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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 12:13 pm
Recently, at my place of employment, we've hired some new people. One of these people is a woman who I immediately struck up a friendship with. One of our common interests is movies. After a bit of conversation she asked me if I'd ever seen any of the work of a Euro director named Gaspar Noe. I'd never heard of him. She said if I had a strong stomach, I should check out his work. I have a strong stomach, I've always loved to be pushed while movie watching...the most graphic, intense movies I'd watched were Seven, Fight Club, Monster's Ball, and even the recent Monster...I've even seen 'I Spit On Your Grave' and 'Island of Death', which were really disturbing. She just smiled and brought with her to work today a move entitled 'I Stand Alone'. After doing a search over at IMDB and reading the comments and reviews of this film, I am simultaneously intrigued and cautious. I'm going to try and watch it later this week, and my new friend says that if I can watch this film and be more 'moved' than 'sickened', that she'll loan me Noe's other film, "Irreversible". Another cursory glance at the reviews for this movie are about the same as "I Stand Alone". My question for anyone who wants to respond is this, have any of you ever seen either of these movies? Do you have a recomendation as to whether I should view them? Like I said, I like to be pushed, but apparently, these two films go beyond anything I've ever seen in terms of intensity and violence. So again, have any of you TVCH movie watchers out there seen either of these two European flicks, and if so what do you think? Any response is appreciated.
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Hippyt
Member
06-15-2001
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 12:37 pm
Well,I've never seen them. After reading the reviews I think "I Stand Alone" sounds interesting. I've watched all the movies you listed,and liked most of them (in an odd way). I'd watch "I Stand Alone." Being a woman,though,the scene they talk about in "Irreversible" sounds a little too much for me. Let me know what you think,if you watch it.
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 12:51 pm
Thanks for the response. I will post my thoughts on these movies once I've watched them, although I may not watch "Irreversible" for a few weeks, if at all.
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 2:28 pm
Lyc, I was intrigued so I checked my favorite reviewers sites for those movies. Neither had reviewed the first one, but both gave a good review to Irreversible. I'm not sure I have the stomach for either film as the extreme violence in American History X and One False Move still haunt me. (Seven, Fight Club, Monster didn't bother me and I've actually seen Fight Club several times.) Their reviews are here: http://movie-reviews.colossus.net/master.html (Go to "I" via the fast archive at the bottom) http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert_reviews/2003/03/031403.html
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 3:16 pm
Thanks, Brenda. At Amazon.com, there are several viewer reviews for both films. Apparently the ending scene is so violent/disturbing(I Stand Alone), that in the U.K., they flashed a warning that said 'You have 30 seconds to leave the theater' or something to that effect before the scene began. I forgot to list Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer...which is probably the most visually disturbing film I've seen in the last decade or so. I haven't seen American History X.
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 3:31 pm
American History X has just one scene that really got to me. I saw a man get up and leave his date/wife behind. He never returned to the theater but she stayed and watched.
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Hippyt
Member
06-15-2001
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 3:39 pm
American History X was probably THE most disturbing movie I have ever seen.
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 3:55 pm
Well, I guess I'll have to get American History X then. Both reviews that Brenda posted links for gave very compelling reviews for Irreversible. I think I'll have to watch it.
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Babyruth
Member
07-19-2001
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 4:53 pm
This is the most disturbing film I've ever seen, and the only time I've walked out of a theater before the end. The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 5:05 pm
Thanks for the link, Babyruth. It sounds intriguing, and the actors in this one are highly thought of...Gambon, Mirren, etc.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Monday, August 23, 2004 - 8:02 pm
I saw this French film about 7 years ago called Black and White, I think. On the box it just looked like a French gay love story, so I wasn't worried; I love the French and I can't imagine myself being upset by a gay love story. Well, as it turns out, that was only partially right! It was actually a film about S&M, which included oe of the leads getting burned by cigarettes, having his arm broken, and eventually being put on the rack--like in the Inquisition--at the end of the film, which we are to believe kills him, all in the service of erotic pleasure. It sort of takes the sadism of sadomasochism literally, I guess. So yeah. That was pretty shocking to me. I've seen "I Stand Alone," and it was no big deal, really. Or at least comparatively so.
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Mamie316
Member
07-08-2003
| Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - 8:44 am
Babyruth, I forgot all about that movie. I started watching it one night on IFC and I couldn't stop. I couldn't believe what I was watching and yet I couldn't stop.
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Babyruth
Member
07-19-2001
| Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - 9:00 am
Oops, Mamie- sorry to have ruined your repression of that memory! Another fiction movie I found disturbing, but in a completely different way (not a horror flick, nothing gross, just immensely emotionally disturbing), was Dancer in the Dark. An excellent, beautiful film, but very disturbing. I agree that American History X is very disturbing, too, but it's also one of the best movies I've ever seen.
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Mamie316
Member
07-08-2003
| Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - 9:11 am
Another movie that comes to mind is Blow Out. It wasn't necessarily disturbing watching but the ending left me feeling very disturbed and really not knowing how I was feeling. And thanks Babyruth! lol
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - 10:16 am
I didn't see Dancer in the Dark, but I did see another Lars Von Trier movie called Breaking the Waves. If I remember correctly the one scene of violence is offscreen, but the story and the result were disturbing and haunting.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - 12:29 pm
Lars Von Trier is probably my favorite director right now. He recently made a film with Nicole Kidman that didn't get much play, Dogville, that was simply excellent. His movies are deeply disturbing in a wonderfully human way. I thought Bjork's performance in Dancer in the Dark was just transcendent--even better than Emily Watson's was in Breaking the Waves.
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Friday, August 27, 2004 - 11:20 am
Okay, when I got the movie home and opened up the DVD box, it wasn't "I Stand Alone", but "Irreversible" instead. Right box, wrong movie. So I went ahead and watched it. I was prepared for violence, but what I got was a very moving film. It's told over one calendar day backwards, like "Memento" was. We see the result of the day, and then are introduced to the characters over 16 scenes. It's mostly a story about fate. And once you know the characters, especially Alex, the sweet and beautiful leading lady, it becomes one of the most heartbreaking stories I've ever seen. I won't spoil it any more in case anyone wants to see it. You can get this film at Best Buy. As for the disturbing points of the movie, it's basically two scenes. But they're both extremely graphic. In no way do they glorify the violent acts which they depict, like many popular American movies, but they show in graphic detail the horror of what is being done. In most popular movies, we see the beginning of a despicable act and/or the aftermath of it. But rarely, if ever, do we see the entire act in all it's brutality shown from beginning to end. That's what is shown here. Nothing is inferred or intimated...you know exactly what happened to the man and you know exactly what happened to Alex because you see every excruciating moment. If you watch this movie, you will be horrified, but you will be moved. Because of this one movie, I will watch anything that this director does. Do not let anyone under 18 see this movie.
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Saturday, August 28, 2004 - 7:49 am
Some facts I've discovered about "Irreversible" since watching it. Note: It is a film that one thinks about often after watching it. Monica Bellucci, the victim in the infamous rape scene, directed that scene herself. The entire film was shot on 16MM film, so the only restriction Noe gave her was that the scene had to be less than 20 minutes or they'd run out of film. Every scene was one, long take. There were no do-overs. Because every scene was one take, almost 90% of the dialogue was improvised. Astonishingly, women rate this film higher than men do. FYI in case you're considering watching this film.
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Jodied75
Member
08-26-2004
| Friday, September 03, 2004 - 7:53 pm
Irreversible was intense. Another movie that stayed on my mind for a while: Requiem for a Dream.
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Ketchuplover
Member
08-30-2000
| Saturday, September 04, 2004 - 7:10 am
Is Irreversible at blockbuster? I hope SAW is disturbing 
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Lycanthrope
Member
09-19-2002
| Saturday, September 04, 2004 - 8:38 am
I don't know if it's at Blockbuster, but it is at Best Buy.
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Goddessatlaw
Member
07-19-2002
| Saturday, September 18, 2004 - 11:06 am
The only movie I've ever seen that cost me sleep for weeks was "Platoon." I saw it once in the theaters and to this day I refuse to watch it again.
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Bbfanatic
Member
08-14-2000
| Friday, September 24, 2004 - 3:37 pm
The most disturbing movie I watched was "The Muppet Movie". Those little critters are disturbing.
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Ketchuplover
Member
08-30-2000
| Sunday, October 03, 2004 - 7:31 pm
The Magdaline Sisters is disturbing IMO
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Jodied75
Member
08-26-2004
| Tuesday, October 12, 2004 - 8:57 am
Did anyone see "Sex Traffic" on Sunday and Monday night? (Was it only in Canada?) That was a disturbing movie, to make a grand understatement.
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