Coming into this year’s election, I had a feeling that something bad was going to happen as I already had expressed my thoughts about voting and why democracy is a failure. Seeing my sister put signs in support of Kamala Harris had me rolling my eyes as well as telling everyone around her to vote. I was like “oh shut the fuck up!” Then came Election Day where I just chose not to really pay attention to what is happening as I stayed in my and watched Revenge on MUBI on my laptop. I had other things to worry about as I am now in the process of cleaning out my closet and wardrobe. It is time since I purchased some new clothes, film box sets, and other things as I need to make room for the new things I had. I have already bought a bunch of new things in which I will need a new bookshelf and to do some re-organizing in my room. That is what I am focusing on other than my various projects for the year relating to my blog.
I am not entirely surprised by the results as I had a feeling that Dookie Tank would win though I do ponder the question of how did all of this happen? What happened during the Barack Obama administration that allowed people to not trust both the Republican and Democratic parties and vote for the biggest imbecile in this planet? The people I blame for all of this are the TV producers who created The Apprentice as it gave Dookie Tank a lifeline to be in the spotlight and lower our standards of what is supposed to be entertaining. Now that he will be back in power for another 4 years with his bitch J.D. Vance and the slew of dumb-fucks that will be in the cabinet including Linda McMahon as the Secretary of Education as she is unqualified for the job is a sign of things to come. It is as if Mike Judge’s 2006 film Idiocracy is now becoming a reality. All I can do is shake my head and laugh at how bad things have become while I have no sympathy for anyone in the Democratic Party because they are a bunch of whiny assholes.
There is a big reason Kamala Harris lost. It did not matter how many fucking rich people and celebrities endorsed her. It did not matter how many registered voters this pop star and that pop star brought to the table. Harris lost because she is nothing more than a younger puppet for Joe Biden and nobody wants that. Nobody wants someone who will say this and not back it up on their promises. Nobody wants to vote for someone complicit in the genocide of a group of people to support a Fascist state. Nobody wants some fucking cunt and her fucking party because they are a bunch of whiny pussies who do not know fuck about what the people want. There has been some legitimate criticism towards the Democratic party over the way they have ignored the working class and middle class and that is why they lost. They have no one to blame but themselves as it is time for the party to be abolished and try to remember that the word democracy is not mentioned in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. It is not even in the Pledge of Allegiance. Thomas Jefferson was rightfully critical of democracy as it did not work in Ancient Greece then and it has already failed here. Fuck Democracy!
Politics is something I do not think should be discussed no matter what as all it does is just cause trouble. I would rather focus on watching things that can make me feel something and not worry about the state of the world. That is why I go to cinema for answers although I have not been watching as much as I would like to because I had a niece and nephew who have been dealing with the flu that my mother had caught recently while I only had symptoms for a brief period. I wish I had gone to the movies more this year, but the timing and the lack of enthusiasm has really sunk in for me as this has not been a good year for cinema. Not enough good quality films, rising ticket prices, and lack of enthusiasm has been key.
In the month of November 2024, I saw a total of 17 films in 10 first-timers and 7 re-watches with five of the first-timers being films directed or co-directed by women as part of the 52 Films by Women pledge. Not a bad month considering the chaos that has been happening as one of the highlights of the month has been my Blind Spot film in Senso. Here is the top 9 first-timers that I saw for November 2024:
4. Four Unloved Women, Adrift on a Purposeless Sea, Experience the Ecstasy of Dissection
5. The Diary of an African Nun
6. The Boy and the Octopus
7. Agatha All Along
8. Band Aid: The Making of The Original “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”
9. An Almost Christmas Story
Monthly Mini-Reviews/What Else I Am Watching
Four Unloved Women, Adrist on a Purposeless Sea, Experience the Ecstasy of Dissection
One of two short films that I watched on MUBI as this one is from David Cronenberg that is an experimental four-minute silent-film where the only sounds are what is on location. It is a short in which four waxed women figures shown dissected with their internal organs shown as if they have been raped or something. There is a lot of ambiguity that Cronenberg brings in that show these four women floating on the sea as there is nothing told that allows Cronenberg to give the audience the chance to interpret what they have just seen.
The Boy and the Octopus
From Taika Waititi is a four-minute short that is really an advertisement for Disney, yet it is a short that has a lot of heart. It revolves around a young boy who gets an octopus attached to his head during the Christmas holidays. It is a film that has a lot of humor and heart which is typical of Waititi’s work. Still, Waititi highlights the beauty of Christmas and an octopus’ reaction to the holidays.
The Diary of an African Nun
The second short that I saw on MUBI is a 16-minute student short film by Julie Dash made in the late 70s for UCLA on 16mm black-and-white film about a nun doing missionary work in Uganda. It is short that plays into a woman fascinated by her need to help people through Catholicism, yet she is tempted by her surroundings as well as the rituals that is happening in Uganda. The short is written by Alice Walker as Dash creates a story that plays into a woman’s struggle with her own identity in a world where her ancestors come from.
An Almost Christmas Story
From David Lowery and producer Alfonso Cuaron who also co-wrote the story comes this animated short film from Disney+ about a young owl who gets himself into trouble only to hide in a hawk and later find himself in New York City. There, he meets a young girl who is also trying to find her way home as they trek throughout New York City. The story is not that strong, but the animation is incredible while the ensemble voice cast includes Natasha Lyonne, Jim Gaffigan, Alex Ross Perry, and John C. Reilly as a homeless folk singer as he is a highlight of the short film.
Band Aid: The Making of The Original “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”
This month will be the 40th anniversary of the song Do They Know It’s Christmas? by the Band Aid charity as a documentary about the making of the song has been unearthed and restored for this anniversary. With the original footage directed by Nigel Dick that had been in a vault for 40 years, the documentary displays how Bob Geldof and Midge Ure created the song with the latter providing demos as guide for the other singers to sing. The fact that the group featured many of Britain’s top pop stars at the time is astronomical considering how big they were and the rivalries they were having yet they put aside their own egos for a good cause. There are even moments where these young musicians are in awe of watching Phil Collins lay down live drum tracks as well as moments where George Michael and Boy George would find ways to improve the song on their own vocals. It is a short that fans of the original song should watch.
Agatha All Along (episode 7 & 8)
The last two episodes of the series are intense in terms of what is at stake as well as in what one of the witches gain on the Witches Road and what the character of Billy Kaplan has learned on this journey. For Agatha, the series highlight her own back story as well as the loss she had gained over the centuries in which she would continue to live. She would also do whatever she can to avoid death but eventually realizes that she could not escape death but her decision in the end would allow her to guide Billy into his next journey as Joe Locke is great as Billy Kaplan/Billy Maximoff/Wiccan. I hope that character will eventually find Wanda Maximoff (she is not dead), Vision, and whoever is his twin brother in Tommy/Speed.
That ‘90s Show (season 2 episodes 9-16)
The announcement that the series has been cancelled is upsetting but not entirely surprising given that Netflix would cancel shows just as it was starting to get interesting. Even as the show brought in more developments for Leia Forman and her friends with Nikki and Nate going through their own break-up as the latter finds himself dating Jay Kelso’s older half-sister Betsy, who is played with such humor in Kira Kosarin, that doesn’t sit well with Jay because he knows that Betsy is trouble. There is some good storylines with a finale that unfortunately feels abrupt due to a big incident that is never going to get resolved. For that, it is a shame that the show has been cancelled as I would have love to know what Donna’s decision in returning to Point Place and Eric Forman’s eventual meltdown over The Phantom Menace that might even scare Red. If this show doesn’t find a new home, then it is another missed opportunity from Netflix who would continue to churn out shit films and shit live events such as that awful Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight (which I was so glad not to have seen because I knew it was going to be shit).
Well, that is all for November. For the next and final month of 2024. I will announce the list of films I will be watching for the 2025 Blind Spot Series while also watching my final Blind Spot pick of the year in Berlin Alexanderplatz. I have no clue what theatrical releases I will be watching before the year ends though I will try and find the time to watch whatever 2024 films that are available including Emilia Perez. I also hope to finish my Auteurs piece on David Lean before the year ends in which I will make an announcement on the upcoming filmmakers that I will profile for the Auteurs series. Before I bid adieu, I want to express my condolences on the following who have passed away this month that include Jim Abrahams, Silvia Pinal, Barbara Taylor Bradford, the Mighty Inoue, Rey Mysterio Sr., Earl Holliman, Chuck Woolery, Colin Petersen and Dennis Byron of the Bee Gees, Jon Kenny, Paul Teal, King Crimson lyricist Peter Sinfield, music producer Shel Talmy, jazz drummer Roy Haynes, basketball player George Lehmann, novelist Dorothy Allison, Tony Todd, and Quincy Jones. We will miss you all. This is thevoid99 signing off…
Based on the novella by Camillo Boito, Senso is the story of an Italian Contessa who embarks on an affair with an Austrian lieutenant during the Third Italian War of Independence against Austria during the mid-19th Century. Directed by Luchino Visconti and screenplay by Visconti and Suso Cecchi d’Amico with dialogue by Tennessee Williams and Paul Bowles and additional work by Carlo Alianello, Giorgio Bassani, and Giorgio Prosperi. The film is an exploration of a love affair during a tumultuous time in Europe’s history. Starring Alida Valli, Farley Granger, Heinz Moog, Rina Morelli, Massimo Girotti, and Marcela Mariani. Senso is a ravishing and evocative film by Luchino Visconti.
The film revolves around a Contessa, in 1866 Venice during the Third Italian War of Independence, who falls for an Austrian officer amidst a tumultuous period in Europe’s history as she is also connected to those working in the Italian resistance. It is a film that explores an affair that would have repercussions during an intense conflict where a Contessa and this Austrian officer both desire a world without war, politics, and social standings. Yet, they would endure a reality that proves to be fatal for both of them as the film’s screenplay by Luchino Visconti and Suso Cecchi d’Amico is largely told from the perspective of Contessa Livia Serpieri (Alida Villa) who is attending an opera in Venice with her husband in Count Serpieri (Heinz Moog), who has been supporting the Austrians, where a protest led by her cousin and revolutionary Marchese Roberto Ussoni (Massimo Girotti) has caused a ruckus. There, she would meet the young Austrian officer Lieutenant Franz Mahler (Farley Granger) who has a post in Venice where is challenged to a duel against Ussoni.
Ussoni would be exiled from Venice where Livia gets to know Lt. Mahler as they would also fall in love where they would keep their affair a secret until Lt. Mahler suddenly leaves with Livia suspecting that there are other lovers. Yet, the war would intensify with Ussoni returning from exile as Count Serpieri and Livia would provide funds for him while they would stay up north to be away from the conflict. The script also play into the chaos of Livia trying to hide her affair though people including her maid Laura (Rina Morelli) know about the affair and its dangers. Especially in the third act it relates to the consequences of their affair with Lt. Mahler and the effects of the war.
Visconti’s direction is grand in the way he presents the film such as the opening scene at the Le Fenice opera house where Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore is performed where Visconti’s usage of the wide and medium shots play into the scope of the Venetian building. Shot on locations in Rome and Venice including studios on those locations, Visconti creates these compositions that do have this tone as if he is creating a painting in some of the shots he made while the opening scene at Le Fenice is lively in the way the Italians react toward the Austrians. It is a lavish opening sequence that helps establish the conflict that is happening as well as the role that Livia is in as she a woman of stature and importance due to whom she is married. Visconti’s close-ups and medium shots help play into the intimacy of a room as well as the interaction between the characters. Even in scenes at Venice at night where Livia and Lt. Mahler are walking around the canals as it would be this moment that would make the two connect over the fallacies of war as well as their longing for each other. Visconti’s direction also play into this growing disconnect between those who are rich and what is happening among those in Italy who are not fond of the Austrians in this conflict that is brewing.
The film’s second half has some grand set pieces such as the Battle of Custoza where the Italians become overwhelmed by the Austrian forces despite claims that the Italians were winning. Yet, it is about what is happening outside of the battlefield, where Livia must watch from afar as she deals with her own actions due to her affair with Lt. Mahler whom she had just seen some days ago. Even as the events in the third act has Visconti putting a lot of detail for the scenes in Verona where the Austrians are preparing to leave but also get drunk and such as it is not a place for Livia to be in. Especially as she is forced to see what her own actions in trying to help her cousin would do as well as what Lt. Mahler had done. Its ending is not just about death but also anguish in a woman who had given up everything for love only to create more chaos during a tumultuous conflict. Overall, Visconti crafts an enchanting and riveting film about an Italian Contessa’s tumultuous affair with an Austrian officer in mid-19th Century Italy.
Cinematographers G.R. Aldo, Robert Krasker, and Giuseppe Rotunno do incredible work with the film’s Technicolor photography with the richness of the daytime exteriors at the villa in the North of Italy as well as the scenes set in Venice with much of the work done by Aldo and Krasker with Rotunno shooting the film’s ending. Editor Mario Serandrei does excellent work with the editing as it is straightforward in its cutting as well as using rhythmic cuts to play into some of the action including fast-cuts in some of the battle scenes Production designer Ottavio Scotti and set decorator Gino Brosio do amazing work with the look of the homes that Livia lives in including her villa near Custoza and the apartment in Venice where Lt. Mahler stayed at. Costume designers Marcel Escoffier and Piero Tosi do phenomenal work with the costumes in the design of the gowns that Livia wears that plays into the feel of the times as well as the Austrian uniforms that Lt. Mahler wears.
The sound work of Aldo Calpini and Vittorio Trentino do superb work with the way cannons and gunfire sound up close and from afar in the battle scenes as well as the sparse sounds of scenes set in Venice. The film’s music by Anton Bruckner, with adaptation by Nino Rota, is brilliant for its bombastic music score with its orchestral flourishes as well as the usage of Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore for the film’s opening opera scene.
The film’s wonderful ensemble cast feature some notable small roles from Ernst Nadherny as an Austrian general in Verona, Christian Marquand as a Bohemian officer, Sergio Fantoni as a farmer who lives near Count Serpieri’s villa, and Marcella Mariani in a fantastic small role as a prostitute named Clara that Livia meets late in the film. Rina Morelli is excellent as Livia’s maid Laura who aids her in various affairs although she disapproves of Livia’s affair with Lt. Mahler despite her reluctance to hide the affair. Heinz Moog is excellent as Count Serpieri as Livia’s husband who is supportive of the Austrians to maintain his social status until the war goes into chaos where he reluctantly supports Ussoni’s group as Bruno Persa dubs him. Massimo Girotti is brilliant as Livia’s cousin Marchese Roberto Ussoni as an Italian Nationalist figure who is trying to stage a revolution against the Austrians where he would be exiled for a period as he hopes for Livia’s help financially so he can overthrow the Austrians.
Farley Granger is brilliant as Lieutenant Franz Mahler as this Austrian military officer who is filled with charm but also a sense of duty where he falls for Livia hoping for a life outside of war. While Granger is dubbed by Enrico Maria Salerno, Granger still maintains this sense of beauty and weariness of a man tired of his duties only to then succumb to his own faults that would unravel everything around him. Finally, there’s Alida Valli in a tremendous performance as Contessa Livia Serpieri as a woman who is fascinated by this Austrian officer whom she would fall for as she hopes to escape a loveless marriage while also wanting to support her cousin. Valli maintains this sense of regality as a woman that wants love but also must contend with the fact that she plays a small role in this growing conflict that is happening in Italy where she becomes desperate and lost as it is one of Valli’s finest performances of her career.
Senso is a spectacular film by Luchino Visconti that features a great leading performance from Alida Valli. Along with its supporting cast, grand visuals, a sumptuous music soundtrack, and its study of love and lust during one of Europe’s most tumultuous conflicts. It is a film that explores a love affair between two different people that would create chaos during a time of war as well as revelations of what this affair would cost. In the end, Senso is a sensational film by Luchino Visconti.
While I am aware that Scarlett Johansson's 40th birthday is the next day. I feel like it is appropriate for both Johansson and Jena Malone to celebrate their birthdays as a two-day event considering that they are both about to turn 40 and let's hope they would be given the respect they deserve as actresses and as women.
Written, directed, and co-edited by Coralie Fargeat, The Substance is the story of a former Hollywood film star who turns 50 as her career starts to fade until she goes to the black market to get a drug that will make her a younger version of herself. The film is an exploration of aging and body image where a woman deals with a fading career as an aerobics instructor on TV where she takes a drug to become a different person only for things to go wrong. Starring Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, and Dennis Quaid. The Substance is a monstrous and exhilarating film by Coralie Fargeat.
The film revolves around a former Hollywood starlet whose aerobics TV show is abruptly cancelled as she had turned 50 where she is given a mysterious flash drive about a black-market drug known as the Substance that would allow her to become a younger and better version of herself but with some rules. It is a film that explores many themes including aging, body imagery, and the male gaze towards the women they exploit. Coralie Fargeat’s screenplay does have a straightforward narrative where it explores the world of Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) as she was this celebrated figure with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame that has been treated with indifference despite the popularity of her aerobics show. Its cancellation is abrupt because she just turned 50 as its producer Harvey (Dennis Quaid) made the decision in the hopes he can get someone younger to drive up ratings. After a car accident, a nurse (Robin Greer) gives Sparkle a flash drive about this drug known as the Substance where she is intrigued by it while also following its specific instructions.
Upon using the Substance, its activator can only be used once where Sparkle’s body becomes unconscious while her new body in Sue (Margaret Qualley) can be conscious but only for seven days as they would have to switch places with no exceptions with balance being key to its success. Sue would get the attention of Harvey following an audition as she would get her own fitness show where ratings go through the roof as she would crave more fame and fortune. Thus, she would break the rules of using the substance which would cause parts of Sparkle’s body to age rapidly. Fargeat’s script doesn’t have a lot of dialogue throughout the film other than moments where events in the second and third act where Sparkle starts to mentally unravel over her physical state as she becomes resentful towards Sue for breaking the balance of their usage of the Substance. For Sue, she becomes annoyed with Sparkle’s own behavior antics that threatens her career as things start to get out of control.
Fargeat’s direction is stylish in every sense of the word in how the film opens with the Substance serum injected into an egg that splits into two and then cuts to Sparkle getting a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Shot on various locations in France with Cote d’Azur being the exterior double for Los Angeles and interiors shot in studios in Paris. Fargeat creates a film that is set in a hyperactive world where it is about giant billboards, flashing cameras, how many people are seeing you, and everything that comes with fame. Fargeat emphasizes on extreme close-ups and medium shots to play into this manic world of celebrity culture as well as the fact that women are often exploited for reasons beyond their control. Fargeat doesn’t hold back when it comes to the male gaze in scenes where Sue is hosting her show with a lot of close-ups of her ass and cleavage being a key part where sex sells. While Sparkle is a beautiful woman for her age, she is not what Harvey wants where there are scenes of her fully-naked where the flaws of her body come into play as it play into Sparkle’s desire to use the Substance. There are wide shots to play into the growing sense of disconnect that happens for Sparkle as she tries to distance herself from Sue.
Editing with Jerome Eltabet and Valentin Feron, Fargeat emphasize on different editing styles such as the overly-stylized fast-cutting common with Hollywood films to play into the chaotic world of celebrity culture. Yet, Fargeat would know when to slow things down as it relates to Sparkle’s own declining physical and mental state where she would also use tracking shots for both her and Sue walking down the hall towards the bathroom. Even as the camera would show them walking from their point of view where it is presented in a hand-held style as if both women would get sick during their time in using the Substance. The second half is where the body horror comes as it doesn’t just play into Sue’s disregard for the rules of using the Substance but its effect on Sparkle where parts of her body would age. Even as there is a moment where Sparkle’s own abuse of her own body would start to affect Sue in a scene where she finds something in her body as it plays into this conflict between the two women.
The film’s third act is where the body horror is intensified as it plays into the fallacies of beauty and fame with Sparkle wanting to end it all just as Sue is about to host a big New Year’s Eve special on TV. What would happen afterward would play into the desperation of wanting to be beautiful and the eventual result is shocking. Shocking would be an understatement to describe the film’s climax as it goes beyond the parameters expected in body horror where Fargeat goes all out and then some. Overall, Fargeat crafts a horrifying and provocative film about an aging starlet taking a mysterious substance where she creates a young woman who shares her consciousness.
Cinematographer Benjamin Kracun does brilliant work with the film’s vibrant and colorful cinematography for many of the daytime interior/exterior scenes as well as the scenes in the bathroom along with some stylish lighting for the interior/exterior scenes at night. Production designer Stanislas Reydellet, along with supervising art director Gladys Garot plus set decorators Cecilia Blom, Marion De Villechabrolle, and construction manager Jacques Oursin, does amazing work with the look of the condo that Sparkle lives in as well as the studio hallway where Sue would work at and the office that Harvey works at in all its awful grandeur. Costume designer Emmanuelle Youchnovski does excellent work with the costumes in the revealing fitness clothing that Sue wears for her show as well as the yellow coat that both women share. Special effects makeup designer Pierre Olivier Persin does phenomenal work with the makeup as it is the highlight of the film in the prosthetics breasts of Sue as well as the aging makeup for Sparkle due to the unbalanced effects of the Substance as it is a highlight of the film.
Special effects supervisors Pierre Hugueny and Jean Miel, along with visual effects supervisor Bryan Jones, do terrific work with the visual effects for some set-dressing in scenes outside of the condo as well as other visual elements that play into the horror of the film. Sound designers Valerie Deloof and Victor Fleurant do superb work with the sound in the way Harvey eats shrimp in the most disgusting of ways as well as some of the sparse sound textures in the film that play into the sense of horror and suspense. The film’s music by Benjamin Stefanski, in his Raffertie pseudonym, is incredible for its warbling electronic score that has elements of pulsating sounds and textures to play into Sue’s world but also some somber pieces that play into the horror and anguish that Sparkle goes through while music supervisor Guillaume Baurez creates a soundtrack that is filled with some electronic pieces from Holy Fuck with Lucia Tacchetti, Romanger, Earl Gregory, Thomas Kuralti, and a couple of score pieces by Richard Strauss and Bernard Herrmann.
The casting by Laure Cochener and Lea Moszkowicz is fantastic as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Vincent Colombe as one of Harvey’s executives, Yann Bean as the voice of the Substance, Hugo Diego Garcia as a lover of Sue that appears in the third act, Oscar Lesage as another lover of Sue who is a biker, Tom Morton as a doctor who examines Sparkle early in the film, Robin Greer as a young male nurse that would give Sparkle the flash drive for the Substance, Gore Abrams as a neighbor of Sue/Sparkle, Edward Hamilton Clark as a former classmate of Sparkle that she bumps into whom she almost goes on a date with, and Christian Ericksen as a mysterious old man Sparkle meets at a diner. Dennis Quaid is great as the TV producer Harvey as Quaid goes all out as a man who is the most despicable person in the world. A man that eats large shrimp in the most disgusting of ways that makes all the body horror seem tame in comparison while he is an absolute misogynistic asshole that anyone who comes across with would want to punch him in the face.
Margaret Qualley is phenomenal as Sue as the younger version of Sparkle that comes out of Sparkle’s body where Qualley displays a great sense of physicality into her performance as someone that is fit as well as being able to do the kind of fitness that a fitness model needs to do. There is also a complexity in her personality in the way she presents herself publicly as well as dealing with what Sparkle has done to herself, showcasing a dark edge that would be her own undoing. Finally, there’s Demi Moore in a performance for the ages as Elisabeth Sparkle as a former actress/TV fitness personality who had just turned 50 and lost her job as she copes with aging and not knowing what to do next. Moore brings a lot of wit to her performance once her character starts to age as there is a physicality and a dark edge into her performance where Moore goes all out and then some as it is really the performance of her career.
The Substance is an outstanding film by Coralie Fargeat that features a tremendous leading performance from Demi Moore as well as a great supporting performance from Margaret Qualley. Along with its study of aging, vibrant visuals, a hypnotic music soundtrack, discomforting sound effects, and the incredible special makeup effects that pushes the idea of what body horror could be. It is a film that doesn’t hold back in terms of its exploration of an industry that exploits women and the pressures to be beautiful as well as the effect on those who are forced to retire when they still have much to offer. In the end, The Substance is a magnificent film by Coralie Fargeat.
Written, co-edited, and directed by Coralie Fargeat, Revenge is the story of a woman who goes on a journey for revenge after she was left for dead by her boyfriend’s friends during a vacation gone wrong. The film is a simple revenge story as it plays into a woman whose planned vacation goes wrong prompting her to go on a hunt on her own while the men who raped her are on a hunting trip of their own. Starring Matilda Lutz, Kevin Janssens, Vincent Colombe, and Guillaume Bouchede. Revenge is a bloody and unforgiving film by Coralie Fargeat.
The film is the story of an American woman who goes to a remote villa in the Moroccan desert with her married boyfriend only to be raped and left for dead by her boyfriend and his friends who embark on a hunting trip only to realize that she is not dead and wants to kill them. It is a film with a simple premise that explores the idea of vengeance, yet it is in its setting and the dynamic between male and female is what makes the story different from typical revenge stories. Notably as writer Coralie Fargeat does explore the male gaze and how their dismissive view on this young woman, they meet would be their undoing. Although the young woman in Jen (Matilda Lutz) is an American woman who believes her boyfriend Richard (Kevin Janssens) would give her all the things she wants. A night of partying, raped by one of his friends, chased, and then be left for dead would force her to face a darker reality in an environment that is foreign to her. Even as she is someone who must go by her own survival instincts as well as a tiny bag of peyote that Richard had to go on a journey for vengeance.
Fargeat’s direction is stylish in the way she emphasizes on different visual traits to play into this journey of revenge with elements of surrealism as well as playing to the male gaze. Shot on location in Morocco with its deserts being a key location for the film, Fargeat utilizes wide and medium shots to get a scope into the vast space of where these characters are. She also uses close-ups and extreme close-ups to play into the sense of dread and exploitation as the first act plays into Jen being this object of desire for Richard as well as his friends Stan (Vincent Colombe) and Dimitri (Guillaume Bouchede) where the former dances with Jen and later rape her the next morning after she refuses his advances. Richard would come home to learn about what happened only to make her keep quiet about everything until she threatened to tell his wife about what happened is when things escalated badly where she would be chased through the desert and then pushed off a cliff by Richard.
Fargeat’s direction early on has this kinetic style that would also be reflected in the editing where she and co-editors Bruno Safar and Jerome Eltabet would use fast-cuts and offbeat rhythmic cuts to play into a chaotic style that would be prevalent in a sequence involving the peyote that Jen would have possession of. Fargeat would also emphasize a graphic approach to the violence as blood is a major detail in the film in the fact that Jen’s torso lands onto a tree branch that she would have to pull out. There are also these intense extreme close-ups of wounds on body as Fargeat goes into some excruciating detail into the severity of these wounds. The violence is also unforgiving in its overall presentation where Fargeat would slow things down visually to include long and intricate tracking shots which is a direct contrast to the way the film is presented early on. Particularly in the editing where it allows shot to linger for more than a few seconds into minutes to add to the suspense. The film’s climax where Fargeat has this young woman go on this mission for revenge as it is about the man who fucked her over and left her for dead. Overall, Fargeat crafts an unsettling yet enthralling revenge film about a woman who goes on a hunt of her own.
Cinematographer Robrecht Heyvaert does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its vibrant usage of colored shades and mood for the daytime exterior scenes in the desert and at the villa to the usage of available light and fire for the exterior scenes at night in the desert. Costume designer Elisabeth Bornaut does excellent work with the costumes in the stylish clothing Jen would have early in the film including her pink-star earrings with the clothes that the men wear. Special makeup effects artists Pierre Emmanuel Kass and Laetitia Quillery do incredible work with the makeup effects in the way body wounds are presented in graphic detail including scenes involving gore as it is a highlight of the film.
Sound designers Jerome Faurel, Alain Feat, and Eric Mauer do superb work with the sound as it play into the natural sound of the locations as well as the sound effects that play into some of the body horror in the film. The film’s music by Robin Coudert, in his ROB alias, does amazing work with the film’s soundtrack with its eerie and pulsating electronic music score that play into the suspense and terror while music supervisors Stephanie Sfeir, Clement Souchier, and Jeanne Trellu create a soundtrack that include elements of pop and electronic music including pieces from Brodski and Clive Hicks.
The casting by Martin Rougier is wonderful as it feature a voice appearance from Barbara Gateau as the voice of Richard’s wife and Jean-Louis Tribes as the helicopter pilot who drops Richard and Jen off at the villa in the film’s opening scene. Guillaume Bouchede is fantastic as Dimitri as fat slob who is a skilled hunter despite his boorish appearance. Vincent Colombe is excellent as Stan as a hunter and close friend of Richard who flirts with Jen and later rape her where he is shocked over the aftermath only to get himself into some serious trouble. Kevin Janssens is brilliant as Richard as this rich married man who is the embodiment of the male chauvinism where he is this alpha male that has fucked with the wrong woman. Finally, there’s Matilda Lutz in a phenomenal performance as Jen as this young woman who is on a vacation thinking she is there for a good time until she is raped, assaulted, and left for dead. Lutz brings a physicality as a woman who is out of her comfort zone in a desolate environment but with limited survival skills that prove to be useful where she turns into this stone-cold killer who walks barefoot and a peyote hangover. It is truly a breakout performance for the young actress.
Revenge is a spectacular film by Coralie Fargeat that features a great performance from Matilda Lutz. Along with its supporting cast, vibrant visuals, a mesmerizing film soundtrack, uncompromising approach to violence, and a simple yet gripping take on vengeance. This is a film that takes a simple premise and adds a visceral approach to the subject of revenge as it plays into the many fallacies of chauvinism. In the end, Revenge is a tremendous film by Coralie Fargeat.
Directed by Justine Triet and written by Triet and Arthur Harari, Anatomie d’une chute (Anatomy of a Fall) is the story of writer who is accused of murdering her husband who had died in a fall with their blind son being forced to testify in court in what he might have discovered. The film is a drama in which explores a murder but also the events of a marriage that is crumbling with a writer being forced to defend herself and her family. Starring Sandra Huller, Swann Arlaud, Milo Machado-Graner, Antoine Reinartz, Samuel Theis, Jehnny Beth, Saadia Bentaieb, Camille Rutherford, Anne Rotger, and Sophie Fillieres. Anatomie d’une chute is a gripping and ravishing film by Justine Triet.
The film is about a blind boy who finds his father dead after falling off from his house where questions arise into whether it was an accident, a suicide, or was he killed by his wife following an argument? It is a film that explores a man’s death with his wife and son trying to understand what happened while the wife gets questioned about the events preceding his death. The film’s screenplay by Justine Triet and Arthur Harari does use a simple plot about a man’s death yet it explores a lot more such as a marriage, a man’s mental illness and failures, an accident that would blind their son, and other things leading to a trial where this woman is being questioned into whether she killed her husband. There is also questions about who she is as a writer and her approach to creating her stories as a form of autofiction where a lot of things are unveiled. All these questions about the death of Samuel Maleski (Samuel Theis) would lead to a trial with his wife Sandra Voyter (Sandra Huller) being the main suspect and their son Daniel (Milo Machado-Graner) also having to testify about what he remembered that day.
Triet’s direction is straightforward in terms of its overall presentation as it is shot on locations near the French Alps with Grenoble being a key location in the film including the courtroom scenes and a few shots in Paris. Much of Triet’s direction is intimate in its overall presentation in its usage of close-ups and medium shots where it opens with Sandra talking to a student in Zoe (Camille Rutherford) for an interview where Sandra is more interested in Zoe while Daniel tends to the family dog Snoop (Messi) as he would later go on a walk with Snoop outside. Sometime after Zoe had left Daniel took Snoop for a walk, is when they returned home to find Samuel dead as did Sandra who had woken up from a nap. The film’s first act is not just about Samuel’s death but also Sandra being a suspect for murder as she confers with her lawyer Vincent Renzi (Swan Arlaud) who asks questions on what to do while she and Daniel must cope with police officers and investigators looking into the house to figure out what happened. Daniel would remember something about that day as it adds more complications for Sandra as she is then indicted for killing her husband.
The film’s second act shifts the film to a year later where the trial happens as a lot of things are unveiled including audio recordings at the home including an argument the day before Samuel’s death. Daniel, accompanied by a court-order monitor in Marge (Jehnny Beth), would listen while also having to imagine what might have happened with the prosecutor (Antoine Reinartz) suggesting motives into Sandra killing Samuel. There are some unique wide and medium shots in the courtroom where Triet puts a lot of diligence in the courtroom of what is happening in the foreground and who is watching in the background. Even in a scene where Daniel testifies as the camera pans back and forth towards Vincent and the prosecutor in a game of dominance between the two attorneys. The film’s third act does not just relate to revelations about Sandra’s work as a writer but also Samuel’s failures where Sandra admits to borrowing one of his ideas for her book, but she gave him credit. It is really about Daniel in his search for answers as it relates to an event that happened months ago where he does an experiment to figure out what happened.
Even though Daniel could not see, he could imagine things with his mind as he is forced to figure out his father’s mental state. It is a moment in the film where a boy must comprehend the chaos of his parents’ marriage as well as the guilt that his father had in playing an indirect role in Daniel becoming blind because of an accident. While the trial would put a strain into Daniel’s relationship with his mother, the third act does give him a sense of purpose to understand the truth but also his own interpretation of what happened on the day his father died. Overall, Triet crafts a somber yet rapturous film about the death of a man with his wife and son trying to make sense of what happened.
Cinematographer Simon Beaufils does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography as it is straightforward with its usage of natural lighting for the daytime exterior scenes and the usage of available light for the exterior scenes at night including low-key lighting for the nighttime interior scenes. Editor Laurent Senechal does excellent work with the editing where it has a few montage bits as well as some unique rhythmic cuts to play into the suspense and drama. Production designer Emmanuelle Duplay and set decorator Cecile Deleu do amazing work with the look of the home that Sandra and Daniel live in as well as the courtroom in how big it is. Costume designer Isabelle Pannetier does fantastic work with the costumes as they are casual apart from a suit that Sandra wears during her trial.
Visual effects supervisors Nikolas d’Andrade and Niranjan Sivguruthan do terrific work with the film’s visual effects as it relates to computer re-enactment bits shown at the trial. Sound editors Fanny Martin and Jeanne Delplancq do superb work with the sound in capturing the way music sounds from afar and up-close as well as other sparse moments in the film. Music supervisor Thibault Deboaisne does wonderful work in assembling the film’s soundtrack as it features classical piano pieces by Frederic Chopin as well as an instrumental cover of 50 Cent’s P.I.M.P. by Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band which serves as a key moment in the film.
The casting by Cynthia Arra does marvelous work with the casting as it feature some notable small roles from Sophie Fillieres as Daniel’s godmother Monica, Anne Rotger as the judge in the trial, Saadia Bentaieb as Vincent’s paralegal Noub, Camille Rutherford as the student Zoe that was interviewing Sandra in the film’s first scene, and Messi as Daniel’s pet dog Snoop who would play a key part into Daniel’s investigation about his father. Samuel Theis is superb as Sandra’s husband Samuel Maleski as the man who would be found dead as he is seen through flashbacks as a troubled man that tried to be a writer and failed as he often blames it on Sandra while consumed with guilt in playing an indirect role into Daniel’s blindness. Jehnny Beth is fantastic as Marge Berger as this court-appointed caretaker for Daniel as she helps observe Daniel’s behavior while also trying to understand what he is dealing with in relation to his father’s death.
Antoine Reinartz is excellent as the prosecutor who is convinced that Sandra killed Samuel while also analyzing her work as a writer and providing ideas that Sandra did more than just kill Samuel. Swann Arlaud is brilliant as Sandra’s lawyer Vincent Renzi as a man who is defending Sandra while also trying to figure out legal maneuvers in helping her where he would also find himself coming close to a romantic relationship with her. Milo Machado-Graner is phenomenal as Daniel Maleski as a blind boy who would be the one to find his father’s body as he copes with not just his father’s death but also trying to understand what happened. It is a performance filled with intrigue and heartbreak where a boy is trying to understand as well as gather up memories of his life with his dad. Finally, there’s Sandra Huller in a sensational performance as Sandra Voyter as a writer who is troubled by her husband’s death as well as becoming a suspect as she is forced to reflect on the chaos of her marriage which would lead a strain on her relationship with her son.
Anatomie d’une chute is an outstanding film by Justine Triet that features great performances from Sandra Huller and Milo Machado-Graner. Along with its supporting ensemble cast, vibrant visuals, and a compelling story about death and things people could not understand. It is a suspense-drama that is intricate in its exploration of relationships as well as a woman and her son trying to deal with the chaos over what had happened. In the end, Anatomie d’une chute is a magnificent film by Justine Triet.
