Gueules noires

Claustrophobic and disturbing medium-budgeted film packed with tension , shocking scenes , thrills , and chills. Factory boss Fouassier (Philippe Torreton) assigns a mining mission to Roland. Miners (Amir El Kacem, Thomas Solivérès, Diego Martín, Bruno Sanches) led by Roland are forced to take Professeur Berthier (Jean-Hugues Anglade) underground with them, to take samples for his measurements. Later on, they're exploring deep underground , the expedition gets horribly worse when they become lost , rockfall collapse and they don't find the dark way out . After delivering further into the cavern , things go awry. A landslide prevents them from going back up, and they discover a crypt from another time, unknowingly waking up a bloodthirsty creature.

Horror story filled with suspense, upsettling supernatural events, relentless terror, as well as lots of gore and blood . This frightening french movie concerns a group of miners, being trapped and chased into claustrophobic caves. Mathieu Turi (Meander) directs this scary horror film starring Samuel Le Bihan, winner of the French Cesar for Best New Actor in 1997 for Captain Conan, and being set in the depths of a coal mine in 1956. An horror film, taking place a chilling beginning, after that, the plot jumps forward 100 years, when a group of miners and a professor in search of samples become trapped 1000 meters underground; there they must find a way out and escape the sinister presence that lurks in the tunnels. Along with Samuel Le Bihan, the cast is completed by French Cesar winner Jean-Hugues Anglade (Queen Margot), Diego Martin (Rec 3), Amir El Kacem (Overdose), Tomas Solivéres (Mr. Henri shares a flat), among others.

This is one of the creepiest french horror movies of the last years and it contains thriller, chiller , cannibalism , blood and gore. The horror and gory moments are compactly made and fast-moving in which the brutal instincts of survival of the human beings are well shown. Ordinary terror film features an acceptable french cast , being shot on location in Wallers-Arenberg, Nord, France, Oignies, Pas-de-Calais, Bruay-la-Buissière, Angoulême and Morocco.

It packs a sinister, ghastly and horrifying atmosphere, full of eerie scenes by means of shaky camera carried out by cinematographer Alain Duplantier or with camera over shoulders and at times itself takes place from personal point of sight from cameraman .

The motion picture was professionally directed by Mathieu Turi, but nothing special because we have seen these terrifying situations many times before and even better filmed. Turi is a nice craftsman, a writer/filmmaker expert on terror films ,and he has directed a few movies and Shorts, such as: Meander (2020), Hostile (2017), Broken (2012), Sons of Chaos (2010). Well worth seeing if you like the terror films.

Other pictures dealing with this sub-genre about people caught and pursued in caves are the following ones : ¨Sub-human¨ (1972) by Gary Sherman with Donald Pleasence , Norman Rossington , David Ladd ; ¨What wait below¨ (1985) by Don Sharp with Robert Powell , Timothy Bottoms , Lisa Blount , Anne Heywood , Richard Johnson . And recently : ¨The cave¨ by Brian Hunt with Cole Houser , Piper Perabo , Eddie Cibrian , Rick Ravanello ; ¨The descent¨(2005) by Neil Marshall with Alex Reid , Natalie Mendoza , Shauna MacDonald , both them dealing with people caught into caverns and besieged , chased , attacked by packs of carnivorous , bloodthirsty , crawling creatures are waiting for them and finally ¨la Cueva¨(2014) by Alfredo Montero.

I had the chance to sit down and watch the 2023 French horror movie "Gueules Noires" (aka "The Deep Dark") here in 2024, and given my lifelong love romance with the horror genre, of course I needed no persuasion to do so. Sure, I had never heard about the movie, but that hardly mattered as it was a horror movie that I had not yet watched.

The storyline is pretty straightforward, though you need to sit through about an hour of writer and director Mathieu Turi trying to establish the characters, story and atmosphere. And truth be told, that was just way too long of nothing overly interesting happening, and the movie suffered terribly from that. And with a run time of 103 minutes, squandering 60 minutes just wasn't a smart thing to do.

Needless to say that given my very limited exposure to French cinema, then I wasn't familiar with the actors on the cast list. Though I will say that the acting performances in the movie were fair.

"Gueules Noires" might be worth checking out if you enjoy horror movies that include a subterranean setting, strange alien-like creature design, gore, and a good old fashioned creature feature.

The creature in the movie was definitely interesting. I liked the design, and it is always great to see practical effects on the screen in horror movies, as there is something aesthetically pleasing to watching practical effects over CGI effects.

Just a real shame that writer and director Mathieu Turi squandered a full hour on something that could have been done in a fraction of that time, because it was seriously wasting screen time. And the overall movie suffered from that part. If it had been done in a different way, a quicker way without wasting an hour, the movie would have been way more enjoyable to sit through.

Sure, I found "Gueules Noires" to be a watchable movie, though it is hardly a movie that I will return to watch a second time, as it just didn't have enough contents in the storyline to support a second viewing, and the fact that you have to sit through 60 minutes of virtually nothing but people milling about underground just didn't really count as enthralling entertainment to me.

The ending of the movie, however, left much to be desired. It was a laughable ending to say the least, not to mention a slap to the face of those audience members who stuck through 103 minutes of watching the movie.

My rating of "Gueules Noires" lands on a five out of ten stars.

First, maybe a little word on the original French title "Gueules Noires", which is very different from the international title "The Deep Dark" and can roughly be translated as "Black Snouts". It refers to how the hard and devastating work in the mining industry makes every person equal. Regardless of what race you are, or what skin color you have, working underground in the mines makes everyone's face black with dirt.

"The Deep Dark" is a prime example of the type of horror in which the French are specialized. Raw, sinister, unpleasant, and relentless terror with exclusively unsympathetic characters and without the slightest bit of comic relief. Pure and genuine horror, in other words, and I - for one - love it (despite several flaws).

In the 1850s, in Northern France, 27 miners tragically die when the shafts collapse shortly after they made an archeologically groundbreaking but deeply disturbing discovery. 100 years later, in the same mine, a versatile group of miners is forced to accompany an arrogant anthropologist down the shafts, because he's convinced the deep underground layers hide evidence of a previously undiscovered civilization. They find a new civilization, all right, but its deity turns out to be a terrifying and invincible monster.

The script of "The Deep Dark" certainly isn't without holes or massively implausible plot elements, but you simply got to love the grim atmosphere and claustrophobic tension that writer/director Mathieu Turi creates. And the monster, of course! I have seen thousands of horror movies, and I guarantee the monster of this film is one of coolest and most jaw-droppingly astounding ones of the last two or three decades. The creature is also as violent and bloodthirsty as it looks, which results in a handful of excessively gruesome deaths and make-up effects that are not meant for squeamish viewers. Highly recommended to true horror junkies.

PLOT: A group of coal miners are offered attractive bonus in return for escorting a scientist deep into an underground cave where the group encounters a terrifying mythical being.

While browsing Prime Video library, I stumbled upon "Gueules Noires" ("Black Faces" in English) and found it to be an engaging horror story that was fairly captivating despite its script flaws. The themes draw from a mix of survival horror, mythology, fantasy, and adventure, and backed with good technical execution, make the film a worthwhile viewing. Standout feature has to be excellent camerawork, given that filming had to be done in confined spaces and low-light environments. This added to the tension and in a claustrophobic environment, enhancing the horror experience. Lensman has made excellent use of clever lighting and shakycam to create tension. Editing is tight and never dilutes the tense atmosphere. There are no comic relief or other filler moments in the entire runtime. Once the dark adventure begins, you only get to see the light after the climax. Screenplay stays relevant throughout the film's length with every sequence contributing to plot's speedy progression. Actors too have delivered commendable performances. The dialogue is succinct and impactful, adding to the film's intensity.

The film obviously suffers from budgetary constraints. With a fatter wallet, better special effects and sets could have been arranged. While the script could have been stronger, the film compensates with other elements. Unlike most horror films, this film has tied up loose ends effectively and viewers won't be left with unanswered questions in the end. The emergence of the mythical being and its purpose are all well-explained in the end. The movie concludes with an ambiguous ending, allowing viewers to interpret it in their own way, which I liked a lot.

I am impressed with French Director Mathieu Turi's ideas and work and look forward to watching his upcoming projects.

RECOMMENDED.

Usually, horror (I think it can be considered horror) movies don't have a big impact on me, but this one did. The plot, unlike most of horror movies, is pretty consistent and I really like it; it doesn't present the usual no-sense scenes typical of this genre.

The actors are really good and well chosen; I think the director did a good job too, also knowing that he's not that experienced (this is just his third big movie).

The only thing that in my opinion he could've made better is the sense of claustrophobia, maybe with some unconventional shots.

Overall, I really suggest it to people who like horror movies and in general I suggest it to everyone.