luxurious and atmospheric score that accompanies all the mayhem is classy and nice. The murder set-pieces that are choreographed with assurance and style. Let's just hope that this director can sink his teeth in a better script next time. Then we might TRULY be able to look forward to a great horror movie, one that even could become a classic within it's genre!

Rate:
4/5

[Friday The 13th]

keep it up Zach

[FreddysFingers]

I never decided to pick this up because the box art looks really gay. I might have to suck it up then.