A few months back I saw Enter the Void, a demanding movie that only rang a bell because I’d seen the director Gaspar Noé’s previous effort, Irreversible. And I’d only heard of Irreversible because of its notoriety, its DVD release briefly addressed in Entertainment Weekly a few years ago.
It’s notorious for one scene in particular, one long, agonizing scene: A rape, captured by one camera setup, that for a scene lasts an almost unbearably long time, nearly ten minutes. It’s graphic, certainly because of the violence demonstrated. But – and none of what follows here is to take the situation lightly – it’s very interesting to me how the act is portrayed. That clothes are mostly on makes the act no less a violation, but it’s less sexualized, I’d say, and in that way even more personalized, or humanized. It’s not pornographic in that particular sense, though it’s still a physical confrontation. One camera angle, from on the ground, if not inches off, displays the scene with the indifference of the one scared passerby in the background. Yet still, this indifference is paired with the curiosity evident in that we are told, or at least suggested, not to look away. The act is portrayed, not merely hinted at. I think this combination of apathy and voyeurism creates a fascinating tension.
But there’s more to the movie, too. First of all, the scenes (and the credits) are arranged in reverse-chronological order. We see the aftermath of the attack before the attack. This reorganization leads to some shocking scenes, including a beating towards the beginning that remains the most explicitly gruesome thing I’ve ever seen on film. But the movie also raises interesting questions of crime and punishment and to what extent retribution is justified.
Possibly complicating matters is the actress herself. Monica Bellucci plays Alex, the victim of the rape and subsequent beating. We see her injured, then we see her being injured. But only after that, really, do we see how exquisitely beautiful she actually is, how charming she seems, how loving a relationship she has with Marcus (Vincent Cassel, her real-life husband). This information makes the movie increasingly more heartbreaking, but looking back, also makes me wonder how her beauty affects our thoughts of her rape. Is the attack more disgusting because she is more beautiful to begin with? If so, that seems like an unfair reaction. But is it a natural one? If a conclusion can be drawn, in that all such injustices are unfair and that kindness and a measure of respect should be exuded towards everyone, then this depiction of rape is not just exploitative. I’d say the visualization succeeds in making the violence real enough to make people think, or become more sensitive to actual acts like this, in which case the movie, as disturbing as parts of it are, has very much in the way of artistic merit.
Vis-à-Vis: I’d definitely recommend seeing Enter the Void in conjunction with this one, specifically for both having impressive camerawork. Between the two, though, there’s a definite divide in that Enter the Void is mostly surreal, with a beautiful representation of a drug trip, for example, while this film begins with a level of subjectively – the characters’ world turned upside down as it were – and becomes more realistic throughout. I also of course have to suggest Memento, with its similar “backwards” organization, others parallels in narrative, and the clever revelation of backstory.
In brief: Disturbing, visceral, gut-wrenching but also thoughtful and occasionally sublime.
3.5 stars/4 (A-)