This intense, eerie survival horror film from Belgium is one effectively haunting piece of nightmare cinema.
A Belgium singer gets off the beaten path en route to a gig and ends up at a rustic country inn. The lonely, strange owner of the inn is extremely eager to help his lost guest, but his hospitality soon reveals a sinister, psychotic vendetta.
Calvaire (known as The Ordeal in English) is a brutally shocking film that has taken quite a bit of influence from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974). However, unlike many Texas imitators, Calvaire actually manages to reach the horrific levels of madness that made Texas Chainsaw so frightening. Calvaire is more than just a homage to classic backwoods horror, it's an almost other-worldly bizarre assault on the senses. The psychological terror here far out weighs any violence, which Calvaire has surprisingly little of. The plot builds to great tension and some fantastically crazy sequences. The direction of Fabrice Du Welz is quite stylish, giving the film a great gritty atmosphere of dread. Also the wintry Belgium locations are somehow both eerie and lovely, making for a unique and isolated setting for the action.
The cast is quite strong. Jackie Berroyer is terrific as the crazed innkeeper who will stop at nothing to keep his guest. Laurent Lucas does a good turn as the tormented victim. Jean-Luc Couchard is memorable as a wondering nut case who constantly looks for his missing dog.
Calvaire is a brilliant little horror film. It's a sharp entry in the backwoods horror genre that wisely remembers the scariest attacks are not on the body, but on the mind. A real winner for the genre.
**** out of ****
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