Release date: September 24, 2010 (USA)
Director: Gaspar Noé
Cinematography: Benoît Debie
I admire point of view films because they are so easy to mess up. Most of the complaints that I have with films like this have mostly to do with the camera and at times I'll be saying to myself, "There is no way they could have gotten that shot!" However, you have found something incredibly special when you come across a P.O.V film that is creative with its cinematography, subject matter, and narrative. Director Gaspar Noé has managed to edit together a film, the likes of which I have never experienced. And I will never want to experience it ever again.
Enter The Void is about Oscar, an in-denial drug dealer who is killed and witnesses the effect his death has on his friends and sister from his wandering/omniscient soul. I have to say that the strong impression this film gave me came entirely from the story and execution. Both are incredible and incredibly new at that. Enter The Void is told and filmed in the first person, but it would be an injustice to leave it at just that. It doesn't just feel like you're looking at what the main character is looking at, it feels like you're inside Oscar's head and the reason why the film is able to distinguish between being someone and being...inside...someone is because of the sound design of muffling whatever Oscar says, and it's really great to see that people would actually think about that.
The movie centers around two unpleasant subjects: drugs and death.Both are presented and shown in interesting ways. In fact I don't think that Iv'e seen anything like this movie so far. The idea of death is discussed a little between the characters but the real substance comes from the depictions and representations of what actually happens when you die. The way the film handles drugs is just as interesting, and again, although the subject of drugs is deeply, deeply seeded into the plot, more is explained through the visual representation of each high. In a way both of these interpretations mirror each other in presentation. I'm not quite sure what that means, but it's something to think about.
At the core Enter The Void is driven singlehandedly by the visuals...which can be a good thing and a bad thing. On one hand it's a unique way to present the audience with a story. On the other hand IT'S CRAZY. THIS MOVIE IS INSANE. THE CAMERA CONSTANTLY SWITCHES BETWEEN CHARACTERS WITHOUT "CUTTING" AND THAT MEANS THAT OSCARS STUPID P.O.V SPIRIT HAS TO FLY FROM ONE CHARACTER TO THE OTHER IN REAL TIME! AND THAT'S PRETTY COOL FOR THE FIRST COUPLE OF TIMES BUT AFTER AWHILE I START TO WONDER, "HEY! HOW'S ANYONE SUPPOSED TO WATCH THIS MOVIE WHEN THE CAMERA WON'T STOP FLYING AROUND JAPAN THROUGH. EACH. WALL. AND. DOOR. JUST TO GET TO THE NEXT CHARACTER TO HEAR ABOUT HOW HORRIBLE HIS OR HER LIFE IS NOW THAT POOR MAIN CHARACTER OSCAR THE JUNKIE GOT SHOT IN A BAR STALL BY A COUPLE OF COPS WHO THOUGHT HE HAD A GUN. IT'S UPSETTING BECAUSE I WANT TO LIKE THIS MOVIE MORE BUT "ARTSY" CHOICES LIKE THIS MAKE THE FILM THAT I WANTED TO WATCH ALMOST UN-WATCHABLE! ...And so that's the problem.
It's difficult to tell if the negatives outweigh the positives because I actually really like Enter The Void. But the main problem stems from the inability to actually watch the film. This becomes apparent by the opening credits, which if you're at all intrigued by the film and are interested in watching it, I won't spoil what happens. But I will say that there should be a seizure warning somewhere before the movie starts. To my dismay there wasn't, and I was unfortunate enough to simply stumble upon this film without really knowing what it was about so when the opening credits assaulted me...it was surprising to say the least.
Despite this I still recommend the movie because I think that it would be very easy for someone to hate and I would like to get an idea of the ratio between people who do like the film and people who don't. As for myself in formulating an actual opinion I would like to say that I didn't enjoy watching the movie, but I like it overall as a film. There are several very interesting concepts that are presented originally and executed in enough of a coherent way. I'm torn between the visuals because it's probably one of the biggest reasons why I both like the film and loathe it. When rating Enter The Void I'm going to take into account not only the aspects that make the film un-watchable but the effort the filmmakers made to create the movie. Go watch it. Don't die. You've been warned.
7/10
Enter The Void is about Oscar, an in-denial drug dealer who is killed and witnesses the effect his death has on his friends and sister from his wandering/omniscient soul. I have to say that the strong impression this film gave me came entirely from the story and execution. Both are incredible and incredibly new at that. Enter The Void is told and filmed in the first person, but it would be an injustice to leave it at just that. It doesn't just feel like you're looking at what the main character is looking at, it feels like you're inside Oscar's head and the reason why the film is able to distinguish between being someone and being...inside...someone is because of the sound design of muffling whatever Oscar says, and it's really great to see that people would actually think about that.
The movie centers around two unpleasant subjects: drugs and death.Both are presented and shown in interesting ways. In fact I don't think that Iv'e seen anything like this movie so far. The idea of death is discussed a little between the characters but the real substance comes from the depictions and representations of what actually happens when you die. The way the film handles drugs is just as interesting, and again, although the subject of drugs is deeply, deeply seeded into the plot, more is explained through the visual representation of each high. In a way both of these interpretations mirror each other in presentation. I'm not quite sure what that means, but it's something to think about.
At the core Enter The Void is driven singlehandedly by the visuals...which can be a good thing and a bad thing. On one hand it's a unique way to present the audience with a story. On the other hand IT'S CRAZY. THIS MOVIE IS INSANE. THE CAMERA CONSTANTLY SWITCHES BETWEEN CHARACTERS WITHOUT "CUTTING" AND THAT MEANS THAT OSCARS STUPID P.O.V SPIRIT HAS TO FLY FROM ONE CHARACTER TO THE OTHER IN REAL TIME! AND THAT'S PRETTY COOL FOR THE FIRST COUPLE OF TIMES BUT AFTER AWHILE I START TO WONDER, "HEY! HOW'S ANYONE SUPPOSED TO WATCH THIS MOVIE WHEN THE CAMERA WON'T STOP FLYING AROUND JAPAN THROUGH. EACH. WALL. AND. DOOR. JUST TO GET TO THE NEXT CHARACTER TO HEAR ABOUT HOW HORRIBLE HIS OR HER LIFE IS NOW THAT POOR MAIN CHARACTER OSCAR THE JUNKIE GOT SHOT IN A BAR STALL BY A COUPLE OF COPS WHO THOUGHT HE HAD A GUN. IT'S UPSETTING BECAUSE I WANT TO LIKE THIS MOVIE MORE BUT "ARTSY" CHOICES LIKE THIS MAKE THE FILM THAT I WANTED TO WATCH ALMOST UN-WATCHABLE! ...And so that's the problem.
It's difficult to tell if the negatives outweigh the positives because I actually really like Enter The Void. But the main problem stems from the inability to actually watch the film. This becomes apparent by the opening credits, which if you're at all intrigued by the film and are interested in watching it, I won't spoil what happens. But I will say that there should be a seizure warning somewhere before the movie starts. To my dismay there wasn't, and I was unfortunate enough to simply stumble upon this film without really knowing what it was about so when the opening credits assaulted me...it was surprising to say the least.
7/10
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