Though Pascal Laugier might be far from a household name in the States, he is nevertheless a French horror auteur on the rise, thanks to his intensely violent 2008 film Martyrs, a revenge horror film that’s gained cult status worldwide for its nearly unwatchable content. Unfortunately, Laugier’s most recent venture, The Tall Man starring Jessica Biel, was met with barely a whimper stateside despite a somewhat decent reception for critics (when considering how many critics immediately write off that which comes from the horror genre).
Not phased by disappointment, Laugier stated that, with his next film, he plans on “going even further away from the horror genre, but at the same time still a very genre related story; it’s a love story.” He went on to distance himself from Danish auteur Lars Von Trier and his current sex drama The Nymphomaniac, explaining how different the two of them are as filmmakers.
“I want to try being on set with two North American actors and, from my French perspective, ask them to do things that they’d never dare to do as North Americans. That’s part of my motivation,” Laugier went on to say [Bleeding Cool].
Sex in American film has always been a sad batch of sorts, so any hope of accomplished North American performers forcing themselves to test their physical limits in front of a camera is both intriguing and hopeful.
Have you seen Laugier’s Martyrs? How do you feel about sex in American cinema? Too little? Too much?