George Sluizer’s film remains a masterclass in tension because it forces the audience into an uncomfortable proximity with evil. Raymond Lemorne does not hate his victims; he is simply an existentialist testing his own boundaries.
The film is unique in that it shows the viewer the abductor, Raymond, quite early. We watch his meticulous planning, his calculated normal life as a family man, and his profound, sterile psychopathy. The tension comes not from "whodunit," but from "will he get caught" and "why did he do it?". 3. A "Better" Ending