Inside

Das over-the-top Finale verdeckt alle Mängel von Drehbuchklischees und der vorhersagbaren Pointe. Und mit ihr verwandelt sich das Werk von einem zweitklassigen Slasher-Film in ein tragisches Drama. Das Finale ähnelt Jacksons Braindead - Dead Alive wie kein anderer Film, obwohl es sich in einer realen Welt in einem Haus in der Nachbarstraße abspielt und keine Zombies hat. Ein ultrabrutaler Exploitation-Splatter, der keine Angst vor einer Steigerung mit pulsierender elektronischer Begleitung hat, weil er weiß, dass dann umso besser in dem richtigen Moment ein schicksalhaftes Klavier klingen wird. Für Subgenre-Fans ist es eine Delikatesse, für normale Zuschauer*innen ein schrecklicher Film, den man sich nicht ansehen kann. (17.02.2015)

The French have become very good at horror and Inside is one of the best horror films of 2007 for me. A nerve-wrecking spectacle that blends the bloodiness of High Tension (but multiplied several times) and the atmosphere of Them. It tells the story of a pregnant woman who lost her husband in a car accident four months ago, it’s Christmas Eve and her home has been invaded by a psychopath, unleashing hell. I must warn that this film is not for people who can’t bear the sight of blood, because there is a lot of it. Unfortunately, on a second viewing that bloodiness is no longer that unsettling and you start noticing some very big issues with the behaviour of the characters that become truly massive by the end. As a result, the rating goes down to 85%. (10.02.2008)

The display of explicit violence is wonderfully intertwined with uncompromisingly wicked tension, creating a unique atmosphere that will make you bite your nails, and that’s in the best case. It is surprising that, given the rules of the genre, the film still maintains a level of relative plausibility, both in terms of the behavior of the characters and in the layering of the butchered bodies, thus taking on an even more twisted and brutal dimension. In certain cinematic disciplines, the French are beginning to look like unrivaled champions. (18.04.2008)

Over the thousands of movies I’ve watched, I’ve gotten used to the fact that some directors like to indulge in spilled guts. Each and every time I see a similar movie, I keep thinking that there’s probably some sickos who enjoy them, but I just always feel like I’m gonna throw up. Cinemax offered me a horror and I didn’t really have any clue what it’s about and decided to watch it because I just didn’t wanna go to bed yet. Now I wish I did, because as tame and relatively normally bloody the beginning was, the ending was properly brutal. I don’t think that it was any sort of filmmaking breakthrough, but as far as slashers go, it’s probably a high-quality attempt. For most of the movie, not much really happens with the scissors, but then in the end, a cut belly, a C-section, the most brutal child birth ever and a bleeding-out of the main character totally make up for it. Some freaks will probably take delight in it – I just know that it’s an absolute zero-star trash. (21.03.2015)

Keine Frontiers, keine Martyrs, sondern INSIDE - für mich wohl der absolute Höhepunkt unter den französischen Horror! Die eisige erste Hälfte hat mich perfekt im eigenen Schweiss gebadet, um im zweiten Teil ein wahnsinniges Massaker zu entfesseln. Die Kamera war hervorragend, sie hat mich großartig in das Geschehen hineingezogen, die Musik hat die erdrückende Atmosphäre im Inneren des Hauses perfekt ergänzt. Und die Effekte... das ist eine Geschichte für sich. Hier wird vor allem mit Scheren gemordet, aber auch Nadeln und Pistolen kommen zum Einsatz. Die Frau in Schwarz hatte wirklich ein unangenehmes Aussehen, ich möchte sie nicht in der Nacht treffen. Ihre Arbeit mit den Scheren war äußerst unangenehm für mich :) Trotz gelegentlicher logischer Fehler habe ich genau das bekommen, was ich von dem Film erwartet habe, vielleicht sogar ein bisschen mehr. Auf jeden Fall bin ich überaus zufrieden. Ein blutiges Gemetzel, definitiv nichts für schwache Nerven. (27.08.2010)

An interesting premise drowned in hectolitres of blood and purposeless brutality, which is perhaps meant to mask the zero psychology and bland characters of the two protagonists. The attempt to combine exploitation, Giallo, slasher and French creepiness against a backdrop of bloody carnage and unpleasant atmosphere may blend nicely and leave the viewer breathless, but none of the ingredients work on their own to make for a truly powerful experience. Sarah looks strange and unlikeable and the only reason we don’t wish her dead it’s because she’s pregnant. Moreover, her character is probably only in the film so that the make-up artists can play with her body, and there’s absolutely no attempt to get closer to her or get to know her past. The same applies to the deranged visitor, who has a clear motive, but her actions are incomprehensible and her exaggerated brutality is at times almost ridiculous. Yet the filmmaking quality is there, the twists are unexpected and several scenes had a real horror feel. Unfortunately, the result is a maddeningly overwrought and self-indulgent film that, as has been the French habit of late, will only be remembered for its shocking brutality. 45% (23.05.2013)

French exploitation in all its glory and with a fantastic last shot... this is how it should be... But Martyrsis still a notch above that. (31.10.2009)

A fine mess and demonstrative example of the fact that being a mother-to-be is really no walk in the park. What I found most fascinating was that no one is really messing around with anything here, and just when you think to yourself that they can't possibly show this there!!!, it subsequently makes you feel weak compared to what is yet to come. I haven't experienced such intense feelings of disgust in a long time, yet it's fascinating in a perverse way. 75% (27.08.2021)