31 Days Of Hallowe’en: Switchblade Romance (2003)

Welcome to JOE's 31 Days Of Hallowe'en. For each and every day of October, we'll be bringing you a horror movie to tuck into for the lead up to the big night. It could be new, old, an undiscovered gem, or a classic you'll have seen a thousand times. No matter what it is, we guarantee you that it is brilliant, and it is SCARY.

For Day 9, we'll be looking back over 2003's incredibly violent psycho-thriller, Switchblade Romance. "Hearts will bleed." Okay, a few notes before we get cracking into this. First of all, Switchblade Romance was also known as High Tension is certain parts of the world, so if you're looking for Switchblade Romance online via whatever credible streaming and/or rental service you might be using and can't find it, try the alternative title. Secondly, do NOT get the dubbed version, get the original French-with-English-subtitle version. The dubbed version has distractingly bad American accents that very plainly do not match the performers' mouths, so avoid that version at all costs. Thirdly, we fully expect half of you to absolutely love this movie, and the other half to absolutely hate it, because that is just the kind of movie that Switchblade Romance is, so be prepare for that. Clip via FerranteProduction We kick off with two best friends, Marie and Alex, heading to Alex's parents house so they can study all weekend for upcoming exams. In the middle of the night, a stranger knocks on their door and promptly kills both of Alex's parents - in the most grisly and explicitly violent way imaginable. Marie manages to evade capture, but Alex is taken by the killer and thrown into the back of his van, and Marie follows closely behind to try to save her friend from whatever fate the killer might have in store for her... To say much more than that would give the game away, but let us just say that Switchblade Romance is absolutely relentless in ratcheting up the tension (which, we guess, explains why it got that other title), and writer/director Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes, Piranha 3D, The 9th Life Of Louis Drax) comes up with some incredibly inventive ways to kill off any character that is unfortunate enough to cross paths with the nasty serial murderer at the centre of this story. And then there's that ending... Again, we're not here for spoilers, but it is one of those occasions in which you'll either be on board with where the movie is about to take you, or you won't and you'll hate the film for making you feel this way. Like we said, love or hate. There are no shades of grey when it comes to Switchblade Romance. Just different shades of blood red. Check out our previous recommendations below: Day 1 - The Omen Day 2 - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Day 3 - The Ring Day 4 - The Invitation Day 5 - Scream 2 Day 6 - It Follows Day 7 - Eden Lake Day 8 - The Thing (1982)