France's fearless Gaspar Noé (Irreversible) has created a vast, stupefying vision of life after death, a hallucinatory extravaganza. "An experience equally sublime and infuriating, revelatory and painful, ecstatic and terrifying." — Philadelphia Inquirer
A boundary-pushing experience that is sure to be talked about for years to come… Noé continues to use cinema as a tool to challenge and aggravate.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2010
Enter the Void 2009
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“Almost defying definition in contemporary cinematic terms, Gaspar Noé's third feature film Enter the Void... sees the director explore new shooting techniques and ambitious special effects to capture a young man's journey after death. More experience than narrative, it runs to a massive 156 minutes, meandering and careening in and out of story and into visual realms and moods that are nothing short of hypnotic...
Enter the Void begins from the subjective vision of the lead character, an American slacker and budding drug dealer called Oscar living in Tokyo, complete with blinks that block out the image every few seconds. Thirty minutes into the film, he is killed and from then on the characters and buildings are viewed from above as if he is watching.
Noé's use of crane shots both in Tokyo, in studios and in modelwork is staggeringly original, and he tracks characters through the city by speeding over the buildings from aerial vantage points... The film defies cinema convention in every way. It is almost like an adult video game with no rules, or an art installation which evolves into something immersive and sensory. One thing is certain. Spiked with all the tricks, sound effects and technological invention at Noé's disposal, Enter the Void is a trip.” — Mike Goodridge, Screendaily