Gaspar Noé has created his most ambitious journey with the latest addition to his already stellar filmography. Noé's new film "Enter The Void" explores what happens when you die and attempts to bring the audience into the "psychedelic" and near/post death experience. While this is his most technologically impressive and aspiring film it is not his best. In fact, it is the worst of his catalog but that isn't to say it is bad, it's just not as incredible as his other films. Noé has stated this film was inspired by psychedelic experiences and the "Tibetan Book of The Dead" which discusses the death experience including re-birth. He even traveled to the Amazon to experience one of the most powerful psychedelics known, "Ayahuasca". Noé laughingly stated this was for "professional research".
Newcomer Nathanial Brown plays "Oscar", an American 20 something living in Tokyo trying to make ends meet by selling drugs. Him and his sister "Linda" played by a sultry Paz De la Huerta are orphans from a horrific car crash when they were children. Oscar has a slight obsession with breasts, psychedelic drugs, and inappropriate relationships; including one with his sister. The story is told in three parts, first showing Oscar's point of view as he takes DMT and deals drugs. Second, we are in the POV of Oscar's soul after being shot, re-living the events leading up to his demise. In this section, we learn that he has managed to move his sister out to Tokyo where she has becomes a stripper. We witness the car crash that took their parents and learn about his "awkward" relationship with Linda. Third, we see Oscar's soul traveling the city watching over his sister as he promised her that he will "never leave her". The ending is ambiguous, but most of his films are; though for the first time that I know of, he revealed in a few interviews big hints as to what really happens. So be careful if you are reading interviews prior to watching the film.
As with most of Noé's films, ETV attempts to alter the viewer's perception through the use of sound and visuals. "I Stand Alone" and "Irreversible" were both filmed in this way and both managed to completely engross me into the characters psyche. In "Enter The Void", Noé attempts this right off the bat in the opening credit sequence. He uses an industrial trance song from the England techno group "LFO". Partnered with pulsating lights and text, he essential brings the audience into a psychedelic "trip". Some will be immediately turned off by this beginning sequence as it is almost seizure inducing but those who stick it out are in for a treat. The soundtrack was an integral part as well. There was music, but mostly it was background noise and what I think was Binaural Tones. Binaural Tones or Beats are low frequency sounds meant to alter the brain waves in an effort to change perception. If there is any truth to this phenomenon, I think the audience experiences it first hand while watching.
Noe uses the same technique as he did in "Irreversible" having the camera float above and transition through solid objects. This was one of the few things I didn't like about the movie. I felt like I had seen it before and that he wasn't presenting anything new. The floating aside, he did managed to show me something I have never seen before. The POV technique. I couldn't believe what I was watching when Oscar was standing in the mirror washing his face. The camera blacked out perfectly in sync with when Oscar puts his hands over his eyes. It was fascinating to watch, in fact there are many camera shots in the film that left my jaw dropped.
The script was great but some of the performances were not. I was surprised by this since all of his previous films were incredibly acted. Noé stated in an interview that there was a lot of improvisation on set in regards to the script. I can't help but think maybe this had something to do with the poor acting. I suppose the improvisation helped the film seem more real, but it just felt forced. One standout for me was the actress who plays the younger version of Linda. Emily Alyn Lind sent chills down my spine with her portrayal of a child witnessing her parents horrific death.
Another surprising, but welcome change is that this movie wasn't very violent. Pretty much all of Noé's previous feature films scared the hell out of me. This trip was different, though he still featured graphic sex as he tends to do in all of his films. But this movie isn't about sex and violence. At it's heart it is about the unknown (death) and shows the collective experience of many people over many centuries (psychedelics). Early in the film Oscars friend "Alex", played by Cyril Roy, mentions that the chemical in with DMT and Ayahuasca is in the human body already. He says that when you die the DMT is released essentially giving you the "hardest trip" you can get. My theory is that Noe wanted to show the effect of taking DMT recreationally (Oscar's first person view of a DMT trip early in the film) and the effect of DMT naturally occurring at the moment of death. A brilliant concept that he pulled off flawlessly.
As with most of his films, this is not for everyone. You have to be able to appreciate the craft of movie making to really understand the technical accomplishment this film was. Some critics have said this is "style over substance", but I disagree. The film has its faults, yes, but it is enjoyable and captivating. I've never seen anything like it and honestly probably never will. Gaspar Noé is one of the best directors in the world today, I can't wait to see what he thinks up next.
Newcomer Nathanial Brown plays "Oscar", an American 20 something living in Tokyo trying to make ends meet by selling drugs. Him and his sister "Linda" played by a sultry Paz De la Huerta are orphans from a horrific car crash when they were children. Oscar has a slight obsession with breasts, psychedelic drugs, and inappropriate relationships; including one with his sister. The story is told in three parts, first showing Oscar's point of view as he takes DMT and deals drugs. Second, we are in the POV of Oscar's soul after being shot, re-living the events leading up to his demise. In this section, we learn that he has managed to move his sister out to Tokyo where she has becomes a stripper. We witness the car crash that took their parents and learn about his "awkward" relationship with Linda. Third, we see Oscar's soul traveling the city watching over his sister as he promised her that he will "never leave her". The ending is ambiguous, but most of his films are; though for the first time that I know of, he revealed in a few interviews big hints as to what really happens. So be careful if you are reading interviews prior to watching the film.
As with most of Noé's films, ETV attempts to alter the viewer's perception through the use of sound and visuals. "I Stand Alone" and "Irreversible" were both filmed in this way and both managed to completely engross me into the characters psyche. In "Enter The Void", Noé attempts this right off the bat in the opening credit sequence. He uses an industrial trance song from the England techno group "LFO". Partnered with pulsating lights and text, he essential brings the audience into a psychedelic "trip". Some will be immediately turned off by this beginning sequence as it is almost seizure inducing but those who stick it out are in for a treat. The soundtrack was an integral part as well. There was music, but mostly it was background noise and what I think was Binaural Tones. Binaural Tones or Beats are low frequency sounds meant to alter the brain waves in an effort to change perception. If there is any truth to this phenomenon, I think the audience experiences it first hand while watching.
Noe uses the same technique as he did in "Irreversible" having the camera float above and transition through solid objects. This was one of the few things I didn't like about the movie. I felt like I had seen it before and that he wasn't presenting anything new. The floating aside, he did managed to show me something I have never seen before. The POV technique. I couldn't believe what I was watching when Oscar was standing in the mirror washing his face. The camera blacked out perfectly in sync with when Oscar puts his hands over his eyes. It was fascinating to watch, in fact there are many camera shots in the film that left my jaw dropped.
The script was great but some of the performances were not. I was surprised by this since all of his previous films were incredibly acted. Noé stated in an interview that there was a lot of improvisation on set in regards to the script. I can't help but think maybe this had something to do with the poor acting. I suppose the improvisation helped the film seem more real, but it just felt forced. One standout for me was the actress who plays the younger version of Linda. Emily Alyn Lind sent chills down my spine with her portrayal of a child witnessing her parents horrific death.
Another surprising, but welcome change is that this movie wasn't very violent. Pretty much all of Noé's previous feature films scared the hell out of me. This trip was different, though he still featured graphic sex as he tends to do in all of his films. But this movie isn't about sex and violence. At it's heart it is about the unknown (death) and shows the collective experience of many people over many centuries (psychedelics). Early in the film Oscars friend "Alex", played by Cyril Roy, mentions that the chemical in with DMT and Ayahuasca is in the human body already. He says that when you die the DMT is released essentially giving you the "hardest trip" you can get. My theory is that Noe wanted to show the effect of taking DMT recreationally (Oscar's first person view of a DMT trip early in the film) and the effect of DMT naturally occurring at the moment of death. A brilliant concept that he pulled off flawlessly.
As with most of his films, this is not for everyone. You have to be able to appreciate the craft of movie making to really understand the technical accomplishment this film was. Some critics have said this is "style over substance", but I disagree. The film has its faults, yes, but it is enjoyable and captivating. I've never seen anything like it and honestly probably never will. Gaspar Noé is one of the best directors in the world today, I can't wait to see what he thinks up next.