Martyrs : Movie Review

I must start by saying this is not a movie for the faint-hearted. Also I believe there are a lot of good reviews of this film out there that should be read. Shocking, disturbing, brutal...those are just a few words that can describe this movie. What a human being can do for revenge, or just to find answers is unbelievable. I always ask myself how an actor could play so good in a movie where emotions are taken on a different kind of level. This is a movie that makes you feel disgusted with the world and ashamed of what humans can do to each other. It is a horror film that even for gorehounds the stomach may go nuts. A lot of people are making jokes when watching a horror film, trying to make it easier to watch. The moment Anna gets captured nobody can laugh anymore, it is intense and brutal. A normal person could not even think of making a joke at that moment. This movie depicts what human nature is capable of and makes it sad. The movie starts with a horror story and then walks into another one, over and over again.
The actors did an amazing job, made it feel a lot more realistic with genuine emotions.Morjana Alaoui pulls in a heart wrenching performance. This is another reason why this movie is so good. I read that a lot of people were repulsed by the second part of the movie and it is understandable, but then again, it is just a movie (clearly not made for those with a weak heart). I still don't understand the world we live in, but I think these are realistic events converted in a fictional environment.
The ending went into a direction I was not expecting. Like all horror films, the main character is either saved, either killed. But in this one the director gave a more profound meaning to the whole film. He left us surrounded by mystery and everyone can have their own interpretation.
It is original, unlike a significant number of modern horror movies. Again, foreign films shows us that they are way better than Hollywood films. I give it an 8/10.