Martyrs

Martyrs directed by Pascal Laughier is widely regarded as one of the most extreme films ever made, notorious for eliciting intense reactions in audiences during its first showings, ranging from walkouts to members of the audience even fainting at points during the film, but what is it that makes Martyrs so inherently disturbing?. 

The film opens with the now infamous shot of a young girl , bruised and beaten, escaping a dilapidated building as her legs give way beneath her while her frail body pushes forward through the pain, driven by nothing but the sheer will to survive the ordeal she has endured.

We then follow Lucie as she is entered into a psychiatric hospital for evaluation and it is here that she meets another patient named Anna, who is described by her psychologists as having adopted the role of Lucie's protector. 

The first act of Martyrs plays out like the third act of a revenge film with Lucie tracking down the persons she believes to be responsible for her torment while Anna helplessly follows along, bound to an innate desire to save her friend who is haunted by the events which occurred in her childhood.

Martyrs is a film which uses violence and torture as a means of conveying its message and at its core is a film about survivors guilt, purity, transcending pain through love, endurance and ultimately acceptance.
It is in many ways a modern retelling of the crucifixion and is explicitly about what is truly required for a person to be considered a Martyr and not a victim, 
the willingness to suffer in order save others.
There is not a single film like it, it isn't "torture porn" as some might have you believe, it is a tragedy.

I do not consider its violence to be gratuitous through it is graphic in parts, every action in the film serves an overall purpose.
For example in the midst of a relentless torture scene a rising piano score begins to play almost sonically emphasising the films message, it's a beautiful moment within the all encompassing darkness of the film.

The films ending has received much debate,
I can't openly discuss my interpretation here in any detail as it would ruin your experience, however  what I can tell you is that I strongly disagree with anyone who would say that the ending is in any way nihilistic and bleak,
in fact I believe it is quite the opposite, 
I believe that there is a great deal of solace to be found in the films conclusion, to me in its final frames it makes a statement that only those truly pure of heart can catch a glimpse of paradise,
if only for a fleeting solitary moment.