Elle (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
For this holiday movie-going season ... who knew I needed (in my life) a perverse, twisted French film in which rape is the centerpiece of the storytelling? That's exactly what ya get with 'Elle' (an amoral revenge-driven psycho-thriller directed by Dutch provocateur Paul Verhoeven, who's given us such terrific trash as Basic Instinct, Showgirls, & Black Book). To say that he pushes buttons is an understatement. The great French actress Isabelle Huppert steps into the role of Michele Leblanc, a divorced CEO of a Paris-based video-game company who creates medieval fantasies for video gamers who love their entertainment as erotic as it is savage. The depraved script (adapted from a novel by David Birke) has the film opening in clamoring darkness, but then reveals Michele being beaten & sexually assaulted in her home by an unknown assailant in a ski-mask; he departs as soon as he's done.
How does Michele react? Clearly shaken, she simply locks her front door, cleans the mess, & starts her day with nary a phone call to the police {you find out why later}. Days afterwards, at dinner with friends, she offhandedly remarks (paraphrasing): "Oh, I was assaulted. I went to a doctor, I'm fine." Michele is some cool customer, right? Mmm, nnnnot really. See, as the daughter of an imprisoned serial killer, Michelle replays the attack in her head & develops her own revenge fantasy, figuring several men in her life to be her attacker. The suspects range from her lover Robert (Christian Berkel) who's married to Michele's best friend/business partner Anna (Anne Consigny), to Patrick (Laurent Lafitte), a kindly neighbor with a super-religious wife, to weak-willed Richard (Charles Berling), a failed novelist & the father of Michele's adult son, to the many young male employees who work at her job {most of whom loathe her managerial approach}. What a crew of suspects, huh!? Another male in her life – not a suspect, though – is her spineless, doofus of a son, Vincent (Jonas Bloquet), who endures verbal lashings from his nasty pregnant girlfriend.
What we learn about Michele is that she is not a conventional woman, but one whose notorious past has shaped her into the seemingly indestructible woman she is; a woman with great inner control who compartmentalizes everything that happens to her -- which is why she decides to take matters into her own hands to catch her rapist instead of ringing up the police {'Remember me, cops … the child who was implicated in the death of many by the hands of my dad?'}. Really, Michele is an enigma; an independent woman who is raped, yet is willing to promote S&M video games & hunt down her attacker with cold, calculated precision. In fact ... when her rapist returns for more of the same, Michele is much better prepared with pepper spray & weapons in tow. Now, here's where things REALLY get screwy. For reasons that I will not go into (see it for yourself), after she unmasks her attacker, she continues on with him; drawn into a demented, initially-thrilling game of sexual cat-&-mouse that would last for some time. That is, until everything starts to spin out of control. Further craziness ensues.
'Elle' goes into unexpectedly twisted directions throughout its 130 minute running time. Michele may not be overly likable & some of her choices are confounding, but her flaws make her a fascinating character to dissect. That trauma she suffers as a child has shaped her into the complex woman she is today. And the darker that 'Elle' becomes, the more gripping it is, too; even though I preferred the impeccable 1st hour to the outrageousness that takes hold in the plot from there out. And when I say outrageous, I MEAN IT. The sheer amount of crazy things that occur (rapes, pranks, deaths, flashbacks, accidents, mind games, twists) is off the charts. Nary a scene goes by without something wildly absurd (if also entertaining) happening.
This film belongs to Isabelle Huppert, who gives a fearless, boundary-pushing, utterly engrossing performance. I couldn't take my eyes off her. I literally hung on every word, every move, & every emotional fluctuation she lent; curious as to what the heck she was going to do next. It's tricky trying to figure Elle out, but I believe she is an inwardly fragile yet outwardly hardened woman thrust into a different level/plane of emotional & physical existence due to her traumatic upbringing; bringing the same ruthless attitude to her love life as she does to her business, & to her friends/family. Yes, she's cold, controlling & closed off, but she unconsciously longs for 'feeling', of any kind. No, she doesn't want to be raped. But yes, she produces video games which glorify violence to women. She's a bundle of perplexing contradictions, but also comes across as real as your next-door neighbor. She's open to interpretation and, you can't put her in a box.
While 'Elle' is critically acclaimed to the hilt, it has received criticism for its satire/dark humor about the central topic of rape, and the sheer quantity of 'everything but the kitchen sink' plot incidents that occur. But I was bewitched by the intoxicating blend of sex, violence, surprise, humor, tragedy, & mystery -- it's just so audacious. Verhoeven leads us through this meticulously constructed labyrinth of ambiguity, messing with our assumptions, and daring us to be both uncomfortable AND delighting in what's happening onscreen at the same time. There are fiendishly funny moments, followed by fiercely disturbing ones, & back again. Thematically, 'Elle' shows how past & present traumas can shape the mind, body & soul. It also scrutinizes Catholicism and the unholy alliance btwn. sex & violence; I'm reminded of a basement scene cast in hellish red hues. 'Elle' (and its’ star) shocks us by springing back & forth btwn. perverse comedy & dark tragedy. For people who enjoy leaving movie theaters feeling unsettled, a bit riled up, & brimming with questions about what they just saw ... 'Elle is the way to go.
How does Michele react? Clearly shaken, she simply locks her front door, cleans the mess, & starts her day with nary a phone call to the police {you find out why later}. Days afterwards, at dinner with friends, she offhandedly remarks (paraphrasing): "Oh, I was assaulted. I went to a doctor, I'm fine." Michele is some cool customer, right? Mmm, nnnnot really. See, as the daughter of an imprisoned serial killer, Michelle replays the attack in her head & develops her own revenge fantasy, figuring several men in her life to be her attacker. The suspects range from her lover Robert (Christian Berkel) who's married to Michele's best friend/business partner Anna (Anne Consigny), to Patrick (Laurent Lafitte), a kindly neighbor with a super-religious wife, to weak-willed Richard (Charles Berling), a failed novelist & the father of Michele's adult son, to the many young male employees who work at her job {most of whom loathe her managerial approach}. What a crew of suspects, huh!? Another male in her life – not a suspect, though – is her spineless, doofus of a son, Vincent (Jonas Bloquet), who endures verbal lashings from his nasty pregnant girlfriend.
What we learn about Michele is that she is not a conventional woman, but one whose notorious past has shaped her into the seemingly indestructible woman she is; a woman with great inner control who compartmentalizes everything that happens to her -- which is why she decides to take matters into her own hands to catch her rapist instead of ringing up the police {'Remember me, cops … the child who was implicated in the death of many by the hands of my dad?'}. Really, Michele is an enigma; an independent woman who is raped, yet is willing to promote S&M video games & hunt down her attacker with cold, calculated precision. In fact ... when her rapist returns for more of the same, Michele is much better prepared with pepper spray & weapons in tow. Now, here's where things REALLY get screwy. For reasons that I will not go into (see it for yourself), after she unmasks her attacker, she continues on with him; drawn into a demented, initially-thrilling game of sexual cat-&-mouse that would last for some time. That is, until everything starts to spin out of control. Further craziness ensues.
'Elle' goes into unexpectedly twisted directions throughout its 130 minute running time. Michele may not be overly likable & some of her choices are confounding, but her flaws make her a fascinating character to dissect. That trauma she suffers as a child has shaped her into the complex woman she is today. And the darker that 'Elle' becomes, the more gripping it is, too; even though I preferred the impeccable 1st hour to the outrageousness that takes hold in the plot from there out. And when I say outrageous, I MEAN IT. The sheer amount of crazy things that occur (rapes, pranks, deaths, flashbacks, accidents, mind games, twists) is off the charts. Nary a scene goes by without something wildly absurd (if also entertaining) happening.
This film belongs to Isabelle Huppert, who gives a fearless, boundary-pushing, utterly engrossing performance. I couldn't take my eyes off her. I literally hung on every word, every move, & every emotional fluctuation she lent; curious as to what the heck she was going to do next. It's tricky trying to figure Elle out, but I believe she is an inwardly fragile yet outwardly hardened woman thrust into a different level/plane of emotional & physical existence due to her traumatic upbringing; bringing the same ruthless attitude to her love life as she does to her business, & to her friends/family. Yes, she's cold, controlling & closed off, but she unconsciously longs for 'feeling', of any kind. No, she doesn't want to be raped. But yes, she produces video games which glorify violence to women. She's a bundle of perplexing contradictions, but also comes across as real as your next-door neighbor. She's open to interpretation and, you can't put her in a box.
While 'Elle' is critically acclaimed to the hilt, it has received criticism for its satire/dark humor about the central topic of rape, and the sheer quantity of 'everything but the kitchen sink' plot incidents that occur. But I was bewitched by the intoxicating blend of sex, violence, surprise, humor, tragedy, & mystery -- it's just so audacious. Verhoeven leads us through this meticulously constructed labyrinth of ambiguity, messing with our assumptions, and daring us to be both uncomfortable AND delighting in what's happening onscreen at the same time. There are fiendishly funny moments, followed by fiercely disturbing ones, & back again. Thematically, 'Elle' shows how past & present traumas can shape the mind, body & soul. It also scrutinizes Catholicism and the unholy alliance btwn. sex & violence; I'm reminded of a basement scene cast in hellish red hues. 'Elle' (and its’ star) shocks us by springing back & forth btwn. perverse comedy & dark tragedy. For people who enjoy leaving movie theaters feeling unsettled, a bit riled up, & brimming with questions about what they just saw ... 'Elle is the way to go.