Movie #107 Enter the Void *2010*

I am apparently more of a masochist than I thought.

First Dogtooth then this.

Enter the Void is the third film from director Gaspar Noe.  I reviewed Irreversible (Movie #88) his second film and declared it a masterpiece.  I stick to that comment.  Noe has again returned to the visual well that made that film so successful.

Unfortunately it didn't quite work me me as much this time around.  I thought at first that he was just recycling the same camera techniques in a new surrounding.  But that was not the case by the end of the movie.  Enter the Void is about a young American man living in Tokyo making a living as a drug dealer.  He gets enough money together to move his sister in with him.  She arrives and gets a job as a stripper working for a sleaze bag to her brothers chagrin.

The two of them were being driven around by their parents when they were children when the car was hit head on by a semi truck and they witnessed first hand their parents brutal death.  After that they were taken to separate foster homes. 

During a drug deal gone wrong the protagonist get shot by the police and killed.  The last 90 minutes of this movie is being told through his "souls" perspective as it floats over Tokyo watching all of the filth and repulsive behavior.

The entire movie is shown through the first person technique.  Complete with blinking and acid trips.  Once Oscar dies, his soul has flashbacks where the camera is placed behind him and her relives the events of his youth.  Mostly the negative ones.

During the early part of the film Oscars friend gives him a copy of "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" which deals largely with the existence of the soul and reincarnation.

The last hour of this movie is a meandering mess.  I was bored out of my mind.  I kept checking the clock to see when it was going to end.  There is A LOT to look at.  Noe's Tokyo is a neon psychedelic wonderland.  But that was not enough for me to over look the total lack of a plot.  I usually like a film that dissects the traditional narrative structure (Irreversible is a great example) but this film became rambling and incoherent.

The acting was really weak as well. The good friend of Oscar is decent, but that is about all I had to hold on and he doesn't demand a lot of screen time.  There was a lot of pestilence for pestilence sake too.  There is a graphic abortion scene and segments of explict and taboo sex acts that didn't do anything to move the film along.  Shock should not be a substitute for sustenance.

***SPOILER ALERT***  At the end of the film, Oscar's soul decided to be reincarnated as his sisters and best friends baby.  This point is driven home by the camera moving into the woman's vagina.  At this point we can see the head of the friends penis being shoved in and out until ejaculation is reached.  We then follow the stream of fluid through her anatomy until we reach an egg where it is penetrated and we are whooshed out of the womb as a baby ready to suckle at the tit of Oscars sister.

In closing, this movie has moments of genius.  From a visual and special effects standpoint Noe can not be touched.  However, he needs an editor.  This movie is almost 2.5 hours long.  at least an hour longer than it needed to be.  I have mad respect for Noe's bravery and vision, but I also have ZERO intentions of every watching this movie again.  I give Enter the Void a 2.5/5 stars.  Check out the Trailer Park to see for yourself.

And a total side note:  The opening credit sequence is an assault on the eyes and ears of the viewer.  I highly recommend checking them out on YouTube!

Movie #88 Irreversible *2002*

A masterpiece?

I just finished watching Gaspar Noe film Irreversible.  I can honestly say that I have never seen anything like that in my life!  I really don't know what to say.  I am truly at a loss for words.  I am going to write a review of this, but there is a good chance that if I watch it again I might have a totally different take on the film.


The film opens with a camera technique like I have never seen.  The camera seems to be attached to a gyroscope of some kind.  It pans and wipes at 360 degrees without ever cutting.  It is fluid and dizzying.  The lighting is minimal and mostly natural.  Once the story begins it takes place outside a gay S&M club where there has been a murder.  The film then proceeds to play out in long, 10-20 minute sequences playing backwards to explain why the murder took place. 

The film revolves around a rape that occurs about half way through the film.  This rape sequence is about the first time in the film where the camera sits still.  It is about a 9 minute un-cut single shot of the most brutal anal rape sequence I have ever seen.  I don't know how to feel about this.  I kind of feel bad for having watched it.  This is not a film that I would ever recomend to anyone without a detailed description of what they would be getting into.

Irreversible is an assault on the senses.  It is terrorizing and beautiful.  As an example; The opening credits are printed upside down and backwards.  They are presented in a strobe light fashion.  They also scroll from the bottom of the screen up instead of the usual.  Then close to the end of the roll the credits start to slowly rotate counterclockwise.  This is not just a gimmick thought.  It really prepares you for the film and it's eccentric camera technique.   Then, the final shot is another fluid camera movement centering overhead on a water sprinkler.  The camera being to spin opposite of the sprinkler.  It moves faster and faster as the score grows louder and louder.  Then it fades into a whiteout that starts strobing.  Through the strobe we get glimpses of outer-space.  Then it cuts for the first time and the film is over.  Very reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey.  The music was done by one half of the band Daft Punk.  It is a techno sound scape.  This would have definitely made a spot on my favorite score of 2002. 

The films stars Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel.  Bellucci is probably best known for her work in The Matrix, and Cassel would be know from the Oceans 11 franchise or from this years Black Swan.  They are unbelieveably good in this movie.  I felt so bad for Bellucci having to be subjected to filming that rape scene. 

I gave Irreversible a 5/5 stars on Netflix.  I think I will hold true to that ranking.  I have a rule that I will only watch one David Lynch film a year.  I find his work so disturbing that I will only put myself through 1 of his films a year.  Even though I own three or four on DVD.  I love them that much.  I wonder if Gaspar Noe will be another director like that.  The closest film I can comapre my feelings to is the Michael Haneke film(s) Funny Games. 

I will attach the trailer for Irreversible if YouTube has one.  I will also add a link to the credit sequence of his new film Enter the Void.  Check out the Trailer Park to see for yourself.