Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- harrowing
- confrontational
- bleak
- extreme horror marathon
- arthouse horror night
What critics said
Critics remain divided between condemning the film’s extreme violence as gratuitous and praising its bold, controlled, philosophically ambitious horror.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film is widely identified with the new era of French horror and uses sustained brutality as an artistic and thematic strategy.
The antagonistic organization subjects victims to prolonged suffering in pursuit of answers about what lies beyond death.
Lucie’s fifteen-year quest against her abductors is propelled by childhood torture, delusions, and re-experienced trauma.
Anna’s captivity and the film’s repeated depictions of torture make physical deterioration an extended dramatic process.
Films like Martyrs, and why
Inside
Shares new french extremity aesthetics, graphic violence, female-centered trauma, and confrontational themes.
The Passion of Joan of Arc
Comparable for bleak psychological horror, bodily suffering, religious symbolism, and uncompromising intensity.
The House That Jack Built
Shares sadistic violence, cult-like ideology, and a thriller structure that probes transcendence through suffering.
Antichrist
Comparable for philosophical horror, spiritual dread, and extreme depictions of degradation and pain.
Movie Details
- Director
- Pascal Laugier
- Release Date
- 2008-06-12
- Runtime
- 99 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (3139)
Cast
- Morjana Alaoui
- Mylène Jampanoï
- Catherine Bégin
- Robert Toupin
- Patricia Tulasne
- Juliette Gosselin
- Xavier Dolan
- Jean-Marie Moncelet
- Jessie Pham
- Erika Scott
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Martyrs about?
- A traumatized survivor’s revenge mission becomes an uncompromising descent into torture, nihilism, and the possibility of spiritual revelation.
- What is Martyrs like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Martyrs as brisk, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Martyrs violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Martyrs as graphic.
- What did critics think of Martyrs?
- Critics remain divided between condemning the film’s extreme violence as gratuitous and praising its bold, controlled, philosophically ambitious horror.
- Which films are like Martyrs?
- Films with a similar feel include Inside, The Passion of Joan of Arc, The House That Jack Built, and Antichrist.
- How long is Martyrs?
- Martyrs runs 99 minutes.
- Where can I watch Martyrs?
- In United States, Martyrs is available to rent or buy from Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
