I Do Movies Badly: Martyrs

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4 Responses

  1. a_freudian_fan says:

    Thank you so much for having the balls to get angry at this “cult movie”! You summed up Martyrs perfectly. It is an obnoxious bully of a film, sometimes clever in its bullying, yes, but so inane in its justifications of violence! It would be so sad if it became a horror classic.

    Check out “Sombre” by Phillipe Grandrieux to see something deeply (not superficially) disturbing.

  2. deaddeer says:

    I respect yout opinion about the film I personally love, but i think that some things you said are unfair.

    just because some events, like WWII, happened 70 something years ago, doesn’t make them irrelevant to modern cinema 🙂 also, if somebody see thematic link in the movie to those events, then that’s subjective interpretation, which you may not share, but shouldn’t negate if you don’t have strong arguments.

    you also said that when director is depressed he shouldn’t make movies. well, many artists are depressed on a daily basis and they’re still succesful. actually depression is strongly linked to pain & I think it’s a great hint from the director himself for further interpretation of the movie and may be helpful in searching for it’s deeper meaning, that you think it laks.

    • Jim Rohner says:

      Oh, hey! Sorry this is so late in reply – I’m used to people not chiming in so I infrequently check comment fields.

      On further reflection, I don’t think that there’s anything inherently wrong with writing while depressed – I’ve certainly created things in dark moods – because they can lead to catharsis, empathy, relation, etc. But when applied specifically to this film, I fail to see where and/or how any of those reactions or responses can develop. The film is incredibly nihilistic, which negates the kind of emotions or developments that catharsis, empathy, whathaveyou inspire. There is no sense of hope at the end of this viewing experience and while I may be able to understand where that comes from in the context of Laugier’s depression, that doesn’t necessarily mean that that depression/moment/darkness deserved to be explored in this very public way.

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