Vortex is a 2021 avant-garde psychological drama film[3] written and directed by Gaspar Noé.[4] It stars Dario Argento as a father and author, in his first leading role,[5] alongside Françoise Lebrun as his wife, and Alex Lutz as their son, Stéphane. The film deals with the themes of the human condition and personal problems, uses a slow, minimal cinematic approach and is almost defiantly restrained: a pockmarked, faded palette of the frame, deaf voices, and the use of low-frequency background sound.
| Vortex | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg) French theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Gaspar Noé |
| Written by | Gaspar Noé |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Benoît Debie |
| Edited by | Denis Bedlow |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 142 minutes |
| Countries |
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| Language | French |
| Box office | $278,472[1][2] |
The film premiered in the Cannes Premiere section at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival,[6][7] to widespread acclaim from film critics, a departure from Noé's previous films which had received divisive receptions. Praise was given in particular for Noé's direction, Argento and Lebrun's performances, the film’s emotional power, scope, ambition and execution. This marked Noé's professional and creative shift from extremity to the slow cinema genre, with the use of realistic character drama.[8][9][10]
Plot
editThe film tells the story of an older married couple, a distinguished author and a retired psychiatrist, living in an apartment. The couple, due to age and ill health, primarily his heart condition and her dementia, begins to drift further apart from each other and gradually loses contact with reality, as reflected in the film screen splitting into two separate ones between them. The husband, reluctant to disclose information about his wife's condition, tries to focus on finishing another book about the cinema and dreams, despite his own frail condition.
The couple's son, Stéphane, who lives separately with his son Kiki, has a history of drug abuse and is struggling himself. He begs his parents to move to supervised housing with carers for her, but the husband does not want to sell their apartment, as he is afraid to lose his books and objects reminding him of the past.
The husband's condition deteriorates slowly: he has a heart attack and collapses. In the morning, the wife finds him lying on the floor and at first does not know what to do, but then calls Stéphane. The husband is brought to the hospital, but ultimately dies. After the husband's death, the split screens change accordingly. Stéphane becomes emotional and curls up on his mother's lap. Back in the apartment, the wife wanders helplessly through the hallway of her home. Stéphane begins to use drugs again while his mother takes out all the medication pills in the bathroom and tries to flush them down the toilet.
The wife dies peacefully in bed, though it is implied she might have died from gas poisoning after turning on her kitchen stove before going to bed. At her funeral, Stéphane describes the last months of caring for the couple, after which a slide show is shown of moments from his mother's life. Looking at the wall of urns where the wife's ashes are placed, Kiki asks whether his grandparents have a new home now; Stéphane tells his son that homes are for the living. At the end of the film, the apartment is shown in still images, increasingly emptied of the couple's possessions until the apartment is completely vacant. The final image consists of the mourning photos of the husband (1940-2020) and wife (1944-2020), taken when they were much younger.
Cast
edit- Dario Argento as himself, referred as "Lui"
- Françoise Lebrun as herself, referred as "Elle"
- Alex Lutz as Stéphane
- Kylian Dheret as Kiki
- Kamel Benchemekh as the grocer
- Corinne Bruand as Claire
- Eric Fourneuf as the caregiver
Production
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Vortex was conceived after some of the inspiration for the film came from Noé's experiences dealing with his mother’s dementia, as well as Noé being diagnosed with a brain hemorrhage that almost killed him in early 2020.[11][12] In his first leading role, Argento, who lives in Italy, learned to speak in fluent but heavily accented French, sometimes pausing and fumbling to find the right word.[13] Noé persuaded Argento to play the role by showing him his film Love, which contains plenty of unsimulated sex scenes. Argento was shocked and thought Noé was asking him for a movie. However, he agreed to join the next film after hearing about the idea for the film.[14]
The film uses both split-screen and medium format, much like his previous film Lux Æterna (2019).[15] The film was completed in post-production at an exceptionally fast pace; Noé began working on the script in February, filming took place set in northeast Paris, near the Stalingrad Station,[16] between April and May, and the film was ready in July 2021. The dialogue in the film is completely improvised despite using the screenplay from Noe; the screen is divided into two parts between the couple.[17]
Release
editThis section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (May 2022) |
In August 2021, the film sold to Utopia for US distribution.[18] It was released at the IFC Center on 29 April 2022, followed by an expansion to the rest of the US on 6 May 2022.[19]
Reception
editThe review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes calculated a 93% approval rating from 90 reviews, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The website's consensus reads, "Vortex is Gaspar Noé at his most unflinchingly pitiless -- but viewers who can make it through will be rewarded with a haunting contemplation of death."[20] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 82 out of 100 from 29 critic reviews, indicating “universal acclaim”.[21] It holds the highest-rated critic scores for Gaspar Noé's films on both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic.
Justin Chang, a top critic of the Los Angeles Times, praised the film and noted: "It’s a bone-deep sensory immersion that never feels merely sensationalist, anchored by two performances of astonishing commitment and emotional power."[22] Glenn Kenny of RogerEbert.com gave a perfect four out of four stars and noted: "One leaves Vortex feeling cleansed by fire."[23]
Awards
edit| Year | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Dublin International Film Festival[24] | Best Film | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival[25] | Zabaltegi-Tabakalera Prize | Won | |
| Film Fest Gent[26] | Best Film | Won | |
| International Istanbul Film Festival | Golden Tulip | Won | |
| 2023 | Belgian Film Critics Association[27] | Grand Prix | Won |
References
edit- ^ "Vortex (2021)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Vortex (2021)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Gaspar Noe bags top award at Istanbul Film Festival". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
- ^ "'Vortex': Gaspar Noé Made a Mysterious Quasi-Documentary Starring Dario Argento". Bloody Disgusting. 10 June 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ Goldsmith, Jill (1 May 2022). "Gaspar Noé On Directing 'Vortex' And Dario Argento – Specialty Box Office". Deadline. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
- ^ "Gaspar Noé releases first image for surprise Cannes addition 'Vortex'". ScreenDaily. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ "'Vortex' First Look: Gaspar Noé Returns with Surprise Movie Starring Dario Argento". IndieWire. 10 June 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ Brooks, Xan (16 July 2021). "Vortex review – Gaspar Noé's latest goes gentle, for once, into the night". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^ "With 'Vortex,' Provocateur Filmmaker Gaspar Noé Tackles the Quiet Horror of Dementia". Time. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
- ^ Nelson, Jeff (27 April 2022). "'Vortex' Movie Review: Gaspar Noé Depicts Hopelessness in Both Life and Death". Showbiz Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
- ^ "Vortex is an Absorbing, Despairing Portrait of Aging". pastemagazine.com. 27 September 2021. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ Ebiri, Bilge (20 May 2022). "Gaspar Noé Is Not in Control". Vulture. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
- ^ Scott, A. O. (28 April 2022). "'Vortex' Review: A Split Screen and a Shared Fate". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
- ^ Typpö, Juho (14 November 2022). "Julma, armoton aika". Helsingin Sanomat. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
- ^ "With 'Vortex,' Provocateur Filmmaker Gaspar Noé Tackles the Quiet Horror of Dementia". 29 April 2022.
- ^ ""Vortex," Reviewed: Old Age Has Never Seemed Grimmer". The New Yorker. 28 April 2022.
- ^ Typpö, Juho (14 November 2022). "Julma, armoton aika". Helsingin Sanomat. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
- ^ "Gaspar Noé's 'Vortex' Sells to Utopia Following Acclaimed Cannes Debut". Variety. 19 August 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
- ^ "'Vortex' Trailer Reveals Director Gaspar Noé's Career-Altering Drama". Collider. 11 March 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
- ^ Vortex, retrieved 8 May 2022
- ^ Vortex, retrieved 11 March 2022
- ^ "Review: Gaspar Noé is up to his old tricks, and some new ones, with 'Vortex' and 'Lux Aeterna'". Los Angeles Times. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
- ^ Kenny, Glenn. "Vortex". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
- ^ Clarke, Donald. "Vortex wins best film at Dublin International Film Festival". The Irish Times. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
- ^ Parfitt, Orlando (19 August 2021). "San Sebastian's Zabaltegi competition includes Joanna Hogg, Radu Jude, Gaspar Noé titles". Screen. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
- ^ "Gaspar Noé wins the Grand Prix at the Ghent Film Festival with Vortex". Cineuropa - the best of european cinema. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
- ^ Calbert, Yves (8 January 2023). "«Vortex» remporte le Grand prix 2023 des critiques de cinéma belges". Le Soir (in French). Retrieved 22 January 2023.