Inside

I won't sit here and give you the dramatics "worst film I've ever seen" or "a piece of trash", but I will tell you it is immensely bad. To give the film some credit, it does look nice, there are a few thrilling moments, and Laura Harring is incredible as the villain. However, that's about it. What we have here is a movie that is glossy, but shallow.

Our main character is played by Rachel Nichols, who is very uneven in her performance. There are moments I thought she was great, and others that I felt she didn't pull off. Her weaknesses are made more apparent by the stellar performance Harring gives. And, being honest, Harring is given a far more interesting character. The villain is a character that is selfish, psychotic, and violent, however, her actions at the end of the film show that there is still a glimpse of humanity in her. She is simply a very broken woman. Our main character briefly deals with grief in surface level fashion. You almost begin to root for the villain, because everything about her characterization and performance far outshines the protagonist's.

The supporting characters are utterly useless, and sometimes annoying. Issac is a likeable enough character, but remains utterly stupid, and never actually does anything to add any amount of tension to the film, and his partner is no different, only appearing on screen in a far away shot so we can see him get killed. Her mother, whom they stress is on her way, is only in the film for a few seconds, and also adds nothing to the film. And, we also have cops. One of which is a fine character, but isn't particularly interesting, and only drags the movie out further. The second cop mistakes our lead for the villain. And, even after she pleads that the real villain is upstairs, the cop forces her back upstairs in a truly idiotic move.

The main issue with this film is that there is positively no tension. The frantic banging on the bathroom door and the end climax in the swimming pool are somewhat tense, and their are a few cool thrills, but the movie absolutely lacks any kind of atmosphere. It is far too polished to offer any kind of visceral punch, and it fails as a glossy thriller through the use of comedy and a little bit too much stylization. It doesn't help that the film is entirely predictable. Every thrill or jump, or even plot twist can be called moments, or even minutes, before they happen. Had the film been entertaining or atmospheric, this would not have been an issue, but we've already discussed that.

And now, we get to the major elephant in the room. The film is a remake of a highly regarded French film. You only need to watch the first 30 minutes of the original to tell that it is far superior. With some truly effective moments, good performances, and a tense atmosphere, the film more than wipes the floor with this version. If you don't mind subtitles, the French film is a good watch. This version is half as effective and half as artistic and isn't worth a watch for any reason above curiosity. For fans of the original, it is an empty version of a better film, and for horror fans you have a relatively good looking home invasion film with little to offer.

Now anyone who has seen the French original, will tell you: if you only watch one movie, do watch the original and leave this be ... and I will second/agree to that! While I think it is going too far calling this a "lifetime movie remake" or a movie for kids or whatever - it is toned down quite a bit from the mayhem that was the original.

Having said that, you have quite a bit of blood and violence in this one. That doesn't mean it ever reaches the madness of the other movie as many will attest to. And then there is the ending ... on one hand it is interesting that this is not the same as the original ... but to be honest, you can tell throughout the movie, that it won't go the same route the original did ... I think I made it clear, but let me just emphasize once again: Please watch the French version of this! Unless you are squeamish and easily offended ...

Most of the reviews that gave this film 1/10 are from persons who have seen the original. I have not seen the original and I enjoyed the film.

I actually thought that this movie would be crap after I saw the rating but I ended up enjoying it. Its not the best movie in the world and there are definitely problems with it but to give a movie 1 star because it doesn't live up to the original is a bit unfair.

Ok....if the original never existed, this might be considered a crazy and fun over-the-top flick. However...the original does exist and this remake is just sad. The level of horror and surprise was far superior in the original and you really should just watch that one instead. But if you've never seen the original, you may find some guilty pleasure in this sadly undercooked remake.

Yet again, the film industry shows it's lack of imagination and lack of quality scripts by re-making an already great horror film. The original, L'interier, was a terrifying, bloody joyride from beginning to end. The roles were cast well. The story was tight. believable and scary as Hell. The direction was excellent as well. The movie was intense to the extreme yet it still felt like this could actually happen in real life! None of these components can be applied to this pitiful excuse of a re-make. Although Rachel Nichols is an accomplished actress, she struggles through this film like a rookie. It's not her fault as her part has been watered down via faulty script and poor direction. Actress Laura Harring was a poor fit for the part of "The Woman" originally portrayed by the amazing Beatrice Dalle. This film is yet more evidence that mainstream film markets have lost all originality and are increasingly dependent on re-making earlier, preferably foreign films or churning out low budget, poor replicas of successful ones. When I learned that an American re-make of the incredible French horror film "Martyrs" was being made, I swore to myself to never watch it. I broke that promise to myself and watched it. The film, like the new version of "L'Interiour" is nothing more than a milquetoast, re-visioning insult to the original. Gone was the sheer gut-wrenching violence perpetrated on these girls, Gone was the insane logic which help the group together, It took a film that reached out and punched you repeatedly in the gut and turned it into little more than a made-for-TV movie filled with rejects from the O.C. that had far less talent than the roles required. In fact, like "Inside", the re-make of "Martyrs: seemed to have been created solely for the late teen audience due to the removal of many of the key violent and bloody scenes Neither of these films needed to be re-made and the evidence is right in front of you. Forget these abortive attempts at capturing lighting and stick with the originals