I just thought I had to throw in my penny's worth here and express my surprise at the glowing reviews for this film. Normally I tend to agree with the majority of reviews in the IMDb comments bit, but I feel like I live on a different planet to most of my fellow reviewers here. I had really high expectations for this movie, I loved Haute Tension, Calvaire, Sheitan, Inside, Trouble Every Day, Irreversible, Dobermann, etc etc; These new french horror flicks are really exciting, they follow the lead from the 80s french horror 'Baby Blood', in that they are uncompromising, gory, unpredictable, and even sexy. Frontier(s), sounded like it could easily fit in with this ethos, but it was a total blow out.

Frontier(s) is slickly shot, quite gory, and has some bits that should be scary, but it has this horribly immature atmosphere to it, like it was made by a bunch of 15 year old kids let loose with a decent budget and short term memory loss. The editing is ridiculous, rendering the film unwatchable and incoherent in the action scenes, Frontier(s) makes 'Van Helsing' look like a Bela Tarr movie. The acting is really bad too, with the main characters performances reminding me of some kind of inner London 'Yoof' centre Am-Dram play. The director has obviously watched 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and realised that if everyone screams their head off and goes into (unconvincing) spasms, then they will create a scary atmosphere. All it does is pull you out of the film.

Finally, the plot is completely stupid (even by horror standards), introducing a Nazi sub- plot (There is definitely a 'La Haine' type plot element, with Paris rioters coming into contact with neo-Nazis, hmm), and making no attempt at all to explain anything.

If you want to watch a film where by the end you feel like you have been shouted at and smacked around the face with a packet of Bernard Mathews gammon for 10 hours, then watch this film. Otherwise avoid like the bubonic plague.

Reviewers of this French offering frequently comment about how there's nothing new here. If you've seen this or that then you won't be treated to the "never seen before". Okay, I agree. We're approaching a century of cinema, folks. Like Chefs with the same cupboards with the same spices and cooking methods turning out very different dishes ... it's about the recipe. Everything's been done before. The "never seen before" is a tall task. Think about it. Take a few minutes and come up with something "never seen before". Yeah, they're out there but very, very rare. More likely, to post with a "different" film, you're going to have to use ingredients common to movie goers and genre aficionados and deliver them in a different recipe. All film makers are in the same boat here and with the welcome explosion of independent film makers, similar movies are bound to be made. Some will be better than others regarding similar subjects. Anyone believing films like SAW or Hostel were breaking ground simply aren't familiar with cinema history. FX doesn't count here because technology advances and can make the "had to be implied" of yesteryear an "in your face" today. Not always a good thing. But it can be. The "skin peeling" scenes in the early 30s "The Black Cat" are going to be hard to beat, FX or not. Torture is old in cinema. Seems we've all been warped for a long time. All of cinema, except for the very cutting edge, is repeating and revisiting earlier themes. "Frontier(s)" revisits in a peculiar and interesting way ... if you're bent in this direction. It's a period piece, it has the TCM butcher, the family patriarch (played so well that I wanted to kill him - he had the look and nailed the heinous arrogance of a human monster), all kinds of uncomfortable sub tones, drippy bloody stuff, realistic butchery, cult-ish sickness, really weird ladies, gratuitous pigs, dead nipples ... the list goes on and on. Fess up, you wouldn't be here if you weren't warped a little. Relax, you're among friends. Scores high on the "icky" meter. But that's why we watch these things, right? This one has some intelligence behind it. And some real "whoa..." moments. Watch.

Frontier(s) is a fast-paced, very violent thrill-ride from Xavier Gens. While it won't be everyone's taste, for fans of full-on gruesome action it's a must. It's basically a very decent version of 'Hostel' with a couple of thugs on the run from riot-torn Paris who seek refuge at a seedy hotel, unbeknownst what lies ahead. It's not a great film by any means but it is a thrilling one. The lead actress did a great job, but there's also good stuff the actor who played Farid and the actor who played the meathead lunatic. Its style is slick, just what I enjoy watching. Fans of the genre will know what to expect, others may not. But I recommend 'Frontier(s) for a mind-f*ck of a night. ***/*****