Haute tension

Un sadomasochiste en auto-apprentissage, jetant quelques clichés bon marché, parfois une comédie gore involontaire (moins, c'est parfois plus), et surtout une chute frénétique. Dans le dégoût et la paralysie du spectateur sensible, Alexandre Aja est plus que doué, mais ce qu'il avait sur papier avant de commencer à tourner est du primitivisme à l'état pur. (04/10/2005)

A slasher like no other, with a thick atmosphere, properly bloody murders and Aja's typical portrayal of the main character's suffering through a truly mental and physical hell. But what's the point of all this skill and dexterity on the part of the director when the film is completely flat and unoriginal in terms of story and has such an idiotic twist that, while it mends a few scrapes and bruises, it also puts a bullet in its own head and all believability dissolves like the scent of lily of the valley at the gym. The brutality, besides, is so gratuitous and exaggerated that it's laughable. Had there been a director other than Aja in charge, it probably would have been an absolute dud, but this way it's almost above average given the terrible script. 60% (09/06/2013)

The opening run through the forest, along with the entire first half, is magnificent. Director Aja builds quite likable and relatable characters, and the film gradually escalates its atmosphere, leading up to the long-awaited "moment." The initial rampage of the psychopath only enhances the already very good impression. However, after the elimination of the "mandatory" victims, the film transitions into its second half, in which all the subsequent killings become unnecessarily gratuitous, and the plot twists are reduced to a cat-and-mouse game between the psychopath and the heroine. The atmosphere automatically starts fading away, and even the "car chase" on the forest road fails to alleviate the general boredom that takes over the film. When everything finally reaches the shocking twist, one of the victims lets out a cry: "This doesn't make sense." As a collection of detailed gorefests it's fascinating, but as a horror film about a psychopath with a motive it's absolutely off. (06/11/2005)

A relatively crushing disappointment. After the film, when I listened to the DVD interview with Cecile De France and listened to her describe the amazing script, which is like a great novel, and how it immediately grabber her, I wondered what the poor girl was on. I would have written something similar after a three-day bender just before bedtime with my own blood and half a gram of coke in my snout. I mean, you just don't see anything that stupid. I'm not just counting the lameness of removing a head with a wardrobe (the guy who had that happen to him must have had leprosy), or the heroine's conversation with the police, which had me slapping my forehead, but I'm mostly referring to the "shocking" ending. I haven't seen something so horribly stupid, unjustified, and pointless in a long time. Such depravity unfortunately obscures the film's pluses, such as the good acting, excellent murders, and the multigore final scene on the road. Such a pity... (15/07/2006)

A one man show of a brute, his razor, axe and circular saw. This is High Tension, a slasher as sharp as a freshly honed blade. The atmosphere is as thick as the fog at Reed's Pond, Aja builds the tension wonderfully and the few scares work great. The gore effects are good, maybe too good, and some scenes slide into almost self-parody with their excessive gore. But the very surprising (at least for me) and crucial plot twist at the very end I didn't eat it, even with my best will and any further comments about it would be a spoiler. Still, I won't go below four * for the breathless moments the film brought me... (28/11/2004)