Gaspar Noé, the man behind "Irreversible" and "I Stand Alone", was in my opinion one of the most inventive and innovative forces in recent cinema; his films opened doors no other films dare or can. With "I Stand Alone" he gave us a stark, harsh window into the life of a French butcher, and with "Irreversible" (a film I have already reviewed on this blog), he gave us one of the most effectively disturbing masterworks in cinematic history. Knowing my fandom, you can imagine how eagerly I was awaiting his newest film, "Enter the Void"; a film which polarised audiences at Cannes, causing incredibly mixed reviews. The more I heard about the film itself, the more I was fascinated by it. It was easily, without a shadow of a doubt, my most anticipated film of 2009 and 2010 (not knowing anything about release date). The teasers, trailers and opening credits which were released online fascinated me even more. It looked sensational. With the film in limited release, I searched for a screening near me. Turned out the Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle had two screenings lined up... I caught the second; here are my (hopefully) organised thoughts.
"Enter the Void" is a full-on sensory-numbing experience right from the first frame. The opening credits are even enough to cause an epileptic seizure. Noe has always been known for unconventional titles and credits (Irreversible's titles were the credits backwards and the credits consisted of just a title card reading "Le temps detruit tout" (Time destroys everything), but these, his titles for "Enter the Void" are his most innovative yet and no doubt one of my favourite opening title sequences ever. There are two distinctively different halves to the opening credit sequence. The first; a fast paced assortment of strobe-powered credits accompanied by an uneasy whirring sound, and the second, what can only be described as an assault on the eyes and ears... only seeing it would do it justice! But first, it feels like it's my duty to issue an epilepsy warning; if you suffer from epilepsy, don't bother trying.
After the opening sequence, comes a real time 20 minute or so long section where we meet the main character, Oscar and his sister, Linda... over the course of the section, she leaves, he takes DMT, trips and gets a phone call from his friend Victor, asking him to bring his share of a drug haul to "The Void", a bar (with more psychedelic decor than is needed on a DMT trip, I might add). The police bust in, he flees to the bathroom and is shot. From then on, the film descends into a state of exuberant beauty, whizzing melancholic energy and pure visual inventiveness.
After the screening I caught, it took around two or three days to fully process what I saw. My initial reaction was one of complete awe and shock. Whether you like him or not; there is no denying that Noe has a definite and clear vision and he shows us some things we would never see anywhere else (in the case of this film, things we wouldn't see unless we were a gynaecologist with a pinhole camera; not to sound crass). My initial reaction was also definitely positive, but alas, I was blinded by the experience to see certain obvious flaws... it may have been said before but the film is slightly overlong, this thought only cropped up once or twice during the viewing of the film, mostly during the extended sequences of Oscar's travelling spirit going through buildings; although this isn't to say the beautiful model-work and cinematography didn't keep my attention, it completely did. Let's just say, in the way of visual and technical innovation, for me, this beats "Avatar", no question. That's pretty much it in the way of criticisms and problems I had with the film.
What Gaspar Noe has created here is another testament to how easy it is to polarise an audience. Some will be completely taken in by the film, and yet some will feel detached... and this is definitely a film you cannot enjoy in a detached state. You have to prepare to be absorbed by the experience; and prepare to have certain boundaries challenged. I adored this film; it's also probably my favourite of the year up to now.
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