Territories, a 2010 French-Canadian horror thriller. Not far from the US / Canada border, two customs officers stop 5 friends to check their identity…
Do you have anything to declare?
Returning from Canada where they have attended the wedding of a friend a carload of young men are detained on the border by patrolmen. The discovery of an illicit substance leads to further inspection before they are held captive in a camp hidden deep within the woods.
Without means of communicating to the outside world the men are afflicted with torturous conditions and intense psychological scrutiny. Fuelled by furious performances and an unsettling tension, Territories takes the idea of visceral mental deterioration right to the edge. Before long a private detective is on the trail. Can he get to the prisoners before all is lost?
Awards
WINNER BEST THRILLER – 2011 Brussels Thriller Film Festival
Reviews
“A creepy tension slowly builds and once it has taken hold it doesn’t let go. I found the final act of the film unrelenting and at times surreal. This is a film that stands very clear of others and will grip you to the very end. It will also leave you with something to think about for a long time afterwards.” Screen Jabber
“Director Olivier Abbou has delivered a shocker with his first feature film
Territories. Shot in Montreal, QC. this title is also know as Territoires and
sometimes even as Checkpoint. Territories has been released in the United
Kingdom as of September 12th on DVD and this reviewer hopes that the film finds
a wider audience in North America – the territory that is the focus of the
film. In Abbou's political and horrifying thriller five youths are dressed up
in orange jumpsuits to represent those confined, tortured and likely killed in
Guantanamo Bay. This is a dark look at an even darker part of humanity and the
visuals are not often pretty…Much of Territories is hard to watch. Although,
Abbou does switch character perspectives often, the audience will be exposed to
several gratuitous scenes of torture. There are some great uses of social
messages held within the narrative here and this reviewer would highly recommend
this film despite some of the more difficult scenes. Only one question remains:
will North American audiences support such a controversial film?
Overall: 8 out of 10 (a great film).” 28dayslateranalysis
“..a remarkably effective and well made horror film which is affecting from the opening scene to the last. It may not be as topical as it would have been if it was made and released five years ago, but is still an extremely suspenseful film with some extremely tense scenes and others in which the horror element is brought to the fore… for horror fans than those who liked the likes of Rendition, Lions for Lambs or Road to Haditha and want to see a different take on how detainees were (and apparently still are) treated.” film365.co.uk