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Démence

Original title: Sílení
  • 2005
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 58m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
4.1K
YOUR RATING
Démence (2005)
Adult AnimationCostume DramaDark ComedyPeriod DramaStop Motion AnimationAnimationComedyDramaHorror

A man takes up residence with a mysterious marquis and is soon persuaded to enter into an asylum for preventative therapy. Things are not what they seem, and the marquis may be even more sin... Read allA man takes up residence with a mysterious marquis and is soon persuaded to enter into an asylum for preventative therapy. Things are not what they seem, and the marquis may be even more sinister than what the young man may've predicted.A man takes up residence with a mysterious marquis and is soon persuaded to enter into an asylum for preventative therapy. Things are not what they seem, and the marquis may be even more sinister than what the young man may've predicted.

  • Director
    • Jan Svankmajer
  • Writers
    • Edgar Allan Poe
    • Marquis de Sade
    • Jan Svankmajer
  • Stars
    • Jan Tríska
    • Pavel Liska
    • Anna Geislerová
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.1/10
    4.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Jan Svankmajer
    • Writers
      • Edgar Allan Poe
      • Marquis de Sade
      • Jan Svankmajer
    • Stars
      • Jan Tríska
      • Pavel Liska
      • Anna Geislerová
    • 27User reviews
    • 56Critic reviews
    • 63Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 8 wins & 7 nominations total

    Photos21

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    Top cast82

    Edit
    Jan Tríska
    Jan Tríska
    • Marquis
    Pavel Liska
    Pavel Liska
    • Jean Berlot
    Anna Geislerová
    Anna Geislerová
    • Charlota
    Martin Huba
    Martin Huba
    • Dr. Coulmiere
    Jaroslav Dusek
    Jaroslav Dusek
    • Dr. Murlloppe
    Pavel Nový
    Pavel Nový
    • Servant Dominik
    Stano Danciak
    • Innkeeper
    Jirí Krytinár
    Jirí Krytinár
    • Reciting Madman
    Katerina Ruzicková
    • Asylum inmate
    Iva Littmanová
    • Asylum inmate
    Katerina Valachová
    • Asylum inmate
    Josef Kaspar
    • Insane erotomaniac
    Miroslav Navrátil
    • Dream warden
    Jirí Maria Sieber
    Jirí Maria Sieber
    • Dream warden
    Ctirad Götz
    Ctirad Götz
    • Ostler
    Milan David
    • Naked madman…
    Michael Hoffbauer
    • Naked madman
    Karel Herman
    • Feeble-minded warden
    • Director
      • Jan Svankmajer
    • Writers
      • Edgar Allan Poe
      • Marquis de Sade
      • Jan Svankmajer
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews27

    7.14K
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    Featured reviews

    Gordon-11

    Bizarre and highly disturbing

    This film is about the sadistic adventures of Marquis de Sade, and also the lunacy of two extreme ways of running a psychiatric asylum.

    I have seen Jan Svankmajer's films before, so I knew that this film would be bizarre and disturbing. Still, this film gravely shocked me. From the moving tongues to enucleation, this film was full of revolting and gory scenes. I almost felt sick during the film. I was also surprised to see a blasphemous scene involving a statue of crucifixion, which was shocking especially considering that the Czech Republic is a religious country.

    Fortunately, the story was gripping and engaging. It really kept me longing for more to unfold. Marquis' monologue questioning the existence of God was well composed, and gave new arguments (for me anyway) to the never ending debate of His existence. This film is not for the uptight or the light hearted.
    9vieira-adam

    the art house horror film of the year!!

    I just saw this film at the Montreal fantasia film festival. And this being Svankmajer's most recent film, I jumped for tickets. Absolutely amazing. Something of a political comment, the film show's us to ways of running an insane asylum. I have always loved Jan Svankmajer for his use of macabre animation (using raw meat, bones and eye balls). And it's use in context with 'Lunacy' is chilling. Truly one of the best horror films I've see all year. It's not the sort of horror that is entertaining to watch or bring your girlfriend. But if you love films and your looking for a horror film that will keep you thinking...then find a way to see this film.
    9mike-1687

    Very Effective and Stubborn (GREAT!)

    After knowing literally nothing about either this film or the director (who I've, since, become very interested in), I must say that this is a fantastic piece of art. Lunacy refuses to be what anyone expects of it: beginning with a B-horror feel, evolving into a very Salo-esquire shock inducing libertine tale, and ending in a profoundly *con*founding take on mental health. This is neither surreal, nor horror, nor pure art film, but a very effective combination of the three that is both accessible and challenging. From its seemingly flat stop motion animation which becomes increasingly effective, to its difficult narrative, this is a shocking movie that transcends the simple desire to shock the viewer and leaves one feeling effected (not affected).
    9MOscarbradley

    A surreal masterpiece

    "Lunacy" is Jan Svankmajer's homage to Edgar Allan Poe and the Marquis De Sade, (it's full of allusions to "Marat/Sade"), and as he tells us himself, is a horror film and not a work of art. It is certainly the first and I would argue it is also a work of art of quite a high order. It combines live-action with Svankmajer's trade-mark animation in giving us a study of what we might call 'the banality of evil' unlike almost anything else in cinema. It is a film that moves from a barely recognizable present to some kind of past as easily as it does from live-action to animation existing in a kind of no-man's-land between the real and surreal in a manner almost guaranteed to give you the very literal creeps; this is the real thing. Yet there is also something tongue-in-cheek about the horrors Svankmajer inflicts on us. There is a giddy perversity to the picture that to a degree dissipates the director's attack on the institutions he appears to condemn. This is as much a very bizarre celebration of hedonism as it is an attack on the communist regime. There's also an asylum in the film that makes the one at Charenton look like a Wendy House. Perverse, yes but also utterly extraordinary and undoubtedly one of Svankmajer's masterpieces.
    8framptonhollis

    this sickening satire is among svankmajer's most fiendishly entertaining

    Functioning mainly as a mixture of three demented masters of art (these "heroes" of mine being Edgar Allan Poe, the Marquis de Sade, and Jan Svankmajer), "Lunacy" portrays a world of hopeless depravity. Demented desires are shown to be hidden within those one both extremes of the social spectrum. "Lunacy" is a film that lives up to its title, showcasing a world of idiocy, chaos, and oppression.

    In his brilliant introduction, Svankmajer claims that this is a film inspired by the works of both Edgar Allan Poe and the Marquis de Sade. Being a fan of both authors, this only further fueled my fascination with the film. Poe's tortured soul often dominates the more melancholic and moody sections of such a masterwork, as well as largely inspiring the overall story. de Sade's sick spirit shines even brighter as Svankmajer displays the perverted sexual acts and desires performed by a common libertine. His surreal lens not flinching one bit, blasphemous rituals of twisted eroticism are performed in a way both chilling and occasionally amusing. Further mirroring de Sade's unconventional brilliance are the nihilistic philosophical musings of the film's own marquis, a man who refuses to hide his perverted desires, hatred for Mother Nature, and disdain for religion.

    While juggling the atmospheres of ever impending doom and inescapable tragedy, "Lunacy" also manages to be one of the funniest movies of the century so far. Without fail, Svankmajer slyly mocks society using both grotesque horror and riotous black humor. Gags fill up Svankmajer's cinematic canvas like his character of the marquis' sperm does the inside of his sexual victims. Here, hilarity comes in many (often absolutely absurdist) forms, from slapstick to social commentary. Densely layered, Svankmajer's film crowds itself with much comic insanity by the second half. Many sequences work as both scenes of sadistic horror and gross out humor, so never be afraid to burst with laughter despite the urge to spray puke all over the movie screen like a hose.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The official Czech submission to the 2007 Oscars in the Best Foreign Language Film category.
    • Connections
      Referenced in Uborshchitsa

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    FAQ19

    • How long is Lunacy?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 17, 2005 (Czech Republic)
    • Countries of origin
      • Czech Republic
      • Slovakia
    • Official site
      • Official site (Czech Republic)
    • Language
      • Czech
    • Also known as
      • Lunacy
    • Filming locations
      • Lipnice nad Sázavou, Czech Republic(castle)
    • Production companies
      • Athanor
      • C-Ga Film
      • Ceská Televize
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $48,324
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $3,245
      • Aug 13, 2006
    • Gross worldwide
      • $133,982
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 58 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1

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