Humains (2009)

Directors:

Jacques-Olivier Molon
Pierre-Olivier Thevenin

Writers:

Jean-Armand Bougrelle (writer)
Frédérique Henri (writer)

Release Date:

22 April 2009 (France)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Are we the only humans on earth?

Plot:

A team of several researchers travel to the Swiss Alps to investigate a scientific discovery on human evolution.

Plot Keywords:

Swiss Alps | Genealogy | One Word Title

Cast

Lorànt Deutsch	...	Thomas
Sara Forestier	...	Nadia
Dominique Pinon	...	Gildas
Manon Tournier	...	Elodie
Élise Otzenberger	...	Patricia
Philippe Nahon	...	Schneider
Christian Kmiotek	...	Paulo
Marc Olinger	...	Le bourgmestre
Marie-Paule von Roesgen	...	La mère du bourgmestre
Catherine Robert	...	La jeune Allemande
Jacques Michel	...	Médecin de l'hôpital
Monsieur Brantschen	...	Contrôleur gare
René-Joseph Zurkinden	...	Le chef de gare
Marie Brantschen	...	Jeune fille effrayée 1
Mégane Jagut	...	Jeune fille effrayée 2

Also Known As:

Humans (International: English title)
Les disparus de Lötschental (France) (working title)

Runtime:

Germany:90 min (European Film Market)

Country:

France | Switzerland | Luxembourg

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Certification:

Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud)

Filming Locations:

Luxembourg

Company:

La Fabrique 2

Gritty Survival horror with marvelous filming locations.

With France undoubtedly being THE best horror-producing country at the moment (points of reference include: "Inside", "Frontier(s)", "Them" and "High Tension"), this brand new movie was high on my must-see priority list as soon as I noticed it was programmed at the annual Fantastic Film Festival in my home country. I was even more confident upon learning that the directors of "Humains" are the same guys responsible for the genuinely masterful make-up art in the aforementioned "Inside". This is the debut feature of the duo Jacques-Olivier Molon and Pierre-Olivier Thevenin, and they opted for a gritty survival horror concept with solemn anthropological undertones and a consecutively bitter ambiance. The plot is too absurd to label the film as an instant classic and it takes slightly too long before the pace properly picks up, but "Humains" is nevertheless a professionally made and highly compelling shock-adventure with truly stupendous filming locations and a fantastic, unremittingly barbaric last half hour that will cause you to leave the theater speechless and in a moderate state of shock! Professor Schneider and his two closest assistants travel to a remote Alps valley region in Switzerland for an essential anthropology expedition, as they found strong evidence about the origin of the human race that could actually alter all existing evolution theories as we know them. Shortly after their arrival, and after picking up a stranded and constantly bickering family of three, their minivan dramatically crashes down a mountain. The survivors are first subjected to a devastating showdown with nature itself before facing a rough and deadly confrontation with the greatest anthropological discovery in history. The cinematography is stunning the suspense gradually builds up towards a few very intense climaxes, but the major plot twist halfway the film is just too implausible. Also, I'm afraid we've seen a bit too many variants on survival & backwoods horror lately and the large variety of inbred freaks, hillbillies and mutant families simply aren't that menacing anymore. Not even in this case, where we're dealing with bona fide and unhinged cavemen. Still, the acting performances are stellar (Dominique Pinon is brilliant again) and the make-up effects are obviously grandiose, with a handful of stomach-churning death sequences that are jaw-dropping cruel. "Humains" is definitely recommended to experienced fans of grim survival horror and even to admirers of National Geographic Channel; as long as they fast-forward the sickening parts.