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Irreversible had been deemed by most of my buddies as "the most shocking movie ever." Once I finally built up the drive to watch it, I was a bit disappointed by the hype. It was a solid feature, don't get me wrong, however, nowhere NEAR most shocking film ever. One main detraction from the impact it could have had, was that director Gaspar Noé made it his purpose to seriously unsettle the viewer. The camera was all over the place, up and down, and spinning around, to the point that I was starting to get motion sickness. Coupled with the unsettling noises, made it uncomfortable at times, but more for the fact that I was thinking I might need to grab a brown paper bag.
Aside from the camera and the noise, I just felt like I was watching a hardcore porno at points in the feature. The nudity and sexuality were gratuitous, to say the least, and Noé did not shy away from making sure it was captured vividly by the camera. I will say that if you make it through the first 15 minutes of the film (and don't shy away) there is an excellently brutal treat for the gorehounds. Aside from that though, it is mostly just shock and awe of a sexual nature.
The French definitely have a different standard of film making, which I am grateful for. However, this experiment would have been much more effective if Noé focused more on character development and making the viewer give a damn about what they were watching, rather than strive for driving the viewer into sickness. His tactics did not serve the story well at all, and the big "shock" at the end, just made me chuckle a bit and say "really?" to myself.
Plot:
A night of partying goes completely awry for a couple and their friend, as you view the events that unfold, in reverse order, after Alex (the female lead) is raped and her boyfriend Marcus and friend Pierre set out to seek vengeance.
Director:
Gaspar Noé
Staring:
Monica Bellucci as Alex
Vincent Cassel as Marcus
Albert Dupontel as Pierre
Review Rating:
5/10