The film begins in France in 1663 when a fair maiden's wash day is interrupted by the arrival of a meteor that slams into the ground and produces a monster that chases her underground until it kills her in the woods.  Flash forward to modern day France and we meet several men and women: Yann (Yann Sundberg), Karine (Sophie Michard), Thomas (Romain Ogerau), Vincent (Vincent Lecompte), Elodie (Marjorie Dubesset), and Tina (Johanna Andraos). 

Yann, Thomas and Karine playfully harass their friend Vincent who is a gaming addict and is joined at the hip to his handheld game.  He's nearly finished playing an online computer game when Thomas hits a few buttons and makes him lose.  The castle that is depicted in this game looks a lot like the one in the Middle Ages prelude.  Jokes abound regarding his preference to all things electronic over women; they all decide to go dancing in a club nearby, the men in one car and the women in another.  On the way, the men stop for gas and a suspicious patron, Sebastien (played brilliantly with crazed delight by Patrick Mons), goes along with them after he claims that his car broke down.  Distracted by inexplicable visions on the main road, the car sails off the highway on to a treetop, causing Sebastian to freak out and pull a semi-automatic on them.  Things take a turn for the worse and the banter between the men is genuinely funny.  The director, Philippe Robert, is obviously a fan of these types of films; he even throws in the cliched Wilhelm scream no less than two times.   The license plate on the car has 1138 as part of the plate number - a nod to George Lucas?

What transpires are a series of both comedic and exciting events as the men attempt to get out of the forest and away from the monstrous force that is conspiring to kill them.  The film benefits from terrific performances from the leads, and an engaging score by Richard Sanderson.  Like 28 DAYS LATER, the film was shot on digital video, which is further proof that you don't need a huge budget to make an entertaining film.  The special effects are not on a par with Hollywood, but who cares?  They work well enough and do not detract from the overall look of the film. 

The film is letterboxed with clear, readable subtitles that can be removed (the dialog is in French).  A trailer is also provided.

The film's copyright date is 2005, however much of the film was shot between August and September 2002.  Synapse Films is due to release it on December 14th.

Snap this one up!

Caveat emptor: I can stomach most things in a horror film as much as the next person, but one thing that I hate is vomiting.  For those of you who share those feelings, you'll want to close your eyes at the 44:28 mark for about 30 seconds.  It's not real, but it's not pretty either!