It appears the French, of all people, are getting an appetite for horror. Not only that, they’re quickly getting the knack of making them watchable to boot.

Last year’s Martyrs was the first to appear on our horror-dar; although flawed, it was an exceptionable stab, as it were, at doing something different with the genre. The same can be said for this.

After a tragic car accident, where she loses her husband, Sarah (Alysson Paradis) is faced with the future of bringing up their soon-to-be born baby alone. This makes her depressed like only the French know how.

I ask you, what the hell happened to French farce?

Her mood isn’t improved when a woman (Beatrice Dalle) rings on her doorbell late one night, claiming to have broken down. With Sarah quite rightly not letting her in, the woman lets slip some personal information about Sarah, that no mere passer-by broken down on the side of the road would be aware of.

The woman with no name then begins to make a right nuisance of herself, which leads to the use of quite a few sharp implements. All of which are pointed, at the most part, at poor pregnant Sarah. If she’s Sarah’s midwife, then she has some pretty extreme methods for child birth.

Considering this sees the directorial debut for Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, they have produced a tremendously confident first effort. Inside is brimming with special effects that could have easily overwhelmed even the most seasoned director. Instead the pair have created something that puts to shame some of the more recent dire US efforts at horror. There are no obvious orchestral clues as to when the next set piece is to take place; the suspense is born from pure fear, only accentuated by an unsettling array of sounds.

The effects department – through their use of CGI and prosthetics – have created some truly memorable set pieces, which could make even the most hardened horror fan wince. The film also manages to get through more units of blood than the average A & E on a Friday night.

And despite her rather curious costume, where she is sporting something that the wicked witch of the west would wear, it’s good to see Beatrice Dalle in something remotely watchable. Credit also has to be given to Alysson Paradis (sister of Vanessa Joe Le Taxi Mrs Depp) in a role that has few laughs, and sees the actress hiding in the loo for the best part of the film.

With so much in its favour, it’s disappointing that more care wasn’t taken over the story. It’s littered with scenes that just don’t make sense. For instance, when the police appear after promising to check in with Sarah later in the evening, they enter her house without any radios to call for back up. That’s just sloppy. And then at one point they have to drag in a suspect of another crime into the house, as to not leave them in the police car unattended. Perhaps they left their handcuffs back at the station too. If that’s the case, they deserve all they get.

If you can suspend belief and common sense for its duration, Inside provides enough surprising thrills and spills to satisfy those who like to watch films with a high gore quota and body count.