Now, ladies and gentlemen, I
present the review for the the most graphic and brutal film I
have seen since "Natural Born Killers", and before
that, "A Clockwork Orange".
"Irreversible" has been leaving theatre goers in
disarray. Many have not been able to sit through the
entire film without walking out. In fact, several people
left the theatre where I saw the film. Why?
Because there is a brutal rape scene in the film that lasts
almost nine minutes (much more graphic that anything Kubrick
or "Straw Dogs" did). You also get to see
someone get their face smashed in, and it is not pretty,
But, those aspects of the film are necessary for director
Gaspar Noe to complete his nightmare vision of violence and
revenge.
The plot of the film is simple: a woman is brutally
raped by a stranger, and the woman's ex-husband and best
friend set out for revenge. Monica Bellucci (who also
stars in "Tears of the Sun", a less that compelling
film) is the rape victim and she brings an intensity to her
performance that she completely left out of her scenes with
Willis in the aforementioned war picture. She is
explosive in "Irreversible", her best film to date
and a true testament to her acting abilities.
The most obvious success for this film is the directing by Noe.
He has crafted a nightmare that is both original and
horrifying. He borrows from Kubrick and Peckinpah, but
improves on what they started and churns out two or three
scenes of pain and violence that makes "Natural Born
Killers" look like "The Muppets Take
Manhattan".
Now, for a warning. You get to see the ending first in
this film. I don't think it was trying to copy either
"Memento" or "Pulp Fiction" but, with the
story matter, it was very necessary. Even if Loe was
copying--so what? "Memento" copied "The
Zero Effect", and "The Zero Effect" copied
"Pulp Fiction". Get over it.
"Irreversible", I suspect, will open to a wider
American release, and you will be hard pressed to find it
right now, especially since many theatres are leery of opening
it, due to the excessive violence. Go overseas and I am
sure you will be able to find it in an unedited version.
It might see some over here, but I doubt it. If we can
let "Jackass: The Movie" hit 2500 theatres, I'm sure
a film with a powerful message as this isn't going to cause as
much damage as two idiots ramming into one another in shopping
carts. This film is wholly unique and a must see for
cinema lovers. "Irreversible" is a real hidden
gem.
