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Stars: Fanny Valette, Jonathan Howard, Jonathan Demurger, Jess Liaudin | Written by Cyril Ferment, Julien Seri, Pascal Sid | Directed by Julien Seri

I love it when a movie subverts your expectations…

Following the traditional slasher movie framework, Night Fare sees two best friends, Luc and Chris, reunited after a year. A year they’ve spent apart for some (mysterious, to be revealed later) reason. With their relationship on a rocky ground, the pair are further strained by their love for the same woman, Ludivine. However those issues are the least of their worries after – whilst on their way to a party – they skip out of a Parisian taxi without paying the fare. Big mistake. This taxi driver doesn’t take to fare dodgers lightly and the mystery motorist hunts the duo down all night long killing everyone that gets in his way.

Stylistically inspired by Nicolas Winding-Refn’s Drive with a score that,...

French distributors Gaumont have announced that on June 1 they will release on Blu-ray Abel Ferry's Vertige (aka High Lane), starring Fanny Valette, Johan Libéreau, Raphaël Lenglet, and Nicolas Giraud.

This taut tale follows a groups of friends on a climbing vacation in Eastern Europe. One mountain they want to climb is closed for repairs, but urged on by group leader Fred (Giraud), they ignore the warning signs and start their ascent anyway. There’s underlying tension among the friends to begin with, as Luke (Libéreau) is still in love with his ex-girlfriend, Chloe (Valette), and has joined the journey just to be near her. But the usual perils of mountain climbing (and broken hearts) start to pale next to the prospect of collapsing rope bridges, bear traps, torture and other deadly dangers supplied by a deranged and mysterious killer hiding in the adventurers’ midst.

Blu-ray special features include:

Audio...

DVD Playhouse—March 2011

By

Allen Gardner

127 Hours (20th Century Fox) Harrowing true story of Aron Ralston (James Franco, in another fine turn), an extreme outdoorsman who finds himself trapped in a remote Utah canyon, his arm pinned between two boulders, with no help nearby, no communication to the outside world, and dim prospects for survival, to say the least. Director Danny Boyle manages to prove again that he’s one of the finest filmmakers working today by making a subject that is seemingly uncinematic a true example of pure cinema. Inventive, breathtaking, funny, and horrifying, often all at once. Amber Tamblyn and Kate Mara make a memorable, brief appearance as hikers who connect with Ralston during his journey. Also available on Blu-ray disc. Bonuses: Commentary by Boyle, producer Christian Colson, co-writer Simon Beaufoy; Deleted scenes; Featurettes. Widescreen. Dolby and DTS-hd 5.1 surround.

Amarcord (Criterion) Federico Fellini’s Oscar-winning, autobiographical classic might...

The Film:

From the opening scene I knew I was going to enjoy High Lane (Vertige). The cinematography in the picture is gorgeous, and elevate this horror-thriller a notch on the kick ass movie ladder. Director Abel Ferry creates a tense atmosphere that is both engaging and disorienting.

The flick follows climbers Loïc (Johan Libéreau), Guillaume (Raphaël Lenglet), Fred (Nicolas Giraud), Karine (Maud Wyler), and the very beautiful Chloé (Fanny Valette) as they decide to brave a trail up high in the mountains that is closed because it is in disrepair. Of course this doesn’t stop these young hotshots from ignoring the warnings. It doesn’t take long for things to go wrong. After avoiding a near fatal accident, and realizing they could be trapped on the mountain until they can find another route down, they start falling into various booby traps, and soon realize that they are not alone.

There are several horror titles releasing on DVD and Blu-Ray today. The most notable releases for Tuesday, February 8th include Wes Craven's poorly received My Soul to Take, a chilling production from France titled High Lane, Anchor Bay Entertainment's I Spit on Your Grave and finally, Paranormal Activity 2. This last title has already confirmed a sequel, with High Lane standing out amongst these titles. High Lane promises double terror from terrific heights and from socially isolated cannibals. Have a look at each of the titles below, with special features attached to each (if available).

High Lane

A synopsis...

"A group of friends on vacation decide to venture onto a trail high up in the mountains that has been closed for repairs. The climb proves more perilous than planned. Especially as they soon realize that they're not alone. This adventure will turn into a nightmare."

Release Date: February 8th,...

Well fiends, it is another week for us to plop down our hard earned dollars for some ghoulish digital entertainment. The week we have an exploitation classic hitting Blu-Ray as well as its remake plus more! Check it out beyond the break.

All Descriptions of the following titles are provided by Amazon.com unless otherwise noted. If you plan on buying a flick from this list, please click on the links provided or click on the cover as it helps us pay the bills around here. Also, unlike most sites, we provide the Netflix widget which we think is pretty convenient to add these films to your queue. If you don’t have Netflix, feel free to click on “Free Trial” and try it out!

Alice in Murderland

Format: DVD

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From IMDb.com – It’s Alice’s birthday and her sorority girlfriends throw her a themed party. Everyone comes as their favorite,...

IFC released High Lane on VOD late last year and now has announced the street date for the French thriller. The flick will drop on DVD on February 8th but no specs have been announced yet. The foreign slasher is directed by Abel Ferry from a script by Johanne Bernard and Louis-Paul Desanges and stars Fanny Valette, Johan Libéreau, Raphaël Lenglet, Nicolas Giraud, Maud Wyler, and Justin Blanckaert. Synopsis:

Towering heights and beautiful vistas turn into a haunting mindtrip in Abel Ferry’s gripping French scarefest that will definitely make you think twice about your next mountain climbing trip. In the film, a group of friends on vacation in Eastern Europe embark on an ambitious mountain expedition along a trail that they discover – way too late – is closed for repair. The thrill of this foolish challenge quickly turns sour as it becomes clear that not only is the path a...

IFC Films to bringing the French thriller High Lane (Vertige) to DVD February 8th, 2011. Our own Donny Broussard reviewed the film here from Fantastic Fest.

Here’s the press release: The gorgeous rising French star Fanny Valette (Moliere, Little Jerusalem) leads a cast of sexy young actors in High Lane, a taut tale following a groups of friends on a climbing vacation in Eastern Europe. One mountain they want to climb is closed for repairs, but urged on by group leader Fred (Nicola Giraud, Taken), they ignore the warning signs and start their ascent anyway. There’s underlying tension among the friends to begin with, as Luke (Johan Libereau, You Will Be Mine) is still in love with his ex-girlfriend, Chloe (Cesar nominee Valette), and has joined the journey just to be near her. But the usual perils of mountain climbing (and broken hearts) start to pale next to the prospect of collapsing rope bridges,...

The French horror flick High Lane, or Vertige for you purists out there, is coming home to DVD soon, and we've got all the details you need to hang on tight!

From the Press Release

The gorgeous rising French star Fanny Valette (Moliere, Little Jerusalem) leads a cast of sexy young actors in High Lane, a taut tale following a groups of friends on a climbing vacation in Eastern Europe. One mountain they want to climb is closed for repairs, but urged on by group leader Fred (Nicola Giraud, Taken), they ignore the warning signs and start their ascent anyway. There’s underlying tension among the friends to begin with, as Luke (Johan Libereau, You Will Be Mine) is still in love with his ex-girlfriend, Chloe (Cesar nominee Valette), and has joined the journey just to be near her. But the usual perils of mountain climbing (and broken hearts) start...

Cast: Fanny Valette, Raphael LengletDirection: Abel FerryRating: 2 and halfNot to be mistaken for Alfred Hitchcock’s classic of the same name, this French import marks the feature film debut of the prize-winning shorts director, Abel Ferry. Utilising the horror-thriller genre, he strives to terrify the viewer for a relentless 80-odd minutes. A high-altitude adventure that is short on story material but high on camera dazzlery, Vertigo is an amalgam of Vertical Limit, The Hills Have Eyes and similar slipshod shockers. Admittedly, the opening sequence is an attention grabber as we join a ragtag group of friends who embark on a climbing trip ...

Film: ‘Vertigo’; Cast: Fanny Valette, Johan Libereau, Raphael Lenglet, Nicolas Giraud, Maud Wyler, Justin Blanckaert; Director: Abel Ferry; Ratings: * 1/2

What makes a thriller or horror film worth a watch is minute attention to detail. Since usually the story is implausible in the first place, this attention to plot, characters etc adds to its believability with the viewer. Sadly, ‘Vertigo’ fails in this simple, cardinal rule.

Five friends on a mountain climbing vacation, survive the vagaries of nature and accidents that plague their climb, only to be at the mercy of someone who seems to be hunting them for no apparent reason.

First of all the basic story itself is confusing..

If you’ve been to the Alamo S. Lamar this week and you’re not a part of SXSW, you probably thought to yourself, “Wtf are all of these people doing here?!” Well, they’re watching a lot of movies! Now that the opening weekend of the festival has passed, the crowds will be dying down a bit and you, yes you, non-badgeholder, will be able to see these great SXSW films that are surely generating lots of buzz.

Individual tickets will be available for purchase in the box office throughout the week. Films will be screening until next Saturday and as each day passes, it will be easier to get into these screenings.

Also, be sure to check out the Sx Fantastic Fest screenings. All at midnight at S. Lamar, these screenings will totally give you the heebie jeebies (in the best way possible). Here’s a few screenings...

As the SXSW Film, Music and Interactive festival gets closer, more and more announcements are coming out about what programming we can expect during the event. Friday, it was announced what film would cose the competition and in addition, more features and shorts were added to the program which already features over 100 films.

Here’s all the info about the new items from the official press release. As we told you previously, we’ve got a great team going to SXSW this year so be sure to check back often for more.

SXSW Film Festival Announces Closing Night Film,

Additional Features & Shorts For 2010 Event

The South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival has announced Chris Morris’ pitch-black satire Four Lions as its Closing Night film, to play on Saturday, March 20 at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas. SXSW also released additional feature and short titles or the 2010 event, which...

SXSW Film has announced more titles for its 2010 program. Chris Morris' Four Lions will now close the festival. New features, shorts, and documentaries have also been added, including American Grindhouse, Cargo, Strummerville, This Movie is Broken, and Suck. The full list (courtesty of SXSW) is presented below. 

Headliners

 

Four Lions (United Kingdom)

Director: Chris Morris. Screenwriters: Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain, Simon Blackwell and Chris Morris

Four Lions tells the story of a group of British jihadists who push their abstract dreams of glory to the breaking point. Cast: Riz Ahmed, Arsher Ali, Nigel Lindsay, Kayvan Novak, Adeel Akhtar

 Spotlight Premieres

 

American Grindhouse

Director: Elijah Drenner. Screenwriters: Calum Wadell and Elijah Drenner

This feature documentary chronicles the history of the American Exploitation Film. It digs deep into this often overlooked category of U.S. cinema and unearths the shameless and occasionally shocking origins of this popular entertainment. (World Premiere)

 

Cargo...

Austin, Texas – February 19, 2010 – The South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival has announced Chris Morris’ pitch-black satire Four Lions as its Closing Night film, to play on Saturday, March 20 at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas. SXSW also released additional feature and short titles or the 2010 event, which will take place March 12 – March 20, 2010. The festival will open with the world premiere of Kick-Ass, directed by Matthew Vaughn and starring Aaron Johnson, Cholë Grace Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Nicolas Cage. SXSW will also host more than 80 Film Conference panels, which will take place Friday, March 12 – Tuesday, March 16. Previously announced participants for the 2010 SXSW Film Conference include Michel Gondry (The Thorn in the Heart, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds), David Gordon Green (Eastbound & Down, Pineapple Express), Jeffery Tambor’s Acting Workshop, and Academy Award-winning Argentine composer, solo artist and producer Gustavo Santaolalla, among many others. For full panel descriptions and participants,...

Sundance favorite and World Cinema Grand Jury nominee Four Lions will close the 2010 SXSW Film Festival on Saturday, March 20. The UK film was co-written, directed, and stars Chris Morris.

Other “festival favorites” include Waking Sleeping Beauty, a behind-the-scenes documentary about Disney animation from 1984 to 1994 directed by Beauty and the Beast producer Don Hahn, and Tony, a Slamdance selection and psychological thriller about a serial killer.

Skateland, starring Ashley Green, is also getting another look from festival goers, as well as the raved-about short film from Spike Jonze titled I’m Here. Plus a Doors documentary narrated by Johnny Depp. I’ll be reviewing and covering as many of these films as I can.

Below is a full list of the additional titles screening at the film festival, which runs from March 12th through the 20th in Austin, Texas.

Headliners

Four Lions (United Kingdom)

Director: Chris Morris. Screenwriters: Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain,...

An interesting film we came across at this week's Afm comes from Gaumont and is directed by Abel Ferry. Announced this week is High Lane, where a group of friends on vacation decide to venture onto a trail high up in the mountains that has been closed for repairs. The climb proves more perilous than planned. Especially as they soon realize that they're not alone. The adventure turns into a nightmare. Sounds a little like Deliverance, no? The Dp is Nicolas Massart, who also worked on the forthcoming French horror film Mutants, with the art director being Olivier Afonso, who worked on Mutants, Hitman and Frontier(S). Fanny Valette, Raphael Lenglet, Johan Libereau, Nicolas Giraud and Maud Wyler all star, Inside you can check out the first ever images and art from the film.

This review was written for the theatrical release of "Moliere".PARIS -- The starting point for this highly enjoyable costume drama is a gap in the hero's CV. Instead of providing the biopic that the title appears to promise, Laurent Tirard's second feature speculates on what the young Jean-Baptiste Poquelin -- better known as Moliere, one of the giants of classic French theater -- might have been getting up to in 1644, when he briefly vanished from history's radar.

Tirard's suggestion -- in his witty Gallic counterpart to the Oscar-winning "Shakespeare in Love" -- is that the fledgling actor-writer-director Moliere (Romain Duris) was on the run from his creditors, holed up in the home of Monsieur Jourdain (Fabrice Luchini), a wealthy bourgeois gentleman, mining material for what later was to become two of his greatest plays.

With the bailiffs at his heels, Moliere jumps at Jourdain's offer to cover his debts in exchange for coaching in acting technique. Jourdain is besotted with the beautiful widowed marquise Celimene (Ludivine Sagnier)and, encouraged by Dorante (Edouard Baer), a wily aristocrat on the make, has written a one-act play with which he hopes to impress her.

Masquerading as a priest named Tartuffe in order to conceal his true role from Jourdain's wife, Elmire (Laura Morante), Moliere nonetheless forms a romantic attachment to Elmire that is soon reciprocated. At the same time, Tirard develops a subplot in which Jourdain promises to see his daughter, Henriette (Fanny Valette), wed to Thomas (Gilian Petrovsky), Dorante's son, even though the young woman's heart is set on Valere (Gonzague Requillart), her music teacher. Dorante, needless to say, is interested only in Jourdain's money.

The story is worked out in the best traditions of farce, with an array of disguises, concealments and subterfuges, and there are plenty of laughs along the way. The ending, however, is bittersweet. Tirard frames the story with the reappearance 13 years later of Elmire, now dying of consumption. Although she has stayed with Jourdain in the meantime, she has retained her love for Moliere. She now enjoins him to give up hopes of writing in the supposedly nobler form of tragedy to concentrate on inventing a new form of comedy, one that fully explores the human heart.

Part of the fun for spectators familiar with the work of Moliere is recognizing situations and lines of dialogue -- mostly attributed to Jourdain -- that occur in two plays that Moliere wrote much later, "The Bourgeois Gentleman" and "Tartuffe".

Duris, arguably the brightest of the current wave of young French male leads, is excellent in the leading role. Luchini is in his element as the buffoonish Jourdain, to whom Tirard lends a moment of dignity as the story reaches its denouement. Morante too is faultless as the woman torn between a desire for romantic love and adventure and the constraints of bourgeois marriage.

Production design is impeccable. Although the movie does not take itself too seriously, it has some interesting insights into the processes of creativity and the role of drama and repartee in the age of Louis XIV. The dialogue is a pleasure in itself, perfectly pitched between the language of today and the stilted cadences of high society in the mid-17th century.

MOLIERE

Fidelite Films, France 2 Cinema, France 3 Cinema, Wild Bunch

Credits:

Director: Laurent Tirard

Screenwriters: Laurent Tirard, Gregoire Vigneron

Producers: Laurent Sivot, Olivier Delbosc, Marc Missonnier

Executive producer: Christine de Jekel

Director of photography: Gilles Henry

Production designer: Francoise Dupertuis

Costume designer: Pierre-Jean Larroque, Gilles Bodu-Lemoine, Pui Lai Huam

Editor: Valerie Deseine

Cast:

Moliere: Romain Duris

Jourdain: Fabrice Luchini

Elmire: Laura Morante

Dorante: Edouard Baer

Celimene: Ludivine Sagnier

Henriette: Fanny Valette

Valere: Gonzague Requillart

Running time -- 120 minutes

No MPAA rating...

PARIS -- The starting point for this highly enjoyable costume drama is a gap in the hero's CV. Instead of providing the biopic that the title appears to promise, Laurent Tirard's second feature speculates on what the young Jean-Baptiste Poquelin -- better known as Moliere, one of the giants of classic French theater -- might have been getting up to in 1644, when he briefly vanished from history's radar.

Tirard's suggestion -- in his witty Gallic counterpart to the Oscar-winning Shakespeare in Love -- is that the fledgling actor-writer-director Moliere (Romain Duris) was on the run from his creditors, holed up in the home of Monsieur Jourdain (Fabrice Luchini), a wealthy bourgeois gentleman, mining material for what later was to become two of his greatest plays.

With the bailiffs at his heels, Moliere jumps at Jourdain's offer to cover his debts in exchange for coaching in acting technique. Jourdain is besotted with the beautiful widowed marquise Celimene (Ludivine Sagnier)and, encouraged by Dorante (Edouard Baer), a wily aristocrat on the make, has written a one-act play with which he hopes to impress her.

Masquerading as a priest named Tartuffe in order to conceal his true role from Jourdain's wife, Elmire (Laura Morante), Moliere nonetheless forms a romantic attachment to Elmire that is soon reciprocated. At the same time, Tirard develops a subplot in which Jourdain promises to see his daughter, Henriette (Fanny Valette), wed to Thomas (Gilian Petrovsky), Dorante's son, even though the young woman's heart is set on Valere (Gonzague Requillart), her music teacher. Dorante, needless to say, is interested only in Jourdain's money.

The story is worked out in the best traditions of farce, with an array of disguises, concealments and subterfuges, and there are plenty of laughs along the way. The ending, however, is bittersweet. Tirard frames the story with the reappearance 13 years later of Elmire, now dying of consumption. Although she has stayed with Jourdain in the meantime, she has retained her love for Moliere. She now enjoins him to give up hopes of writing in the supposedly nobler form of tragedy to concentrate on inventing a new form of comedy, one that fully explores the human heart.

Part of the fun for spectators familiar with the work of Moliere is recognizing situations and lines of dialogue -- mostly attributed to Jourdain -- that occur in two plays that Moliere wrote much later, The Bourgeois Gentleman and Tartuffe.

Duris, arguably the brightest of the current wave of young French male leads, is excellent in the leading role. Luchini is in his element as the buffoonish Jourdain, to whom Tirard lends a moment of dignity as the story reaches its denouement. Morante too is faultless as the woman torn between a desire for romantic love and adventure and the constraints of bourgeois marriage.

Production design is impeccable. Although the movie does not take itself too seriously, it has some interesting insights into the processes of creativity and the role of drama and repartee in the age of Louis XIV. The dialogue is a pleasure in itself, perfectly pitched between the language of today and the stilted cadences of high society in the mid-17th century.

MOLIERE

Fidelite Films, France 2 Cinema, France 3 Cinema, Wild Bunch

Credits:

Director: Laurent Tirard

Screenwriters: Laurent Tirard, Gregoire Vigneron

Producers: Laurent Sivot, Olivier Delbosc, Marc Missonnier

Executive producer: Christine de Jekel

Director of photography: Gilles Henry

Production designer: Francoise Dupertuis

Costume designer: Pierre-Jean Larroque, Gilles Bodu-Lemoine, Pui Lai Huam

Editor: Valerie Deseine

Cast:

Moliere: Romain Duris

Jourdain: Fabrice Luchini

Elmire: Laura Morante

Dorante: Edouard Baer

Celimene: Ludivine Sagnier

Henriette: Fanny Valette

Valere: Gonzague Requillart

Running time -- 120 minutes

No MPAA rating...