SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

plpregent Based on a novel by Patrick Senecal, "Les 7 jours du talion" tells the story of surgeon Bruno Hamel, whose daughter is brutally raped and murdered. Hamel decides to do himself justice by kidnapping the murderer and plans on torturing him for seven days, after which he will execute him.Does this story sound familiar? It probably does. As a matter of fact, plenty of movies have exploited almost identical story lines. However, I can guarantee that the approach that this film takes is very refreshing and will manage to deliver plenty of food for thought and discomfort to its audience."Les 7 jours du talion" doesn't waste a lot of time in showing the perfect happy family clichéd scenes. It jumps to the tragedy quite quickly, and takes just enough time to show the impact of the loss on Hamel's couple, and the emptiness that they're left with on a daily basis. What happens next, as you may imagine, is a descent into one's personal hell, as he kidnaps the monster who killed his daughter, locks himself up with him in a secluded cabin in the middle of the woods, and performs horrible acts of torture on him.Keep in mind that this is a gruesome film. Some scenes are quite graphic, while others leave a lot to the imagination of the viewer, but are just as painful to watch. What's really interesting, however, is the psychological evolution of the protagonist.One of the things that truly differentiates "Les 7 jours du talion" from the bunch of similar existing films is the absence of music, even when the credits start rolling. I saw this at a movie theatre, and rarely did I ever see a crowd so awkwardly uncomfortable. As a viewer, with the musical element taken out of the equation, you are left with the rawness of the emotions on display. The music isn't there to dictate how you should feel during the torture scenes, or when you see Bruno Hamel hold the mutilated dead body of his own daughter. It may not sound like much of a big deal, but trust me, it breaks a barrier between the viewer and the notion that he's watching a film. It is hard to explain, but the experience somehow feels more authentic in a way, by letting the actions on display speak for themselves. It was quite surreal to see people at the movie theatre laughing in nervousness when the murderer is crying and begging Hamel not to torture him. Trust me, it's not because they thought it was funny. It's because they were anxious of what was going to happen next, because the music did not provide a single hint.The paradox behind the concept of revenge is the main theme of this film. And as it works its way up to the brilliant ending, it constantly evolves within the protagonist's mind. While not overly original in the questions that it raises, what's really impressive here is the delivery : the photography is cold, gritty, and not too overly desaturated; Daniel Grou's directing is stellar; Claude Legault, as always, is absolutely fantastic, and so is the rest of the cast.The ending left me with a big smile on my face. It's simply brilliant...that very last bit of dialogue is worth watching the entire film for.

Hitchcoc I suppose we all have had a moment when we read a story of brutality, the rape or murder of someone done in an excruciatingly violent way by someone who has no remorse. That's what happens here and the ugliness it brings to the parents of the little girl would get anyone's hackles up. So this director contrives such a situation and then goes into the "what if" mode. What follows is about as ugly as anything I've ever seen on film. The rest of the movie is about the brutalizing of the killer. It's not just that he is tortured, but we are invited in to watch his torture in graphic detail. Because the torture is mostly physical, there is nothing redemptive about it. The father becomes robot-like in his daily devotions to the art of vengeance. He ignores what he is doing to his family and becomes an automaton. He creates machines and devices that inflict horrors. I really don't want to spend any time with someone who would enjoy watching this and the fact that it was popular makes me wonder what we are made of. I'm not averse to severe punishment for criminals, but this is beyond the pale.

laurajanedaniels I base myself on the fact that i've viewed a lot of horror films and psychological thrillers and the like, this is unlike any i have seen although i did watch a trailer on the DVD when it loaded about a little boy thats abducted and killed and the parents the father being a doctor get revenge 'the torture' although i haven't seen said film yet I'm kinda thinking its gonna be the same thing..I like the fact there is no soundtrack to this film, i really get a sense of the parents pain and I'm pretty sure if someone did that to my daughter i wouldn't be responsible for my actions either.Its graphic yet moving and the actors played the roles well.. Honestly cannot complain

FF_Beaner I read the book before watching the movie. Les sept jours du Talion by Pat. Senecal was way better then the movie. Major element were not put in the movie. The deer thing was originally a dog always crying making Bruno Hamel go insane and yelling at the forest. The movie also forgot to show how crazy and mad bruno hamel turned. we didn't saw him driving drunk and almost crashing in cars. The story seemed incomplete since it lacked on explanation of why he turned like he was in the end. They really rushed the part were he organized the kidnapping of Lemaire, which in the book was methodical and complex that we saw he had turned cold and silent. For the actor part, Marc legault did a really good work, we really felt his anger and his pain. Other then that, not many actor seemed to emerge from the movie. The wife was also left apart of the story, making the movie miss another important thing from the book. In the end, it wasn't as good as 5150 rue des ormes, another book/movie from senecal, but it was worth watching it.