Gaspar Noé is the one of the most polarizing directors I have come across, some have even referred to him as a shock poet. His films whether I like them or not, will always be special to me because they exposed me to a type of cinema that I was not used to. A common term may be “Extreme” cinema.
I had come across Climax right after I had wrapped up my favorites from 2019. But if I were to go back and tweak my list, oddly enough this would get the number 1 spot. Why? Well let me explain.
The plot of the film isn’t the hardest to follow. A dance troupe in France are rehearsing in an empty school building and have a party right after. Everything seems fine until it is revealed that the sangria has been spiked with LSD. There are a few sequences involving dialogue between our dancers where we receive a little bit of insight of who they are. The first shot in the building shows us a dance sequence, which is stunning. For me its one of the most well choreographed dances scenes I’ve ever seen. Than the characters drink the sangria, and before you know it this fun little dance party is turned into a hellish nightmare. We get a feel of who these dancers really are, their true colors are revealed. Their insecurities and whatever they have suppressed deep within themselves are now put at the forefront of the limelight. Social Norms and morality are quickly evaporated as we see the characters revert back to primal instincts. It could be saying that by means of drugs we can unlock our true potential or that we could lose ourselves to the point where nothing else is of any importance. The building in which are characters are interacting in, becomes a prison of their subconscious.
This film is a complete sensory overload. It assaults all of our 5 senses ferociously. There are two quotes in this film that pop up kind of randomly through out the film. The first being “Birth is a unique opportunity” and the other “Death is an extraordinary experience”. I don’t think in this case that birth and death is limited to a biological standpoint. When the sangria kicks in, we are seeing the death of our characters fake self, followed by the eventual birth of their true self.
We are also creatures of our own demise. How that level of true ecstasy while may seem attainable is ultimately too much for us.
The camera latches onto the personality of each and every single character that it follows, perfectly mimicking how they are feeling. The cinematography features vibrant colors, immersing you in the whole atmosphere. The sound design is brilliant, upping the ante as the film treads along.
People who are fans of Gaspar Noé have said that Climax, is not as thematic compared to his other work. But I feel that people are not giving this enough credit. It made me uncomfortable the first time I watched it, but after multiple viewings I don’t pass it off as just pretentious. Visually it’s telling us things that we aren’t comfortable talking about. It’s easily Gaspar Noé’s best looking film and my personal favorite.
Overall Climax felt more than a film to me, it was an experience. It is a horrific acid trip, an orgy of hysteria and hallucination. At times the camera work felt like it broke the barrier and transcended cinema.
Cedric Cinema 