Martyrs · reception & legacy

How Martyrs has been received, argued over, and remembered.

The arc

It premiered at the 2008 Cannes market to walkouts and 'torture porn' dismissals, splitting critics right down the middle; nearly two decades on it's routinely called the crowning achievement of the New French Extremity and one of the great horror films of its century.

What's debated

The forever-war: is it a profound, genuinely philosophical film about suffering, or brutality dressed up in ideas — with the abrupt tonal swerve at its midpoint the pivot everyone argues over?

Its footprint

It's the final boss of 'most disturbing films ever' lists — the one horror fans dare each other to finish, and swear they'll never rewatch. The reviled 2015 American remake only burnished the original's reputation.

Where it stands

A cult classic turned canon climber: the 'you must see it once, and only once' entry in extreme horror, sitting oddly high on Letterboxd for a film this punishing.

Named by the director

Influences Pascal Laugier has publicly named — the director's own word, distinct from the inferred lines of influence.

• Dario Argento — Laugier, a lifelong devotee of the Italian horror maestro, dedicated Martyrs to Argento.