Given Irreversible's many plot contrivances -- it has an implausible accumulation of coincidences -- it may just be that Noé doesn't earn his shocks.
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03/11/03
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Irreversible (2003)
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Reviews Counted:119
Fresh:66
Rotten:53
Average Rating:5.6/10
Consensus: Though well-filmed, Irreversible feels gratuitous in its extreme violence.
Theatrical Release:Mar 7, 2003 Limited
Box Office: $573,018
Synopsis: Irreversible is a demanding and audacious but thoroughly rewarding cinematic experience that has been thrilling audiences since its world premiere in Cannes and its North American debut screenings... [More]
Starring: Monica Bellucci, Vincent Cassel, Albert Dupontel, Philippe Nahon
Director: Gaspar Noe
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Reviews for Irreversible
Yes, Noé's methods are unorthodox, to say the least. But this confrontationalist is a moviemaker worth confronting, if you've got the stomach for it.
03/11/03
Likely the worst movie of the year, Irreversible exhibits fascist, gay-bashing tendencies, goes backwards for no reason, dizzies you with aimless camera work, and covers its banality with a veneer of pseudointellectual bull****.
03/10/03
Whereas Memento also actually delved into the human brain’s relationship to humanity and whether 'reality' as we know it lies in something as simple as cognitive imprinting and recollection, Irreversible peddles only the deeply exterior prec
03/10/03
Those up to a challenge who attend with an open mind will find something to gnaw at the soul.
03/09/03
Top Critic...one must remember that director Gaspar Noe is presenting fictional images to support his cynical response to Stanley Kubrick's hopeful "2001."
03/08/03
Irredeemable...just a pointlessly nasty violence-and-vengeance tale told backwards for 'effect.'
03/08/03
It's hard to deny the power or the cinematic command of Irreversible, but it's also difficult to see the point.
03/08/03
Noé is here to remind us the world is ugly. That'll be ten bucks, please, and would you like some popcorn with your nausea?
03/07/03
Without an episode to develop character, Noe can't really finesse the 180-degree transition to show how a single event can irrevocably transform lives.
03/07/03
Top CriticIt's brilliantly done -- Noe employs light, sound and editing to extraordinary effect -- and while art can never excuse atrocity, Noe raises important questions about violence and vengeance and the movies we make about them.
03/07/03
What's apparent about Irreversible is that, at some point, the message about and depiction of violence becomes violence itself.
03/07/03
Top CriticA very artfully conceived disturbance with a lot on its mind.
03/07/03
...it evokes a reaction, but does that make it worth while? Not really.
03/07/03
Feels more like a stunt to stir up chatter than a revolutionary work of art.
03/07/03
Low-end pornography that will titillate sickos who get off on seeing women and gays degraded and snuffed -- a movie without any redeeming social value.
03/07/03
Top CriticIrreversible overdoes things, but the experience of watching it is an unforgettable one.
03/06/03
The frenzied momentum churns up a lot of adrenaline and stomach acid for Irréversible. But the performances certainly don't stir up much emotion.
03/06/03
Top CriticNoé isn't concerned with subverting the status quo. Indeed, what he really seems to want to do is make a Hollywood movie.
03/06/03
Powerful and profound.
03/06/03
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