Final Girl on 6th Ave: Irreversible (2002)
Ready to steel your nerves and go to some dark, dark places with us? Once you experience “Irreversible”, you’ll never be the same again.
On this episode of The Final Girl on 6th Ave, host Carolyn Smith-Hilmmer takes a deep dive into the shocking, hard-to-stomach, impossible-to-look-away from French film Irreversible from the terrible genius of enfant terrible Gaspar Noé. If this movie doesn’t scar you, nothing will. – Stephanie (Editor-in-Chief)
SHOW NOTES FROM HOST CAROLYN SMITH-HILLMER:
I don’t know if there has ever been a more difficult film for me to sit through than this one. Gaspar Noé’s IRREVERSIBLE (2002) gave me both a nightmare and an existential crisis. Viewed in reverse-chronological order, this film will leave you upset with yourself for having watched it and proud that you made it to the very end.
Irréversible depicts the events of a tragic night in Paris as two men attempt to avenge the brutal rape and beating of the woman they love. The film is made up of a title sequence followed by 13 segments made to look like long takes. Each of these segments is either a continuous shot or a series of shots digitally composited to resemble a continuous shot. The story is told in reverse order, with each scene taking place chronologically before the one that precedes it.
Critical reception was mixed, with praise towards the performances and the direction. However, criticism was strong for the film’s exceedingly graphic portrayal of violence and rape. It’s a film by Robert Ebert famously called unwatchable due to how nasty and violent it is. And no doubt, many will find this extreme horror film too much to take. But is there value in trying to endure one of the most notorious horror films of all time? Tune in as we discuss.
…
SOURCES
IMDB: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0290673/
Mephistopheles: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mephistopheles
An Experiment with Time: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Experiment_with_Time
IndieWire Interview: https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/why-gaspar-noe-directed-on-cocaine-masturbated-in-his-own-film-and-shot-a-live-birth-55975/
Article from The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2002/aug/02/artsfeatures.festivals
Laws of Thermodynamics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_of_thermodynamics
ABOUT THE SHOW:
The Final Girl on 6th Ave is a weekly show where host, Carolyn Smith-Hillmer, dissects an arthouse/elevated horror film. Each episode includes a detailed play-by-play of the film itself and a subsequent deep dive into the thematic elements and symbolism. Because elevated horror is sometimes viewed within the horror community as pretentious, Carolyn makes sure to use her down-to-earth tone and unique perspective to make these films less intimidating for the casual horror viewer and less ostentatious for the genre lover.
Listen to more episodes on the show’s website here.
The Final Girl on 6th Ave is a bi-weekly podcast where host Carolyn Smith-Hillmer reviews arthouse horror films in a non-pretentious way.
Climax (2018)
Experimental horror is not for everyone. I give many thanks to the universe it is my favorite cup of tea. Gaspar Noe’s Climax is a descent into the minds of a drug-addled dance troupe inside of an abandoned school in France. What could possibly go wrong?
SOURCES/INFORMATION
IMDB: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt8359848/
Climax: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climax_(2018_film)
Psychonaut Wiki LSD: https://psychonautwiki.org/wiki/LSD#Subjective_effects
Extreme Behavior and LSD: https://skywoodrecovery.com/lsd-abuse/extreme-behavior-related-to-lsd/
Cinemaholic: https://thecinemaholic.com/climax-review/
Episode play icon
Experimental horror is not for everyone. I give many thanks to the universe it is my favorite cup of tea. Gaspar Noe’s Climax is a [...]
April 18, 2024
Episode play icon
For reasons unknown to me, I had no one in my life interested enough in this film to go see it in theaters. Now that [...]
April 4, 2024
Episode play icon
Have a fear of the uncanny? Puppets? Surrealism? Possum (2018) contains a combination of all of these elements to create the most upsetting psychological horror [...]
March 21, 2024
Search Results placeholder
Follow Us!