Irreversible

I did not expect to give this film 4 out of 5 stars. I mostly wanted to watch this film to explore Gaspar Noé (I’ve previously watched some of Enter the Void but not fully) and I have to say, Gaspar Noé is a genius. There’s two things in this film that I had never seen before; the way he moved the camera- which I loved, and the reverse storytelling- which I also loved. I’m not a big fan of sexuality in film; it can be powerful when used sparingly and in specific ways, but when it’s overused it gives me the “ick.” That being said, sexuality was absolutely at the center of this film and yet I really enjoyed it. I can confidently say I was captivated by every bit of this film, and the only scene that I thought dragged on for longer than it should have was the rape scene. I also liked the backwards foreshadowing (Alex mentioning about dreams in the elevator, and then mentioning to Marcus that she dreamt of a red tunnel, only for then Marcus to “backwards foreshadow” the rape scene, even in detail, such as covering her mouth and mentioning sodomy.) I also liked the symbolism at the end, where after we found out that Alex was pregnant (making the story even more tragic), the camera shifted to the baby on the poster of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Also, I’m not a fan of the dynamic between Marcus, Alex and Pierre, in fact I don’t like any of the characters whatsoever, but I can’t deny that their interactions were very entertaining to watch. This is a fantastic film, damn. (Yes this is definitely my messiest review yet.)