Hi everyone!
It just wouldn’t be Friday without a Fantastic Fest review from our good friend and Senior Fantastic Fest Correspondent, Andrew Campbell. Based on today’s film, he seems to be on a dance film kick right now, considering his recent review for the remake of “Suspiria” (Episode #418).
Oh yeah, and if you thought you could avoid seeing “Between Worlds” (Episode #446) because it wouldn’t be on streaming services... OOPS! It’s available for streaming on Netflix. I’ll link to it in today’s post. You shouldn’t definitely not not try to not see that one.
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Take it away, Andrew!
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Hello film fans!
Andrew here, glad to be back after our recent hiatus. My goal with these Fantastic Fest Friday reviews has been to bring to your attention unique and under-seen genre films from around the world. I try to strike a balance between mundane and fantasy, straight-forward and more complex narratives, violent and non-violent films, not to mention English language films versus subtitled pictures. To get us back in the swing of things, I selected a movie that contains a little bit of all worlds; an auteur film that is almost beyond comparison or categorization. The only genre that makes sense for this movie... is “nightmare”.
Today’s film, “Climax”, written and directed by Gaspar Noé, made its U.S. premiere at the 2018 Fantastic Fest. Noé is one of a couple dozen directors associated with the New French Extremity. For the uninitiated, the films that have received this label tend to be transgressive works from the early 2000s that are often viewed as exploitative body horror, pushing the boundaries of art and good taste. Noé is one of the more well-known (though not prolific) directors in this loose collection. Others that American audiences may be familiar with are Alexandre Aja and Claire Denis, but it’s mostly just a handful of films and not the names behind them that have broken through in the U.S. Among them are Denis’s 2001 film “Trouble Every Day” (Episode #094), Noé’s controversial 2002 film “Irreversible”; the classic 2003 horror film with an amazing twist “High Tension”; one of my favorite horror films of the decade – 2016’s “Raw”; and 2017’s modern take on female revenge horror, aptly titled “Revenge”. The New French Extremity includes some great works, but would “Climax” be one of them?
“Climax” has a simple premise – a modern dance troupe is snowed in at a party and someone spikes the punch with LSD. One thing this film does not lack is characters. The first ten minutes of the film introduce our dancers through a series of personal, revealing interviews where we meet what must be twenty dancers who surround our lead character Selva (Sofia Boutella). The choreographed dance scenes in this film are stunning, both in showcasing the unique style of every dancer and in the way Noé films in long, continuous shots, transitioning from dance to dialogue. The directing of the film is as sharp as any dance routine as we follow several characters throughout a labyrinthine building, in such a way that you could draw a map of the place by the ending. The film takes us on the journey with very few cuts or scene changes, enhancing the madness and giving the viewer little room to catch his breath.
The challenge with “Climax” is dealing with the moments where Noé tests the boundaries of good taste. Aside from lead actress Sofia Boutella, the cast is made up of professional dancers, most who portray characters named after themselves. However, since these characters are so realistic, the grittier moments are a little harder to take in than if they occurred in some off-the-wall thriller. While it’s a couple guys leering at the rest of the troupe, a semi-incestuous brother-sister relationship, some questionable toilet habits or the moments of scattered violence, there’s something for every viewer to loathe.
What makes “Climax” fantastic?
Now I’m not a fan of watching full trailers and I was able to avoid the trailer for “Climax” before seeing the movie, but here I would make an exception. If what I tell you about this film sounds intriguing, watch the trailer. If you can handle 90 minutes of that, take the plunge. “Climax”, for better or worse, is a film you will not be able to forget. Several scenes have seared themselves onto my brain and I have found myself looking back on the film more fondly now than when I first left the theater.
“Climax” (2018) is a dizzying descent into madness, best watched with a crowd or possibly after you’re a couple drinks in, if that’s your thing. Fans of dance horror films such as “Black Swan” or “Suspiria” (Episode #418) will enjoy this one. If you enjoyed the surreal chaos of Darren Aranofsky’s “mother!” (Episode #245), this film matches that tone.
Rotten Tomatoes: 71% (Certified Fresh)
Metacritic: 67
One Movie Punch: 7.8/10
“Climax” is rated R and playing in select theaters.
Come back next week when I’ll be reviewing “The Quake”. We will be travelling north from France just as an earthquake is about to strike the heart of Oslo. But first: go watch “Climax”, take several showers to clean off the filth from that film, and I’ll see you in Norway.
