Screwed-Up Movies: Irréversible

Irréversible (2002)
Director: Gaspar Noé
Writer(s): Gaspar Noé
Starring: Vincent Cassel, Monica Bellucci, Albert Dupontel
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First and foremost - and despite its subject matter - Irréversible is a beautiful, beautiful film. It has to be, of course, in order for its disturbing premise to actually work. In ultimately disguising one of the most wretched of human actions in a beautiful film, French director Gaspar Noé tricks us, again and again, in order to get his point across. The fact that he infuses his film with a certain sensuality and beauty makes it all the more disturbing.

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, let's make it clear: the centerpiece of Irréversible is a rape scene. And one unlike any other rape scene ever depicted in motion picture history. The camera does not move. The rape lasts for several minutes and never cuts away. The audience is forced to watch it as if a fly glued to a wall. It is harrowing, depressing, and disturbing. There is even a moment when a passerby walks in, sees the rape, and walks away in attempt to "not get involved." Humanity at its worst. And presented in full-color 16mm. That the scene is not so unbelievable can make one want to jump off a bridge.

But Noé tricks us. Again and again.

Irréversible begins with the rape victim's (Alex) husband and good friend exacting revenge on the man whom they believe conducted the rape. It is a chaotically shot scene, refusing to let the audience focus on anything save for snippets of sodomy and hedonism. The tone is set. And there is no question the audience is in for a bumpy ride. The audience will not learn that Alex's husband (Marcus) and friend (Pierre) killed the wrong man until the rape scene. It is a revelation that no one wants to acknowledge. Humanity at its worst, yet again.

Roger Ebert famously stated that Irréversible is "a movie so violent and cruel that most people will find it unwatchable." And this is true. But Noé tricks us. Repeatedly. For the film ends beautifully, with an examination of two lovers believing that a child is on the way. As a capsule, it is a touching ending... as the ending to Irréversible, it only makes what we've seen seem worse. But we can't help but admire the beauty. In this manner, Noé reveals a bit of glee in pointing out how disgusting we can be.

There is a scene in which we see Monica Bellucci, sensually dressed, moving through a party. Her nipples are evident, and her body's curves overwhelm any possibility of subtlety in her dress. In any other film, the men in the audience would be aroused beyond belief. But, Irréversible is presented in reverse chronological order, and we experience this otherwise delicious scene after we've seen Alex raped... and the effect is horrifying.

Bellucci is known for accepting roles that push the boundaries of acceptability. The role of Alex is no different. The irony is that, because it's so brutal and honest a film, it's unacceptable. And, perhaps, unwatchable.

But it is beautiful. Because Noé tricked us. And we all hate to admit it.

Don't say you weren't warned.

An Exploration of Screwed-Up Movies

You ever seen a film that just left you feeling... depressed to be alive? Yes, of course you have, but I'm not talking about movies that are simply crap, but well-crafted movies designed to make you feel bad about being alive. Movies so disturbing in their subject matter that you can't help but want to take a shower immediately after the end credits start to roll.

Keep in mind that I'm somewhat of a film masochist and I'll watch practically anything once, so I am, by no means, recommending that you see the films presented in "Screwed Up Movies." But, if you're game, go ahead and consider me a film sadist, as well (take that, Lars von Trier!).

*Note: I wrote that previous line prior to having seen von Trier's Antichrist... which is THE most disturbing movie ever made.

Though some might claim Quentin Tarantino is a progenitor of "Screwed-Up Movies" (and they would be right), he cautiously straddles the line of what is acceptable cinema while hiding much of his potential commentary as homage to long-forgotten exploitation genres (this is not a criticism, merely an observation... I love Tarantino films). The films that will appear in "Screwed-Up Movies" are truly that... screwed-up. Honest and blunt depictions of everything society likes to pretend doesn't exist. They are films that I (and most critics) consider outstanding motion pictures, but they are not for everybody.

In the near-future I will attempt to break down Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Irreversible, and Antichrist. These break downs are most certainly not recommendations, but I would encourage the brave and the bold to give them a viewing. Consider this your warning.

I believe it to be no accident that the movies are not English-language films (well, Antichrist is, but is a Danish production). American cinema (and, to a large extent, that of the English-speaking Commonwealth) is loathe to present such situations and subject matter so plainly. While the independent segments of those industries have made great strides in promoting and provoking a wider-range of humanity, their general cinemas much prefer the escapist aspect of their art form. There are opposing philosophies and theories behind this - maturity versus immaturity, morality versus immorality, etc. - and I believe them all to be wrong.

Art does not imitate life, and life does not imitate art. They are one and the same, and have been since we developed the ability of sentient thought. It's time we accept that.

*Come back next Monday for Screwed-Up Movies: Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance

Motion Pictures That Make Me Say Wow

Everyone has a favorite movie, and most of us have several, as we tend to be incapable of consistently heralding a "best" as our moods change from moment to moment and our tastes change from year to year.

We all, however, have the ability to identify movies that make us say "wow." Some of those pictures only do it the first time we see it, while others have the extremely rare ability of eliciting the response with every viewing.

Let me back up a moment.

I am, obviously, writing this quick little rave because I just watched a film that made my jaw drop. No, it wasn't action-packed, and, no, there wasn't a glut of sex (one or two scenes, only one of which might make a Puritan blush). Hell, it wasn't even American. While I will mention that film here, I will not go into detail as I intend on making my girlfriend watch it, and I don't want to give anything away.

Without further ado, the list:

The Matrix - yes, it might be a little passé to admit now, but everyone who saw this film in theaters was blown away, whether by the effects themselves or the accidentally philosophical plot. For me, the second and third entries in the trilogy took the power of the first movie away, but that doesn't change the fact that it once blew my mind.

Irreversible - a French film centering on a rape and the events that led up to it. It has, without doubt, the most disturbing scene I have ever watched in a movie, and probably ever will see in a movie (tall claim, I know). There is also a scene involving a fire extinguisher and man's face that could once make me wince. This one's a whopper.

Road to Perdition - in my opinion: the perfect movie. Why? I don't know... I just really, really like it.

The Lives of Others - this is the German film that I finished watching less than an hour prior to this writing. Again, not going to give anything away just yet (rest assured I will come back to it in the near future), but... wow.

There are more, naturally, but I'm keeping this short. What films can do or have done this to you?

Nicotine-Withdrawal-Induced Musings

I chewed the last piece of Nicorette I had yesterday. Today, I am going through regular gum like it's heroin. An entire bag of blow pops, two 60-piece cans of Eclipse gum, and a pack of Dentyne Ice have all met their demise. I'd chew on my fingers, but you can't blow bubbles with flesh... or can you? Hmm...

Scooby Doo was invented by a Japanese guy. Who'd have thought? Two things can be deciphered from this fact. One, he almost made up for the Japanese social debacle that is known as karaoke. Two, the Japanese, realizing their attempt to corrupt American culture via automobiles and electronics had failed, were trying to screw us up on cartoons. Given the proliferation of manga and anime, I'd say they're well on their way to success.

If I'm not making any sense, blame it on the lack of nicotine.

There's a pizza chain accepting pesos now. Good customer service? Maybe. Or maybe it's time we pulled a European Union and forced Canada and Mexico to adopt the US dollar. Or maybe it's time we just shut up and let a business do what it wants to do. It's called freedom. So be it.

The NFL playoffs heat up this weekend with the divisional games. The rub? My sister is throwing my niece's birthday party this weekend, even though she was born on December 30th. The rub's rub? Out of the four playoff games, my sister scheduled my niece's birthday party at 2 PM Pacific Time on Sunday. Right smack dab in the middle of the Chargers-Patriots game. Guess which uncle isn't going to the birthday party?

If I seem like a dick, blame it on the lack of nicotine. Okay, fine, I'm always like this.

I love politics. Democrats, who are supposedly for cloning, specifically in terms of research and development, are suddenly against cloned food. For R&D, they claim that what we discover can only help, not hurt our civilization. For food, it's the opposite. I'm sorry, I was under the impression that John Kerry was no longer the face of the Democratic Party. Oh, well... they'll change their mind next month, anyway.

On the other hand, the Republicans actually seem to think that adding 20,000 troops is going to help the situation in Iraq. I agree, it's going to help the insurgents find more targets. There is a solution to the Iraq problem, but I highly doubt we're going to figure it out. Neither major political party is in any position to dictate how another country rebuilds itself.

Michael Moore is an ass, albeit an intelligent and talented one. Case in point, he not-too-long ago published a piece concerning the "fact" that we have been in Iraq longer than we fought in World War II. Basically, he's trying to equate that it took us less time to "defeat the Nips and the Nazis" in less time than it's taking us to "tame the Hajjis." And, once again, he's attempting to confuse his followers and the public-at-large with apples and oranges. Mr. Moore, if you want to make a real comparison, please add the amount of time we stayed in Germany and Japan as "occupational forces," which, whether you agree or not, is what we technically are in Iraq right now. Hmm... I guess we're still ahead of the timetable, aren't we? What a dickhead.

An Air Force vet was relieved of duty due to her appearance in Playboy. The Air Force claims that she violated some sort of "honor code." How? By appearing nude in a magazine that is readily recognized as an American institution? By appearing nude in the only erotic magazine that is allowed to be sold on military bases? By appearing nude? You fucking censors need to get lives.

Speaking of censors, how is Irreversible, the French film with the most disturbing rape scene in motion picture history, allowed to be shown uncut in the United States, but Malena, one of the most unassuming erotic and sadly romantic films in history, can only be shown after 17 minutes of the original version are cut out? We Americans are a strange and contradictory culture, aren't we?

Let me clarify Irreversible... it's not just the most disturbing rape scene in motion picture history, it's the most disturbing scene in motion picture history, period. No horror or slasher movie you can think of has a scene anywhere near as disturbing and disconcerting as that one.

Let me clarify Irreversible and Malena... I don't think either film should be censored. In America, we're accused of fearing sex but accepting violence. Progressives cite Europe as the "more mature" society, because they fear violence and accept sex. Personally, I think we're both idiots. In art, there's nothing wrong with sex nor violence. I'd say we should all turn Japanese, whose art is rife with hardcore sex and hardcore violence... but those assholes invented karaoke, and I'm having a hard time accepting that.

I'm getting irritable. Would anybody care if I have a cigarette? Just kidding. Although, I am about to start chewing my fingers.

Go Chargers!