A brilliant, brutal, searingly intense, thought-provoking debut from Gaspar Noe.
The story of The Butcher, a working-class man whose entire life seems to be one of bad luck and bad breaks, some of which are his own doing. After trouble in Paris he moves north to Lille, hoping to start a new life. However, unfortunately for him, his luck doesn't change. With every bad break he becomes more bitter and looks for someone to blame - the people involved, society, the wealthy, the government, the country. With every disappointment his thoughts and intentions become darker and darker.
A brutal examination of a person on the fringes of society, someone who could easily exist and does exist. Quite Taxi Driver-like in that the central character sees the evils in the world, and wants to right them, though their anger is often misdirected, their methods unsound and themselves hardly bastions of morality.
The plot is largely driven by The Butcher's internal monologue, which is very direct, candid, stream-of-consciousness and uncensored and accurately displays exactly where the man is in his life. While much of his inner thoughts are the rantings of a bitter, dejected person, one can actually see how he could feel that way, and even agree with him in some respects.
Incredibly intense and director Gaspar Noe ramps up the intensity as the movie progresses. The tension in the last few scenes is off the charts.
The conclusion does a bit of the shine off the movie, as it turns what was a satisfactory, heart-warming conclusion into something a bit perverse and creepy. Ending the movie one scene earlier might have made for a better ending. However, in some ways, this is very consistent with the plot - our "hero" is certainly no saint.
Incredible movie, but not suitable for children, those faint of heart and the easily offended.
The story of The Butcher, a working-class man whose entire life seems to be one of bad luck and bad breaks, some of which are his own doing. After trouble in Paris he moves north to Lille, hoping to start a new life. However, unfortunately for him, his luck doesn't change. With every bad break he becomes more bitter and looks for someone to blame - the people involved, society, the wealthy, the government, the country. With every disappointment his thoughts and intentions become darker and darker.
A brutal examination of a person on the fringes of society, someone who could easily exist and does exist. Quite Taxi Driver-like in that the central character sees the evils in the world, and wants to right them, though their anger is often misdirected, their methods unsound and themselves hardly bastions of morality.
The plot is largely driven by The Butcher's internal monologue, which is very direct, candid, stream-of-consciousness and uncensored and accurately displays exactly where the man is in his life. While much of his inner thoughts are the rantings of a bitter, dejected person, one can actually see how he could feel that way, and even agree with him in some respects.
Incredibly intense and director Gaspar Noe ramps up the intensity as the movie progresses. The tension in the last few scenes is off the charts.
The conclusion does a bit of the shine off the movie, as it turns what was a satisfactory, heart-warming conclusion into something a bit perverse and creepy. Ending the movie one scene earlier might have made for a better ending. However, in some ways, this is very consistent with the plot - our "hero" is certainly no saint.
Incredible movie, but not suitable for children, those faint of heart and the easily offended.