Directed by Pascal Laugier, Martyrs is a French horror film starring Morjana Alaoui and Mylène Jampanoï. The film begins with trauma, captivity and revenge before moving into a more extreme psychological and religious horror story about suffering, obsession and martyrdom. It is one of the central titles associated with the New French Extremity wave of 2000s horror.

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The rare film with a reputation that speaks for itself, Martyrs is perhaps the defining film of the New French Extremity movement and director Pascal Laugiers masterpiece. Horrifying and thought-provoking in equal measure, it is a deeply philosophical and challenging work of extreme cinema and undoubtedly one of the finest horror films produced in the twenty-first century.

In 1971, a young Lucie Jurin (Jessie Pham) manages to escape from a slaughterhouse in which she has been subjected to unspeakable torture. Placed in an orphanage, she forms a strong bond with Anna (Erika Scott), who tries to help her to recover from her trauma. Fifteen years later and now in adulthood, Lucie (Mylène Jampanoï) breaks into the isolated home of the Belford family, believing that they were involved in the horrific abuse she suffered in childhood. When she receives a call from Lucie, Anna (Morjana Alaoui) rushes to her aid but soon comes to regret ever having set foot in the Belford house, where she will experience things beyond human comprehension.

Featuring heartbreaking performances by its two female leads and truly shocking imagery that lingers long in the mind courtesy of special effects designer Benoît Lestang, Martyrs has risen above debates surrounding torture porn to emerge as one of the truly great works of extreme cinema. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present the film on 4K UHD for the first time anywhere in the world from a