Review of Irreversible: Collector`s Edition

Introduction

This reviewing malarkey is a lot harder than you`d think, gentle readers.

Sure, PR companies send us check discs pressed by the distributor (well, when they`re not hogging them for their family, friends, marginal associates and the bloke who empties their bins) and all we humble wordsmiths have to do in return is purge our brains of a few hundred words, half a dozen witty adjectives and one or two erudite remarks to convince you to buy or not to buy. Well, okay, the PR companies would rather we convince you to buy it twice, regardless. But the actual reviewing can be tough, man. For every review where the words literally pour out of you like a thesaurus with a hole in the hull, you get a disc which totally flumaxes you - like with `Irreversible: Collector`s Edition`. I mean, really - where do you begin with `Irreversible`? The film has been glared at from all angles, dissected and analzed by smarter men than this reviewer, and anything said in this pre-amble is surely old hat for the majority of readers - for whom all they want to know is whether this second release from Tartan is worth splurging for. If you fall into majority, you can skip this next part, as it`s `Irreversible` 101 time for the people who stumbled into this review without a clue as to what to expect from this controversial French drama.

Starring real-life husband and wife combination Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci in one of their many continental collaborations, `Irreversible` begins with Parisians Marcus and Pierre searching the bowels of a gay nightclub named `Rectum` for a pimp named Le Tenia to extract revenge for something we haven`t yet witnessed, although it may be easy enough to guess for the uninitiated after reading this; it`s a tale told backward, beginning with the closing credit scrawl and told with a reverse narrative where scenes are played from back to front. `Irreversible` garnered most of its publicity through notoriety, thanks to scenes of extremely ferocious violence and rape; used here as propellant cause and effect in which effect is presented first as we work our way forward (or rather, back) to the cause, allowing us to further understand and lend context to the actions we witness and judge. It also opens with 30-minutes of queasy, looping camera work accompanied by a deep bass hum, designed to both disorientate the viewer and mimic the chaos and confusion of the events that happen during this time-frame. A technique which makes Tony Scott`s `MTV on speed` visual style look positively tranquil.

Gaspar Noé`s powerhouse of a film is designed to draw out multiple emotions, but perhaps the easiest to come naturally is sheer mind-blowing offence at what you`re witnessing on-screen. Yes, `Irreversible` is a difficult film to watch, both physically and mentally, at the best of times. Despite being nominated for the Golden Palm at Cannes in 2002, apparently one in ten of the audience at the 2,500 strong premiere during the festival walked out in disgust. It`s the sort of film that for every person who scores it a nine or ten, there`s someone who laments the fact that the scoring system they use doesn`t allow for zeros or minus digits. It is that divisive.

Video

Despite the PR hyperbole of a brand new HD remastered feature, Tartan have, true to their legacy, released a transfer that is virtually indistinguishable from their original release. Anamorphic 2.35:1, it`s grainy with soft and smeary colours, some rather overly-strong chroma throughout and a few occasions of artefacting. The transfer is plagued with minor issues but perfectly watchable in in its current form as it was with the previous DVD release; there`s just been no great leaps and bounds beyond what we had before.

Audio

Adding a DTS 5.1 track to the already competent Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0, the audio options, all in native French, are booming, although you are prohibited from changing tracks outside the menus. The surround mixes are typically full sounding, but lack real directional use, although everything from the front is clear and concise. The new DTS 5.1 mix wins by a hair over the DD 5.1 thanks to a deeper thump to the effects, but just like the visuals there`s nothing here that would warrant a double-dip.

The feature is well subtitled in English.

Features

Now we get to the meat, or at least what should be, of this second release titled `Collector`s Edition`. This set is actually listed on a few e-tailer sites as a double-disc treatment. If there`s a second disc, Reviewer didn`t get it. Assuming it`s been relegated to a single disc release, just what`s been jettisoned isn`t entirely clear, although there is mention of deleted scenes that aren`t present on the disc. What we`ve got for sure is:

Gaspar Noé Commentary - Although listed in the menus as a `Director and Cast Commentary`, only the director himself is actually present. Obviously necessarily subtitled, it`s an insightful read in which Noé rarely stops for breath. He`s off the mark as the closing credits - presented at the start of the film - roll, anecdoting us with the importance of capturing the feel of a movie with the credits, and how many cinema-goers thought the projectionist had loaded the film backwards. He moves on to rewards us with substantial details throughout, including the improvisational nature of most of the dialogue, and just how much input the actors had in some of the more notorious scenes.

SFX - A short 7-minute featurette on the effects sequences in the movie, going into detail on how much of the footage was digitally manipulated after the film, shot on Super 16, was processed onto video for post-production.

Intoxication - A 5-minute short from Noé in which a man discusses living with HIV.

Stress & Outrage: Two promotion music videos from Noé, featuring music from Daft Punk`s Thomas Bangalter

Trailers

Conclusion

If you can see the reasoning behind the nauseating filming techniques at the film`s outset, if you can appreciate why a filmmaker would chose to include a 13-minute rape sequence, albeit entirely unglamourised, and perhaps the most stomach churning scene of violence ever, if you understand why it`s so imperative for the film to use an ass-backward narrative structure, then you`ll be mesmerised by `Irreversible`. It`s highly doubtful that anyone could describe watching it as enjoyable, but it`s a though-provoking experience; a hard edged slice of memento mori that reminds you with the subtlety of a freight train just how fragile life is. Gaspar Noé has crafted a damning indictment of the human condition, plundering the whole emotional range with a brazen pragmatism that`s typical of the stable of maverick, nihilistic directors from which he hails.

It`s a little too easy to get worked up and over-analyse such a maelstrom of a movie, so it`s best to keep things simple. Cassel and Bellucci as couple Marcus and Alex are magnificent. Their performances aren`t showy, instead they execute a highly improvisational style of acting and oft-criticised, unscripted and spontaneous dialogue with a very natural balance between the realism such a grounded story requires and the extremes such situations would elicit; in particular, the warmth of the couple cavorting naked around their apartment, both endearing and tragic, as their unawareness of the horrible events that are about to destroy their lives is all the more effective as we the viewers have already witnessed them. They are two very human characters from two very human actors, something which also applies to third-wheel Albert Dupontel, who puts in an accomplished turn and provides perhaps the most viewer-relatable character as Alex`s friend and ex-lover Pierre, a man who watches the central relationship as an outsider in the same way we do.

Noé`s direction flows in tandem with the pace of the script; originally erratic and chaotic, like the events the characters find themselves intertwined in, as it moves forward to the gentler beginnings of the tale the direction brings with it more stability and Noé`s love for using the camera as a character in itself becomes ever more apparent. In fact, much of the film`s running time is made up of deliberate static shots or long takes, marking out a directorial flair and understanding for the mudium of film that goes beyond having them hurling in the aisles for effect. The actual script, or at least what there was of it before shooting commenced, is riveting, in part due to the novel way the narrative is presented, but also thanks to a story that has the propensity to resonate with all and sundry. When it boils down to it, it`s a story of love, loss and revenge, or rather revenge, loss and love - in that particular order. It really doesn`t get more classical tragedy than that.

Watching `Irreversible` is like watching a DVD through the scene selection menu, starting with the final scene and ending with the first. It`s a technique that works, and is so admirable in its conveyance of plot that the film begs to be watched multiple times, albeit at the risk of sending the viewer into a fit of spiralling depression. It`s a hard slog that succeeds in bringing out emotions in the viewer that rarely surface when watching a movie. For that, it`s a film that deserves to be watched by anyone who calls themselves a fan of cinema, although even the most ardent film fans may find it too much to stomach at times. Gritty artistry at its very best, it cannot be recommended enough - however this particular edition from Tartan boasts nothing to warrant a second purchase of the film beyond Noé`s yak-track and a few short features, which as welcome as they are, all but the commentary are fairly redundant and hardly reason enough for any but the most loyal fans to cough up more dough for a film they already own. First timers, this is as good a place to dive in as any.