While Denmark plays in the finals, two women at a distant gas station become victims of an odd and bizarre incident. Does it, however, get more complex than that?
This is one form of the horror genre that has never interested me. In my opinion, it is a sub horror genre that developed with the Saw movies and the Hostel series. We could also make a case for Wolf Creek and perhaps even Martyrs fitting into this category. Mind you, I’m not saying that these particular movies are badly made. Rather, in my case, violence for the sake of violence has not been appealing for quite some time.
Finale is based on a novel by Steen Langstrup. The film is written by Carsten Juul Bladt and Soren Juul Petersen (who also directs). I haven’t read the novel (though I have since downloaded it). The chronological storytelling is rich and cuts between events at the gas station and other locations. The director explained to me that it is indeed inspired by the novel, but there, it alters with each division.
The first part of the film works quite well visually as we see the two women, here, Agnes and Belinda, receiving some spooky visitors like Belinda’s boyfriend Kenny. This has a lot of haunting elements in it. We, the viewers, are aware approximately when certain characters will be appearing, and because of that some of the tension is lost. I understand that I have not put this across well, but knowing very little about the film does inspire uneasiness and dread, and Peterson deserves some credit for that.
And that’s where the brutality comes in, and Petersen definitely does not shy away. It may not be very uncomfortable to witness like Martyrs is, but it is quite savage and sickening. When one woman is forced to inflict torture on another woman it is heart-wrenching; there need not be any stronger violence than this. The final act, as the victims fight back is just as brutal as the violence inflicted upon them. Additionally, in some ways, it is cathartic seeing the victims fight back to the same level their oppressors did.
Just this reasoning alone would make it a horrifyingly creepy story. What raises its level of disturbing heights is the fact that the torturer is performing for an audience, both in house as well as online. In some aspects it recalls movies like Hostel, Untraceable and Feardotcom. I have had this feeling for a long time, and note that I do not have any substantial evidence, but I do feel as though there are places similar to those depicted in the Hostel films or some dark web pages where people are being harmed and it’s possible to actually see it.
Also adds to my thoughts is when in the movie ‘Finale’ we see online messages from people streaming the movie start declaring endless hate speech and sentiments. When the victims make an attempt to defend themselves, the internet as well as spectators live relish it. So on as the film demonstrates, people around the world enjoy observing someone in pain and suffer, they do not mind what kind of suffering person have to endure for them to experience such amazing happy feelings.
The ending is scary, giving an impression that those behind the scenes will continuing to make disturbing shows directed at people who enjoy watching violence unfold.
Anne Bergfeld as Agnes and Karin Michelsen as Belinda give astonishing performances. The supporting cast, especially Damon Younger as The Ringmaster, add some value as well.
Finale, for instance, is so engaging because it is thematically intense, unsteady, violent and disturbing. I think it is fair to say that the film does not cater to a wider audience. Despite not enjoying the film, I certainly found the movie interesting, especially since I do not prefer watching the so-called torture porn films.
The first thing we hear when starting the film is the alerting warning of audience discomfort. It even warns us regarding our ideas of Denmark and the Danes.
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