Revenge (2017)

In the vein of the video nasties, this rape revenge thriller holds no punches when it comes to the violence depicted on screen, but differs dramatically in the way it's beautifully shot, with (especially in the opening third) the brightly pastel coloured imagery we see on screen.

Jen (Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz) is enjoying a romantic getaway with her wealthy (and married with kids) boyfriend Richard in his remote desert pad, until two of his sleazy looking friends turn up a day earlier than expected for a hunting trip.

After her boyfriend leaves the house for a couple of hours, Jen is raped by Stan and whilst this takes place her boyfriend's other friend Dimitri witnesses the assault and responds by closing the door and turning the volume up on the TV.

Although we're not subjected the full assault, we rejoin the film when Richard returns to find Jen lying dormant in her room. When it becomes clear that Richard wants her to forget all about it, she flees the house, with the three men in hot pursuit.

After a confrontation, Jen is left for dead whilst the three men return to the house to gather equipment to dispose of her body, but upon returning to the scene discover her body's not there.

As the three of them hunt Jen down, she herself is trying to recover her own nasty injuries whilst plotting vengeance on her tormentors. What follows is a thoroughly efficient revenge thriller with some genuinely nasty violence and a terrifically entertaining finale that delivers in buckets of blood and gore; excessive sure, but in no way silly.

Revenge is a very solid and colourful addition to the genre canon, and director Coralie Fargeat is one to look out for. 7.8/10