5. Funny Games (2007)
A shot for shot remake of Michael Haneke's Austrian film of the same name (which I am embarrassed to say I cannot review as I have not watched it - and I am a German speaker and Teutonophile), There is nothing funny about Funny Games - it is pure horror and bleakness. George and Ann Farber arrive at their lakeside retreat with their son Georgie and their dog. Two young men - Peter and Paul - pop over to borrow some eggs. There is nothing overtly sinister about the two young men until they return with the eggs broken and demand some more. The family comply but the young men come back with broken eggs yet again. This time they break George's leg with his golf stick. They also kill the dog. Peter and Paul take the family hostage and force them to take part in sadistic games. They also bicker among themselves. The child tries to escape and is unsuccessful. He is the first to be killed by a shotgun blast. His parents are distraught and vow to escape. Ann flees the house but is quickly recaptured. Peter and Paul make Ann choose her husband's death - slow, painful knife or shotgun. Ann grabs the shotgun and kills Peter to Paul's extreme annoyance. He grabs the remote control and rewinds the day to before Ann killed Peter. George is murdered and they toss Ann into a lake. They then restart their egg routine on a neighbour. Haneke was very happy to remake his original film for American audiences because the violence in America was reportedly the inspiration for the film. It throws horror genre conventions on its head. Normally the good guys use their cunning to defeat the baddies, but here we are not even allowed to countenance this - as seen by the killing of Peter being rewound. This is a film that is utterly bleak and without redemption. I think the toughest moment is when Peter and Paul casually chuck Ann into the lake. The brutal slaying of a child is also pretty hard to stomach, let alone the poor family dog (sniff! sniff!). Abandon hope all ye who watch this film!