Estranhas Ligações

A movie about various characters in three countries and a dead bull? This could easily be one of those tedious, plotless, arty French films I hate so much. In fact, it isn't. Carnages is an intriguing, well-made and sometimes funny movie, well worth seeing. The storyline centres around the remains of a dead bull, that one way or another turn up in the lives of the main characters, sometimes with dramatic consequences. This alone makes pleasant viewing for superficial moviegoers, but behind the main storyline are many layers the director invites us to explore. One of them is the parent-child relationship. One of the first scenes shows a bullfighter talking about his father, the movie ends with two brothers reunited with their long-lost father. One of them is father of quintuplets, the other lives with his mother. Another theme is the life-death contrast, and no doubt there are others I didn't discover. Feel free to do so yourself. Despite these themes and the various interwoven storylines, the movie isn't hard to view. There are many little jokes and funny situations. When one of the main characters orders eight pizza's for three people, this seems ridiculous. Only later the viewer realizes his pregnant wife was expecting quintuplets at that moment. What makes the movie even more enjoyable are the beautiful shots and the outstanding acting. In this film a shot of a little girl watching a bullfight on TV is an exciting scene. That's a difficult job to accomplish.

For those that enjoy films that give us glimpses into people's lives and let us be passersby to their experiences, then Carnage is an absorbing feature. Liking this film doesn't make one snooty at all, some of us just don't always require direct plot nor overwhelmingly "beautiful" people to be entertained. Like the brilliant 2001 film Bug, it connects different people to one incident, and how their lives interconnect even if they don't realize it's happened.

In this case, it's the death of a bull after a bullfight. The bull is butchered and the different parts go out to people in different European countries. That part is really incidental, as the main concern is how these folks' lives interconnect and lives are lost, saved, secrets revealed, and friendships made. I confess I was slightly confused by some of the conversations and revelations, but that did not wreck the experience for me, it just meant I had to go back and view it again at some point to absorb the story better.

The actors in Carnage were quite refreshing to see, they seemed like real people instead of pristine mega-stars. I must disagree strongly with a reviewer here who kept insisting, for instance, that the naked people in the primal scream therapy scenes were all fat and not ones you'd want to see naked. Take a closer look at that scene, buddy. Different shapes and sizes. Look around you and you'll see 99% of people are not beautiful models, and to just have naked beautiful models in the pool would have made the entire scene unbelievable. These were intended to be REAL people, and frankly it's real people that I find to be more attractive instead of fit, shaved "hotties!" Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...I'm sure there are plenty who found the folks in the pool just fine -- Clovis Cornilla as Alexis and 'Mr. Beard' seemed quite masculine indeed, and the women were beautiful each in their own way. Those that criticise how these actors look should take a good look in the mirror at themselves and wake up.

My only discomfort with Carnage are the scenes of the bullfighting. I abhor any abuse of animals, and seeing the poor bulls being slowly killed to the delight of a crowd upset me. I don't know for certain if the bullfighting scenes were real in the manner that the bulls were actually harmed, but I have to understand the fact that this was considered a sport in Spain and I try to focus on the stories of the characters' lives.

It's quite alright if you don't find this film interesting enough. I agree it's an acquired taste. But hey, if there weren't all kinds of different films out there this world would be a boring place, and I enjoyed the lives I got to know in the realm of Carnage. It was an unsettling and beautiful place all at once in my eyes...

Formally and in terms of subject matter this movie is a really fine piece of cinema. The music is perfect and its direction and editing have moments of true brilliance. This film explores the events that surround the death of a bull. This film is inspired by the forms and the spiritual intent of ancient myth. The film begins with a bullfighter getting gored in the arena as he kills his first bull. The bull is then processed and divided into its respective products. As the these parts move out into the world they "affect" the lives of the film's characters. The struggles of each individual character seem resonant with the struggle between the bull and his bullfighter. Each story takes on the feel of a fatal dance.

This film is not an attempt to describe the world as it is but rather it is the telling of a story that appeals to our mystical notions of the world. It is a retelling of an ancient myth of replenishment as it relates to modern symbols of grace. Our relationship with the animal master is intact and a covenant still exists between man and beast. It is an understanding that the bull will die and be consumed and that we will kill and reclaim him. It is a pact to participate in the business of life and recognize the inexhaustible source from which all life comes, to which all life goes. This is a great film but modern film goers may need some help with its reference.

"Carnages" is a very weird and bizarre movie, taking place in Spain, Belgium and France and with the stories linked through meat, bones, eyes and horns of a bull killed in a bullfight. Most of the stories are intriguing, sometimes funny and even surreal, with very odd characters; although original, the whole is irregular. The cast has good performances, and this overrated film was awarded with five prizes, plus three nominations in some festivals. The cover of the Brazilian VHS indicates that this movie won also the Best Film in the FICBrasília 2003, which is not listed in IMDb. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Estranhas Ligações" ("Weird Connections")

So far the posted comments are mostly negative and appear to take the stance that the six degrees of separation syndrome is bull. I enjoyed it. Sue me already. Okay, it was the name Jacques Gamblin that 'sold' me. He's a solid, reliable actor who I've never seen give a bad performance whilst I HAVE seen him give some doozys. About a year ago he shared a screen with Clovis Cornillac in A Small Week and they're both here again except they never have a scene together. I was also interested in whether or not Lio could act - previously I'd seen her only in concert singing Prevert (not all that well, if anybody asks you, but then she did have to follow Montand). If as a film maker you are interested in telling the stories of several disparate characters there are worse ways to do it than to connect them via a dead bull. Okay, most of the characters are straight from Central Casting Weird but they do perform well and entertain. As a debut I'd say this was pretty impressive. 8/10