Drew

Great cinematography and a killer score but is it really that great of a movie? I love a lot of the big “critique of masculinity” films like Fight Club and American Psycho but this is just pretty nothing burger in my opinion. Travis is also just a loser which makes for nothing more than a somewhat entertaining watch at times while other times I couldn’t do much more than roll my eyes.

As someone who has struggled with both OCD and Depression the strong emotional response a breakdown of routine can trigger is something very familiar to me. What seem to be small alterations to Jeanne’s day to day life resonate far beyond the minuscule impact they may seem to have if you only watch a single clip from this film. I found the heightening of both stress and routine diversion as more and more began to go wrong on day three of this film very interesting as in my experience that is very accurate and is something people who do not struggle with grief or mental disorders that cause these ideations surrounding one’s routine often cannot understand. What this film does very well is put the viewer in the shoes of someone facing these struggles. Its long runtime does lead to some very mundane scenes, albeit they are technically incredible and often visually stunning, yet it allows you to understand why Jeanne makes every decision she does. To the point where at the film’s climax, there is little doubt about what she is going to do, and when it occurred I was so unsurprised I had to pause and question why there was no shock value. This is the beauty and reward of this film as the shock value is not found in the moments within the film but instead in your reaction to it and how you come to expect what should be shocking. Do I agree with the BFI and think this is the greatest movie of all time? Definitely not, however, for what it appears to be on the surface this film punches above its weight every time and delivers in a way you would never expect. Great movie.

If there’s three things to know about me they are that I love a queer film, I love a show tune, and I love some history. This movie has all three! Kind of crazy how relevant a fifty year old movie that was set thirty years before its release still is to the current state of the world. Definitely not distressing at all! This is just such an insane way to create discourse on Fascism, sexuality, otherness, self-presentation, and dedicated spaces. Mad respect.