Antichrist

Antichrist
Rated 18

In a Nutshell

This is a very Indie film that I believe was premiered at Cannes in 09. It recieved a lot of acclaim, and I'd heard various things about it so chose to give it a go over the weekend. This film is nothing short of shocking, and by shocking I mean "How are they allowed to film that?". There is blood, and there is sex, and what can only constitute as rape. This film is not for the feint hearted.

Plot Summary

The film starts in black and white, and frankly is very artistic (considering its a very open to see sex scene). However it comes to a head when their child goes for a wander out the window of their second floor apartment. The woman decides she is to blame (without reason for now) and starts suffering multiple anxiety attacks. Her husband (who we can assume is a psycologist of some kind) attempts to help her release the anxiety and self-blame. He finds this tricky, and eventually decides that she should put herself in a position where she would feel most exposed and vunerable. After some thought she decides Eden Woods.

This is where it starts getting a bit mental.

Once at a cabin within the woods (where she once stayed with her son for a holiday) her behavior becomes more erratic. Coupled with the husband noticing some odd things. For example he wakes up with his hand out the window and covered in ticks. He also sees some disturbing things which I won't give away as it's fairly important to the film. However as the film goes on, we learn of how deep a problem the wife has, how she believes in some very draconian concepts, and her reactions to it.

Review

Personally I enjoyed this film, however mainly because I can stomach that kind of thing. I will say that I put a high warning on anybody thinking about seeing this film, however it is very thought provoking, very different and as I mentioned earlier, at times, artistic. There are some very clever twists and realisations, there is also some very messed up scenes as well. I think the main thing I liked about the film is you never know any names (Credits say Him and Her) and they are the only two in the film (Slight lie, there are extras, but their faces are blurred out).

Overall, I'd say give it a go, but don't come running to me if it's a bit over the top for your taste. It may be worth looking it up as well if you're a bit unsure on some of the content and don't mind having some of it spoilt for you. For me, this was a different film to have in the middle of a movie night. I wouldn't go out and buy it, nor would I suggest anybody does, but if you get an oppertunity to watch it, why not.

Oh, and you'll only want to see it the once!

Score: 6/10