Irreversible

Rating:
Summary: If Oliver Stone had originally written Clockwork Orange
Review: This would be it! This movie is incredible from the start. The film quality spins along like and NIN video and, (for us english-subtitle-reading viewers) vulgarity appears to make up the bulk of the French language. Every performance is so incredible you would swear its real! As a fitting bonus, there are some very blunt homages to Stanely Kubrick to found throughout the film also. (Most noticably the 2001 poster above Alex's head in one of the final shots). Overall, if you want a film to leave your jaw sitting on the floor, this is it. Watch this after Clockwork Orange and grab a crowbar, because you'll be ready to commit a little of the old 'ultra-violence' yourself! I can't recommend it enough!

Rating:
Summary: They got the wrong man!
Review: An allegory on the death penalty, Gaspar Noe's Irreversible forces us to confront the efficacy of revenge. Firstly, there was no gratuitous violence in the film. If anything was gratuitous it was the demonization of gay men. Secondly, the rape scene worked to show us that revenge does not. They managed to kill the wrong man! And what an audience they had. Look at the faces of the men in the room when the deed gets done. These are the faces of the witnesses to an execution, no matter that the real bad guy rapist eludes capture. (This is not to say, however, that the revenge victim didn't deserve a whack or two himself.) And wasn't Marcus' blind, impatient rage similar to that of any society bent on killing murderers? Were not the freelance 'cops' remarkably similar to those real police who justify bending the law in the name of justice? And was Pierre the drowned out voice of reason, struggling to prevent the execution in the face of Marcus' blood lust? Even the title informs us of the irrevocable nature of a system founded on vengence. By displaying first the depraved consequences of a bad decsion to seek revenge, the film insists that the viewer invest, and when we see the rape scene we then and there know they got the wrong guy. Mr. Noe invites us to look at the true horror of rape without flinching, I suspect because rape is so horrible. And I disagree that the rape victim was somehow complicit, as a certain reviewer has said, by wearing a "membrane" for a dress and wondering off alone and through an underpass. Rape is rape, and this depiction spares us not.

Rating:
Summary: Not brilliant, not innovative, but definitely unforgettable
Review: I'm certainly no film expert, I just like to watch movies. I did not like this movie. However, it is one I will certainly never forget. The backwards Memento-style direction was derivative but very appropriate for the story, exacerbating the tragedy that befalls the trio of characters in one night. The incredibly graphic scenes in "Le Rectum" and the underpass walk a thin line between a necessary exposure of the unglamorous violence and depravity in the world and a shocking indulgence in our freedom of expression. Did we really need to see that rape scene for 9 minutes? It could have been 9 hours. It's enough to make you a rape victim advocate and pro-death penalty in one fell swoop. Word to the wise - unless you can detach yourself from incredibly disturbing content, don't watch this film.

The jiggling camera and flashing lights at the end are annoying at best - cheap effects. But that rape scene is still making me sick to me stomach 3 days after watching it. Very powerful stuff.

Rating:
Summary: Shocking...A powerful film, but not for everyone.
Review: Two lovers are headed for destruction as their story is told over the course of a violent day.

'Irreversible' starts at the end, with a shocking killing, and then goes backwards to tell the story leading up to the opening scene

There has been much controversy surrounding this film due to it's extremely graphic nature. While there is full nudity from both main stars Monica Bellucci, and Vincent Cassel, it is nothing compared to the extreme violence in the film. The controversial rape scene is horrible to watch, but nothing in comparison to the sex club head-bashing scene, this scene is so brutal it takes your breath away.

Now that the controversial topics are out of the way, the film itself is a powerful piece of film making, complete with trendy styling, and strong performances from Bellucci and Cassel, and should be viewed for such.

'Irreversible' is definitely NOT for everyone, but those braver viewers in search of a new style film should give it a try.

Nick Gonnella

Rating:
Summary: 4.75 actually...almost a masterpiece
Review: 'IRREVERSIBLE' starts as an attack on what film "should" be with credits running in reverse, sliding around, and at the end of the film. The effect here is less for the cool factor (as it is in the film 'SEVEN') and more to disrupt audience levels of acceptability. In fact, the whole film pushes the audience to question what is "acceptable" and what is not. This is not exploitation, however, but aggressive art, art which is meant to challange, provoke, and stay with you long after the film is over.
The plot has been discussed elsewhere so I won't harp on that. Needless to say, the film starts in a circle in Dante's Hell, moves upward through a Purgatorio, and almost, but not quite, gets to Heaven. But the film is told in reverse. "Time destroys all" is the motto, and indeed, because "Heaven" is at the beginning and "Hell" at the end, the film isn't a romantic parable on coincidence but rather an essay on/for/in search of Nihilism; Nihilism is tragic, Hence, this film is a tragedy. It's best if the film is viewed as a Horror/Love/Pro-Feminist story.
The acting in the film is as perfect as the deft camerawork/cinematography. Monica Bellucci should especially be praised for taking on what is surely one of the most difficult scenes any actress has been asked to perform on film. The infamous rape is done with such artistry and integrity that it is never sensational & exploitative; The violence is always real and vivid, never forgettable, and is (the violence) far above and beyond the frivolous "human bodies as toys/trash" shown in films like 'GLADIATOR' and 'TERMINATOR 3'. Here, violence is never romantic nor chic and for this Noe deserves any and all credit he gets.
This film is along the same in-your-face, intellectual horror films as 'SALO: 120 DAYS OF SODOM', 'VIDEODROME' and 'HELLRAISER', films where the killer is not some masked voyeur but rather the "Killer" is time, destiny, circumstance, and the human disposition towards violence as it fulfills personal/political/psychological desires & a need to transgress.
For a better understanding/appreciation of 'IRREVERSIBLE'check out the above mentioned but also give a read to Georges Bataille's "EROTISME" and "THE TORTURE GARDEN" by Octave Mirabeau (also some Maurice Blanchot wouldn't be bad).
I give the film 4.75 but not 5 because Noe hasn't quite made his masterpiece...but he's very, very close. While not a film for everyone, if you can mentally & physically handle 'IRREVERSIBLE' you'll experience what art can & "should" be. This film will be studied and discussed for many years to come.

Rating:
Summary: A brilliant film that should be seen at least once
Review: Here is a disturbing little film that I will honestly never watch again; yet deep in my heart I feel this is great filmmaking. I knew absolutely nothing about this movie before seeing it on DVD other than it was supposed to be very controversial (This is the ideal way to view the movie,the little you know about the plot the better). I'm personally glade I didnt catch this at the movie theater because I feel this film works better viewed alone in the comfort of your home making the film even more shocking. If you have a stomach for graphic [physical contact] /violence/situations definetly give this movie a chance because it's a film you wont soon forget.

Rating:
Summary: jovenile!
Review: There are interesting things about this movie; for a start, only french cinema can come out with such a thing, though i'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing. However, this means that some of the things you get are so characteristically french, and i don't mean to be anti-french, but just to comment on a theme that's unfortunately is too pervasive in french movies. Examples are the chit-chat about sex in the tube, only french people would have such a chit-chat with such a choice of topic and such expressed opinions. And only french people would bother put it on film. Unfortunately, if you've seen enough french movies you'll get pretty bored with too much emphasis on sex, and things will feel repetitive and redundant.
The violence is sorta extreme, it's probably the worst one can think of. Newsweek said this was the most walked-out-of movie of the year, and true to its reputation i think a third to a half of the audience walked out of the theatre after that scene.
The rape scene is labouriously prolonged, a little too prolonged that even an actress like monica belluci seemed at times not entirely sure how she should be acting.
Overall, you can't help but feel the movie, in its extremism and deliberate intent to shock, is nothing more than the product of a very jovenile mind, in a very french way, which, knowing how extreme the french can be, only means annoying jovenile.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating, though admittedly flawed
Review: This movie had me on the edge of my seat, I could hardly watch it! The rape scene is horrific, as is the death scene, but that's why this movie is good. A rape and death scene SHOULD be horrific and unwatchable! Hollywood makes these subjects entertaining, not horrific. The only reason I didn't give this movie five stars is because the dialogue is absolutely atrocious in parts. Just horrible. But the first twenty minutes is filled with such terror and energy, with the camera swooping up and down, it's enough be cause nausea. Watch Irreversible with the lights out, the surround sound on loud, and your hands on the edge of your seats. It's loud, twisted, horrific, and unapologetic about it! Monica Bellucci does an incredible job, and she is not outdone by the technical aspects of the film, which is basically made up of scenes that were done in one take. Be prepared for an intense film!

Rating:
Summary: This isn't even a film
Review: Other than the very effective rape scene, this production is a failure in an almost objective sense. While it has been compared to "Baise Moi", which is appropriate in that it's poor in similar respects, the most striking aspect of this "thing" is that it's not even a film, but rather, just a handful of shots, each lasting several minutes, and each like a home video or in some cases, like video surveillance footage, as there is almost no meaningful dialogue, no story, etc. In fact, it seems like there isn't even a script! It's boring beyond belief!!! The little dialogue that is present is inane: "Do you feel OK? I'm fine. Want a cigarette? Thanks. Ouch! Excuse me. What time is it?"; or, "What's your name?! Screw you!!! Shut your face! ...!!!". The "deep insight into the human condition" that this production strives for through all of this is a joke, like the immature writing of a young teenager. The bedroom scene between Bellucci and Cassel serves as an example: it's supposed be touching but includes nothing more than bland conversation. The scene in the subway and that at the party are also remarkably stark in that they mainly feature trivial chit-chat, like in a home video taken at a family function. Amazing!

In addition, the techniques employed throughout Irreversible are amateur: jiggly camera work; grainy images; and distorted audio with everyone talking at once, making much of the verbiage indiscernible - as if the aforesaid person is now using a camera and has tried too hard to create something with an "artistic look and feel", but which has turned out to be highly artificial. Like an unsophisticated technique typical of a pitiable student film, the shaky images, for instance, which are perhaps used to induce confusion and nausea, are just too crude.

In brief, "Irreversible" is simply stupid.

...


Rating:
Summary: shocking but beutiful
Review: The review lostjhony wrote shows me and alot of other film lovers how singal minded people can be.

I agree, the opening scene is extreamly explicit and one hell of an eye opener. But the purpose of this is to show the real life destruction of beuty, which is exactly why this film is told in reverse.

Although the director has choosen to destruct beuty in such a shocking way, he has also choosen to make up for it by telling the story backwards. He is mourning the tragedy of a girl being raped and beaten by showing the audience the way it was befor the first scene, tranquil and peacefull, and at the same time showing how "time destroys everything"