Les 7 jours du talion (2010) Reviews

• Not what you might expect but very profound

  kluseba2010-10-17

  This movie is a very intense psychological thriller filmed in very grey and depressive images and words that create a perfect atmosphere for this doom slow paced movie. The movie seems to be a simple vengeance story, but it goes far beyond this. Let me warn you first: There are not many torture scenes in this movie, so if you expect some gore stuff here, you may not be satisfied at all in the end. The title and trailer could be somehow misleading. The film has in fact a very philosophical touch and questions about the sense of life and death as well as vengeance or forgiveness. The movie shows how difficult such topics are and has almost some documentary influences as it shows the reactions of the society, the police, the victim's families. But there are also metaphoric elements in this movie like the scenes with the dead deer body that represents the dead body of the raped and killed daughter that lead us slowly towards a melancholic end that many find unsatisfying but which fits perfectly to the whole atmosphere and intention of the movie. The story is surprisingly realistic. All those points I really like about this great Quebecker movie. What I rather dislike is that there is something like a highlight missing. When the father has kidnapped the murderer of his daughter and the police is looking for him, you expect that the tension and action raises, that each character's profoundness may be developed and that there are some disturbing twists but nothing happens at all. The movie concentrates on the profoundness of the main character but I think that the characters of the murderer, the police officer or the kidnapper's wife could have been more developed. The movie also concentrates too much on the logical follow-up of the story and the tension goes really down at some point in the movie as there are no real surprises or turning points like in the heavier and more disturbing shocker "5150 on Elm Street", a movie based on the novel by the same author as this one. This movie's strength is its depressive atmosphere and the main actor's brilliant acting but it has too much of a one man show. If you are looking for an alternative depressive psycho thriller with some philosophical elements, I highly recommend this movie for you. But if you are looking for a bloody shocker with a twisted ending, just forget about it.

• Very disturbing

  JeremyAR2010-02-06

  This movie is very disturbing, and I am used to violence in movies. In fact, it is not the violence that disturbed me, but rather the very, very tense atmosphere charged with various emotions. It feels so heavy, I am still uneasy, an hour and a half after watching it. Those who have watched Saw or Hostel will find the violence bearable, but this is not a gore movie like these two franchises; it is a psychological film. I believe that knowing these actors very well (not personally) made me biased towards this movie. I am convinced that if the movie would have featured different actors, or perhaps if it wasn't Québécois, I wouldn't be as troubled as I am right now. It is a weird feeling that I cannot really explain. The movie itself is very well done, technically and artistically. Daniel Grou's direction is near perfect for that kind of movie, expect maybe a few shots which, in my opinion, were unnecessary. The movie has no soundtrack at all; long stills of the character(s) in silence help getting in the mood, help understanding, if that's possible. Which brings me to this point: this is a rather slow movie. It reminds me in many ways of Asian cinema, particularly (some) Japanese movies (maybe Yasujiro Ozu). There is minimal dialogue, but well delivered by the actors and I have to give a mention to Martin Dubreuil, who played Anthony Lemaire. I didn't know him before this movie and he delivers a terribly solid performance here. Claude Legault is also excellent. All in all, this is a great film. There is one thing I recommend though; do not see this in the theatre, because of the damned food and plastic bags noises. The silences in this movie need to be respected and it is very annoying when you hear someone talk during this movie, even more so because there's no music. Rent it or buy the DVD (Blu-ray?). This is my first review, I hope it makes sense.

• Brutal Revenge Drama

  CinemaPat2010-10-29

  "Does knowing your wife's murderer is behind bars make life any more bearable?" "7 Days" is a powerful and brutal film about a happily married surgeon who as a result of the rape and murder of his daughter falls into a dark obsession with revenge. WARNING: this movie is VERY graphic and not for the easily offended or people with a weak stomach. "7 Days" deals with a very difficult subject matter and does not hold back. Claude Legault (Bruno) and Rémy Girard (Hervé) did an incredible job with the acting. Fanny Mallette (Sylvia) also did wonderfully, though I would have liked to have seen more of her throughout the movie. I found myself wondering why the director did not feature more of the mother's struggle. There is one scene in particular that showcases the raw talent Legault and Mallette have. It was a tour de force of brilliant acting. However, the movie is not without it's faults. One of the more interesting decisions made by the director was to not include a musical soundtrack. This worked I think in favor of the atmosphere but there could have been some fill in music at times. It seemed like the director was trying to fill holes in the story a bit too hard. There were a couple of things that didn't make much sense to do and the ending left a little to be desired. "7 Days" may not be the cream of the crop of revenge flicks, but it does succeed where others fail. It is such a harrowing subject matter and is shot in such a realistic way that you are forced to have an emotional response, whether you like it or not. There are some powerful visuals that will stay with you for days, possibly months after.

• What every Father says he would like to do.

  ElijahCSkuggs2010-07-29

  Just like in the recent Australian revenge thriller The Horseman, we have another Father who's snapped and is now taking matters into his own hands on account of his little girl's demise. Where that film brought a more in your face, action oriented style, 7 Days bring you a more heady approach that focuses on despair, grief and self-conflict. But that's not to say this one, on any level, is less brutal. As I hinted at, 7 Days is a story of a Father's vengeance for his 8 year old daughter that was raped and murdered. He masterminds a plan to get the perpetrator alone for 7 Days so he can quell his own flooding emotions. It's a simple story that people across the board can relate to, but only a select few would ever try to tackle; and it shows, as this is no joy-ride for the Father, and his actions against his daughter's killer are eating him up inside. 7 Days is an engrossing film; with it's bleak and unforgiving style, it captured me right from the get go, and didn't let loose until the final scene. And at it's core were the performances by the actors involved, who all did stand-out jobs. But I have to really commend the man who played the murderer, Martin Dubreuil. He did an amazing job as a man going through a smörgåsbord of pain and mental battles. One scene in particular, where himself and our lead (Claude Legault) had a face to face; it literally had my breath at a stand-still. I was not expecting to enjoy this film as much I did. I'm super hit or miss with any film that has torture in it; as I think most people are. I feel like I've seen every single one as well; from the mainstream Hostels to the cheap and ugly, Scrapbook, to the overly ridiculous and vile, The Butcher. And as a whole, the sub-genre is pretty weak. But when torture is used as a secondary outfit in a movie, instead of the go to ploy, then I feel, there's hope for the sub-genre. This movie first and foremost delivers a story that thrusts you into the Father's shoes, and urges you to relate through either simple but affective symbolism, affective and violent outbursts, or scenes of pain-staking solitude. And also adding in a sub-plot with a hardened but sensitive detective that's trying to stop our protagonist, the film only intensifies. 7 Days is a graphic, intimate and emotional film that tells the story of questionable actions from the side you're supposed to be caring for. As the man descends deeper into vengeance he'll quickly reach a fine line that may be impossible to turn back from. You take this journey with him, not knowing which way he'll go.

• Very realistic

  robendeca2010-08-09

  One of the most realistic movies I have ever seen. It even beats Requiem for a Dream which was my top "human", raw and crewel movie. I say "human" since I have no better word to use for the description of the film. Yes it was an awesome camera angle play. I will disagree with some viewers about the absents of music. I think it was the key to the success of the film, with no music, viewer is not "guided" to how he should feel. He simply fills his own personal subjective emotion to colorize the scenery. I think the role play of the main character was performed at top level. The way he shows his emotion, how he jumps from totally in control to completely collapsed, is amazing. The movie is not for people who prefer to live their live in a bubble chocolate world. It's for those who seek and appreciate the geniality of things.