Titane

I am speechless!

Erm......seriously I have no idea what i just watched?

This has got to be one of the most unusual, disturbing, weird and completely bonkers film that I've seen in a while. The first 30 minutes of the film are the best for me, felt more a "standard" horror/thriller setup. However this film takes so many bizarre twists and turns which I'm not sure all worked. Trust me you have a lot of questions after seeing this film.

Visually stunning I must say though and I love the fact that this is a really ballsy film, 100% original for that matter!! However I think it might have helped if now and then it was just a little boring or normal hahaha!

I mean its an experience I wont forget but then again I wont rush to see this film again any time soon, I think I need to let my brain process this all. I completely understand why a lot of people would hate this film, it really is not for everyone!!

70% out of 100, I'm stunned and shocked how this turned out and the fact that someone thought of this idea for a film.........are they ok? Hahahah!!

I think there is no point in trying to judge or rate this film. Even though I am doing it in order to post something. It's as if the Wario version of Kill Bill went on a date with Lars von Trier. Then they went to a club, met Cronenberg, Lynch and the Toxic Avenger and they all took Ketamine. I would call it a masterpiece but I have a little issues about the violence. I can accept it, because it's art. But where does it stop? It is a disturbing film and I liked it. This is a thing people will talk about for a long long time. Also I am confused now. In terms of how the narrative is unfolded it reminded me of dogtooth from Lanthimos. The shifting of elements of a narrative in a film and replacing them by something else. It's Dada. Is this only making sense to me ?

Original. Daring. But doesn't quite gel.

I am writing a review after ages. Perhaps it's a sign of a good movie that provoked this response. Or perhaps it's just appreciation for a director who really did go for it. Ducarnau demonstrated the Cronenbergesque body horror and satire in her first feature film. Titane has confirmed that she is definitely could be the next champion of extremely physical movies. Film reminds of themes of Crash ( 1996 ) and to some extent Videodrome ( 1983 ) .

Keeping the cryptic and puzzling aspects aside, it's a basic story of finding closure and a place in this world, when you have ambiguous intimacy / sexuality, distorted physicality, suppressed emotions and childhood trauma.

Ducarnau is however not quiet able to meet the ambition of ideas she is putting down on canvas. There is rather drastic shifts in tone of movie, which can be confusing. There is no harm in mixing genres but I felt a bit lost in parts of second half.

The shock values of the scenes ( and they are shocking ) wears off once you are no longer sure of motives of players especially when you are not totally buying into it. In first 15 min, the film hits such high note that the twists and turns that follow almost negate the impact.

I would say if you are looking for a provocative film, this is the one. However, keep an open mind. Titane is ambitious but it's not able to live up to its potential.

The first 20 minutes or so of 'Titane' are about as off the wall bonkers as you'll ever see in a film. It got to the point where I was wondering if they were intending to keep that pace and insanity up for the runtime of the film. Things do settle down a bit from there on out (at least comparatively) but man that was a wild set up.

I felt I had a reasonably strong grip on what the film was going for, but I did watch a Youtube explanation video just to be sure. It was similar to what I thought but did point out a few things I had missed or misinterpreted. Beneath all the insanity there are certainly some layers of intelligence.

Agathe Rousselle in the lead role gives a quite incredible performance. Her transformation alone is stunning. But also the intensity and fascination she is able to attract is something this project couldn't have done without.

This is one of those extremely unique films that you will likely never see anything like again. I'd say it's not a film that is going to be to everyone's liking. But if you have the right mind-frame (and stomach) for it then give it a crack. Strap yourself in though, it's a bump ride. 7/10.

Most years, I start with a desire to see a wider variety of films at the cinema than previously. Usually it doesn't last, but it was in this spirit that I went to see Palme D'or winner "Titane" as it was released in UK cinemas. Even having had a couple of days to ruminate on it, I'm not sure exactly how I feel about it.

Having suffered a terrible car accident as a child, Alexia (Agathe Rousselle) now dances seductively at motor shows to an appreciative audience. Following a violent encounter with a fan, she returns to the building and has sex with one of the cars. She flees the town, changing her appearance and binding her body, claiming to be the long-lost son of firefighter Vincent (Vincent Lindon). Vincent tries to reach his "son" with various acts of kindness, but the physical act of binding her body is taking a toll on Alexia, that only worsens as she discovers she's pregnant.

I suppose the key questions are thus. Did I enjoy "Titane"? No. I don't think I was necessarily supposed to though. It's a hard film. The juxtaposition of the fantasy elements of the first 30 minutes and the, occasionally quite touching, scenes between Vincent and Alexia is stark. There's certainly a version of this film that could entirely ignore the idea that literally she has sex with a car, that would work just as well, but this isn't that. Which leads me to believe that the car aspect must mean something, but if it does, I didn't get it. This leads me to my second question, did I then get an insight into something? Again, not really. Darren Aranofsky's "mother!" was a similarly tough watch, but at least I came to get that it was allegorical. I don't feel like "Titane" can make a similar claim, indeed I've read an interview with Julia Ducournau that explicitly says that it's a fairy story and your supposed to accept the events happened as laid out.

This is not to say that I felt the film was entirely without merit. The performances are really good, particularly from Agathe Rousselle in what is her first feature film. The body horror elements are well done and at the very least you can't argue with Ducournau's singular vision for the film. There are little touches in the background of the story, that suggest a bigger narrative that you're not explicitly seeing, and I do like that faith in the audience to pick up on that. The connection between Vincent and Alexia is interesting. I suspect he knows from the start that it's not his son that he's bringing home, but he's so destroyed by grief he is happily blind to it.

I am, as you might be able to tell from the review, conflicted about my feelings about the film, but still thinking about it days later.