Exploring Human Animal Instincts: The Raw Film by Julia Ducorneau
Raw is a movie that evokes a variety of emotions and reactions from viewers. The film tells the story of a young woman discovering her dark and hidden desires as a result of a series of strange and embarrassing events.
Director Julia Ducorno takes the audience through an eerie journey full of unexpected twists and mysterious moments. It addresses the theme of human instincts and animal needs, presenting them in a terrifying form through the refraction of the main character.
The cast, especially lead actress Garance Marleine, does a great job of conveying the complexity of the characters’ emotions and internal conflicts.
However, despite its technical prowess and interesting themes, the film can spark debate because of its experimental approach to presenting the plot and some tough scenes. Some viewers may rate it as a bold and provocative approach to cinematography, while others may find it repulsive or too extreme.
In general, Raw is a cinematic experiment that may interest those who appreciate arthouse cinema and are ready for open discussion of complex topics. However, viewers who are not ready for strong emotional impressions and hard content should be careful when watching this film.
6 out of 10
I have already written that I do not like the universe of Julia Ducourneau, but apparently it will gain popularity. It is not excluded that Hollywood will still invest its capital in this rising star and then its universe will become more alive. With a slightly different production. So far, her films are parables of a zombie apocalypse. This seems to reflect European reality. Trend, as they say.
So what do we see?! Doomed young woman who goes to school on the horse. Her vet doesn't smell like her. Good Dr. Aibolit didn't come in here. At the very beginning, a horse is really driven for the rite of initiation. So the heroine obviously sees what she will be taught. It's clear from the first shot. But what's holding her back?! Why isn't she running away?! What unknown force makes her stay in this factory of death? What's the reason?!
The answer is heartlessness. The main character does not know, does not understand, does not feel what is happening in her soul. No one in this parable hears, knows, understands. I don't like Ducourneau's universe. Her world and her heroes are completely soulless.
And where does soullessness lead? It is clear and predictable: first a person is squatted, then demonized. And then he dies. It can't be otherwise. The land does not bear demons. They don't belong.
Here we see this path of scooting and incipient demonization.
And? And this "I?!" just goes unanswered. It's hanging in the air.
It is obvious that Julia Ducourneau herself is looking for an answer along with her heroes. And her Titan is much more alive. Let’s see how the universe evolves. . .
The film tells about a young vegetarian Justine, who enters a veterinary school, upon arrival in which she is forced to undergo an “initiation rite” – eating raw meat. After overpowering herself and performing a ritual, she realizes that she cannot resist the growing, uncontrollable desire to consume human flesh.
“Raw” is shocking, provocative, tearing all the templates of cinema. The film will not appeal to everyone, as the scenes of cannibalism present in it cause genuine disgust and horror. To understand the director's plan is possible only by overcoming this vile shell.
The plot is based on the well-known story of growing up, puberty and the awakening of sexuality. Throughout the film, we observe the formation of the main character’s personality, trying to adapt to a changing body and life outside the comfort zone.
An important stage of self-acceptance is the awareness of your body, new needs and desires. In open hostility to her sister, Justine’s emancipation manifests itself, experiencing a painful “hunger” at every new sensation.
“Raw” attracts attention not so much with the plot as with the presentation and author’s style, frightening and at the same time fascinating.
6 out of 10
The film tells the story of a seemingly simple, pretty student who chose the profession of a veterinarian. She's a staunch vegetarian. But youth is the thing...
During a student party, all freshmen undergo a bloody rite of eating raw meat. Naturally, our heroine is also involved. Then she gets sick. A day later, a vegetarian has a so-called “return to roots” (this is when vegetarians and vegans become meat eaters).
And then the thirst for blood and fresh meat turns into a certain addiction. And this addiction takes on threatening forms for her and her loved ones.
Verdict: A bold film in choosing a theme. The plot constantly tries to shock the viewer with sadism and manifestation of psychological deviations. The film is not devoid of French charm and has an expressive picture that catches the eye. Special praise deserves the original script and cinematography of Ruben Impence.
Overall impression: It is quite difficult to recommend an author's film, either it comes or not. Films of this category are not aimed at the mass audience, i.e. it will not be possible to sit and have fun. However, arthouse tapes carry philosophical overtones, the viewer does not just take cinematic food, he eats it, swallowing it again and again, as they say wisely!
About what? In one veterinary school there is a tradition - to conduct a ritual of eating raw meat. A young vegetarian Justine, having overcome herself, passes this test and realizes that she cannot resist the growing desire to eat raw meat.
Horrors come to the fore from the genre mix. As you know, the heroine, having tasted a piece of meat, begins to eat chicken, and then her classmates, looks a lot crypous, strange and not very appetizing. I would even say disgusting if you have a weak stomach or do not like bloody movies. The second genre is drama. The film neatly brings us to the end, telling us why the heroine has mental problems (as it turned out, not her alone). Here we can say brightened up the horrors, pulling everything into a tragic note. Juggling these two genres only plays into the hands of the film, as the sad moments ennoble the film and give it a philosophy of life.
“Raw” is an unusual, strange movie, but somehow attractive and unsettling. Such a film will be remembered for a long time for its original plot and candid scenes.
7 out of 10
We are talking about a girl Justine (Gerance Marillier), who is sent by her parents after her older sister Alexia (Ella Rumpf) to a veterinary college. She, following the traditions of the family, adheres to vegetarianism, but it so happens that during the ritual of initiation of beginners in the school, you have to try a piece of meat for the first time in your life. This event triggers a process of both mental and physiological changes.
Justine first suffers from irritations on the body, carefully combing them and turning them into wounds, then suffers from an incessant feeling of hunger. The irrepressible desire to eat meat takes up all thoughts, and it would be okay to mean raw chicken or pork, no, the girl is hungry for human beings. Her older sister shares this craving for cannibalism.
Raw is not a movie for everyone. For the most part, due to the fact that Ducorno brings the image of body horror to the absolute: close-ups of body parts, blood, “dirty”, an emphasis on audio effects (for example, the viewer can hear the heroine combing the body, as described above). But if you endure a couple of initial moments, the picture will play with new colors, immersing a person in a special atmosphere.
If the thought of the confrontation of vegans with meat-eaters creeps in, this is not close. Rather, everything Ducornaud depicts is a metaphor for growing up and accepting the true self. Justine lived in a cocoon, following home warnings, and independent life in college served as an awakening, the girl turns into a butterfly. And it is not about beauty, but at the moment when you actually see your own image in the mirror.
The atmosphere, built together with the camera work of Ruben Impence, the music of Jim Williams, sound design and sometimes ragged editing, does not let go. Ducorn deftly immerses the viewer in the attraction, where skillfully demonstrates the fear of adulthood debutante Gerance Marillier, the young actress manages to attract the attention of the viewer. “You will find your way out,” says Father Justine.
And when you watch again, you also realize that Raw is not only about horror, thriller or drama, it is also about black humor. The movie is full of it, there are moments you really laugh at.
It is very interesting now to see the scale of Julia Ducorno’s fantasy in the upcoming Titan, which is almost No. 1 in expected projects. Plus in the new film also plays Gerance Marillier, and her character will be called Justine again.
Many may think that the debut feature-length film by Julia DuCourneau is purely a provocation to elicit a nauseating reflex, but this is not true. It's too simple.
"Raw" (or "Serious", or "Taste of flesh", according to other variants of the name) - a kind of variation of the "novel of education", in which the teenager goes through painful stages on the way to growing up and finding his own "I".
A young vegetarian Justine, following the family tradition, goes to study at a veterinary school, where her sister also studies. The figure of the mentor is defined and now the girl has to learn many things: how to survive in the environment of riotous students, defend (or reveal) their boundaries, reconcile (or fight) with circumstances, even when the dominant circumstance is food obsession. But if in the “novel of education” the process of becoming a teenager often ends in positive results, then DuCourneau gradually plunges the heroine into hell, using techniques that also affect the viewer in a repulsive way: everyone involved should become older and more experienced, and pain, like disgust, is a side effect of personal growth. Justine, being a child prodigy of veterinary science, at the same time knows nothing about himself and about socialization in the world of peers. This part of her life is incognito, like meat food to her body: it exists physically, but does not penetrate. Now she herself will have to settle inside ( in the gut) of the youth conveyor, and the proposed environment will digest or spit out the heroine - it will become known only after all the tests are completed.
However, it is not surprising that some of the film seemed or still seem empty, devoid of subtext, because the “wrapper” in this plot has an extremely non-lippery appearance. No matter how aesthetically beautiful these or other scenes look, the degree of immersion in the material is determined directly by the perception of the viewer. If the viewer is not ready for such an author’s presentation (and is not very touching about the topic of cannibalism), then an attempt to understand what he saw is likely to be unsuccessful, and justifying what is happening by his provocation is the only correct definition. Ducourneau does not hesitate to use metaphorically bright visual means to achieve the desired state in the frame and in the head of the beholder. The bogus blood at the initiation acquires authenticity in subsequent episodes, and any slippery hints or direct outlets for physicality become triggers with taste and smell, perceived as a command to action - eat so that hunger goes away. And Justine eats, and it's not just Justine that eats, and hunger keeps going. Hunger is the main character of the picture, the all-powerful lord-spy, appearing suddenly, but always invisible and cautious, like energy that can push to horror and escapes at the moment of resistance to it, perhaps under the tongue or eyelids, until the next urge to touch the living and the dead as food.
Julia Ducourneau defiantly and boldly broke into the world of modern cinema, not afraid of the ambiguous reaction of the public, which subsequently bore fruit: at the time of writing the review, the Russian (and not only Russian) rental is waiting for the release of her next work - awarded the Golden Palm "Titan". How far this planned madness will go is unknown to anyone, but sometimes not knowing is winning. So we usually weave a delicacy off a rich table: the first try is a promising push to wait for the endless euphoria of taste buds. So we are usually weaved: life is nothing more than an inexhaustible food chain, devouring and reproducing itself in all kinds of variations, to the loss of light, darkness and consciousness.
8 out of 10
Honestly, I watched the movie after Julius Ducorneau’s Titan won at Cannes. The film tells about a vegetarian girl who ironically falls in love with the taste of meat, and she wants more and more. But its need does not stop at animals, but goes immediately to human meat, to raw meat.
Raw is a dynamic body-horror from the French director Julia Ducorno. Very good debut for a woman, and we can say it is a triumph in French cinema.
The film is similar to the work of Trier, Lynch and Jodorowski. I think that's enough to understand what's going on. The film is also very contrasting, in one frame, some things happen, in another frame, completely different things that do not lend themselves to similarity with early frames. The film seems to change the atmosphere with each new scene, because of this you wait for the final with the question “What will happen in the end?” and I will tell you that the result surprised me.
The film is recommended to all those who are familiar with the work of the above-mentioned directors. Atmospheric horror. Not a bad debut.
The film came to me in one of the thrash collections and, after reading a brief description and facts from the category: ' Viewers vomited and fell without feeling into the vomit masses' I could not approach it for a long time, making a note for myself: ' black'. And not really.
Long plans, colors and gloomy atmosphere, the film reminds 'Blade Runner 2049' Villeneuve and this, from a visual point of view, the picture is amazing. It creates a mood of detachment and leisurely reflection (that in the presence of cannibalism in the plot is not unimportant - with such a topic, you do not really want to go hand in hand). Although with all the positive impressions, the scenes are often too long: 'Well, the director can not show a five-minute scene of brooding smoking in real time', thought the naive me.
From the plot point of view, the film is also good, it logically and consistently leads the viewer from the tie with the meatball to the post-bloody finale. Without unnecessary digressions, without unopened arches, we are told step by step not only the story of the formation of the main character, but also reveal the context in which she lives, literally in a few elegant strokes describing the whole family. And that's impressive, because it requires a little bit of skill. Well, yes - I am one of those for whom the denouement was a twist - surprise, delight, applause.
In the dry residue we have fights, drinking, dermatitis, sexual acts, depilation and urination - integral parts of our daily life, veterinary medicine and cannibalism, of course, are not so common among the common people, but also occur. They add entourage to the film, not everyone is pleasant visually, but where to get away from it. Disgusting? Be brave to rewind, I assure you, and without them in the film there is something to see.
Do you remember the moment when your worldview began to change and you realized that you were becoming an adult? I remember. It’s like life hitting you in the face, but you’re grateful to be able to see it in all its glory and happy with your new strength – the power to be an adult, and therefore to be responsible, accepting and able to love. In the physical sense comes the understanding of your desires and the feeling of your body, the ability to say to the world: 'I am!'
The film ' Raw' is the complete opposite of what I wrote. He sets himself the main task not to convey anything to the viewer, but to cause disgust, outrage, pass mediocre for great, and, I must say, he copes with it well.
So in order:
- Plot. Absolutely illogical. I was very surprised to learn that the director is a woman, because only a man who knew absolutely nothing about female psychology could show the growing up of a girl so unbelievably and dirty. When you listen to the dialogue, it seems that you are slowly becoming stupid.
- Characters. They look like dolls with glass eyes that do not cause sympathy and empathy. It seems that they were created only to annoy the viewer: their actions and words are immoral, stupid and have nothing to do with reality. From the very beginning, they show how they should be treated: these are students of the Higher Education Institution who look like animals, and a gay neighbor who does not respect personal boundaries and is apparently only able to mate, and a sister who will stick her back in a knife worse than the most ardent enemy.
- Obsessive, almost abnormal desire to shock: 'Ah, look, a girl licks the eye socket of a guy, but here we show you rectal procedures at a horse, we are so unusual!'
- The general scenery of the film. It's dirty. And I don't mean bloodthirsty scenes, but the most common ones: initiation, allergies, doctor's appointments, lectures. As if you are in an apartment where hardened slobs live, the air is very stuffy, smelling something stale, feet stick to the floor, the feeling that only touching the wall, you can not wash. The film has no aesthetic value at all.
So what do we end up with? A mediocre, disgusting film that presents itself as something profound. In general, nothing new: if the picture turned out to be an outright disappointment, pretend that it is intended, that only the chosen one will understand the hidden meaning.
Yes, there is such a gum for the brain, hidden under the guise of psychological drama.
Do you think that teenagers’ lives change when they enter adulthood? Someone goes to college and moves to a hostel, someone goes to study in another city. In the absence of parental care or, for someone, parental control, teenagers build their lives in which their personal rules apply.
Justine is a vegetarian, not by choice, but rather by her parents. She decided to study at a veterinary college. Not the most suitable place for a vegetarian - many animals, and with dead animals you have to deal. And her sister, Alexia, who also studies at this college, does not very adhere to the rules established by her parents regarding meat eating.
The life of a student is full of temptations, especially during the initiation period, when undergraduates arrange tests for the incoming students. Who knew that the eaten kidneys of a rabbit will turn the world of a young vegetarian, and at the same time in the most unexpected way: Justine’s passion was raw meat. From that moment, her life and the plot of the film are radically turned around.
There's enough creepy scenes in the movie. A lot of blood and meat. Especially creepy is the first experience of consciously eating raw meat - not rabbit buds at the initiation, but something more serious. Not everyone can stand such a spectacle. Yes, and judging by the reviews and news from the premiere ' Raw' at various film festivals, not all endured.
Vegetarianism in the film acts as the restrictions that parents and all adults set on the child, and meat-eating is the breaking of these restrictions. Moreover, as follows from the film, uncontrolled scrapping can acquire truly terrible turns. And the secret of vegetarianism in the Justine family is also there. So vegetarianism is not just a metaphor.
I don’t know if I should recommend this film. If you want to test your patience, you can watch. However, I would not say that this film is absolutely creepy or nasty.
I can’t remember what kind of weird movie I saw a couple of years ago. I don’t know how it came to be on the list ' see ' I didn’t add it. But it was definitely worth remembering in the middle of a cold, gloomy summer. And now - before the next academic/working year - it is all the more interesting to immerse yourself in such a story: growing up, college, dedication. . .
Young Justine moves to the dormitory of the veterinary college, where her older sister Alexia also studies. The whole Justine family is a total vegetarian, and if God forbid in a cafe, one of them accidentally gets even a microscopic piece of meat - there will be a scandal, and his mother will arrange it. It seems that there is a slight degree of tyranny: Justine knows that she will not die if she suddenly comes across an animal fiber - it is not an allergy, but a lifestyle. However, tradition is a tradition, and the girl tries to adhere to it when it turns out at the initiation that it is necessary to eat a piece of raw animal flesh (not a spoiler - see KinoPoisk abstract).
Medical school is a rather tough topic, and, as Alexia suggests, there is no need to show weakness. So, quenching, Justine swallows an unidentified piece - and, barely holding his feet, leaves the place of initiation. It should be noted that the first night in the dormitory was more than ' cheerful': leaving complete ruin in the rooms of beginners, undergrads made a rather frightening acquaintance, almost dragging out all the beds. This, of course, was followed by a party, although in general everything looked gloomy - and left an unpleasant oppressive aftertaste. Of course, it is even scarier to enter the new school year in a new place, where in the first hours it turns out that you will not be given rest: strange & #39; grandfather' orders, frightening rules, not particularly friendly teachers - gentle Justine copes as she can, but she, of course, is not at ease. Especially considering that her sister does not plan to mess with her - and almost immediately snaps. Well, you just have to survive it, like any other first year in any other new place.
Justine becomes ill after communion with raw meat, so you have to see a doctor. The theme of physicality immediately pops up – so painful for teenage girls (and not only for girls). Any teenager gets to know himself not only through interests / hobbies / communication, but also through comparing his external & #39; I & #39; with people around him, through embedding himself as a person with a certain appearance and physique in the outside world. It's not about Justine per se - it's just the doctor making comments that make you remember how cruel society can treat ' not like' Having come to her senses, the main character understands that she cannot eat ordinary food - she becomes ill, nauseous, hunger does not go away. Maybe it's nervous, maybe it's a reaction to a hard initiation. Whatever the case, it all clears up when Justine reaches for raw meat in the fridge. From this point, it seems, the most interesting events in the film begin - and the most important things in the girl's life. . .
Growing up is what it is.
Everything begins to change - and well-being, and self-awareness, and attitude to the world around. Justine seems to become a completely different person, and it is unclear whether this is dictated by what is happening inside her, or by circumstances and events affecting her from the outside. More likely, both things matter. The only question is, will these radical changes go so far as to become irreversible? Few people are seriously ready to change absolutely - it is frightening and makes you stop. However, Justine does not seem to notice that something important is really happening to her.
She is no longer timid, shy, or meek—the stronger her hunger, the more aggressive she becomes. She can easily push her sister, get drunk, behave defiantly. The question is that she has absolutely no idea what is happening to her and whether it can be influenced. Familiar? Hormones, yes. Most people go through this at a certain age.
Julia Ducorno in her film - not the thriller, not the drama-allegory - explores the stage of growing up and self-awareness. Choosing an atypical angle, it passes through the corners of topics such as
The confrontation of older and younger sisters in the family;
The tyranny of the mother, which of course has a logical basis.
acceptance of one’s physicality, which may also undergo sudden and unexpected changes;
Compare yourself with ' the rest '
Attraction to peers;
acclimatization of a teenager in a new unusual habitat zone;
Changes in behavior and character against the backdrop of a tipping point between immaculate naive youth and conscious open maturity.
All of these topics are essential if you are a teenager and don’t know how to deal with them.
And now Ducorno through the theme of a special diet - choosing the frightening craving of the main character for raw meat - comes from a different angle to the topic of growing up, but still talks about simple and important things. What's also interesting is that Justine seems to have been growing up like a greenhouse kid, and going to veterinary college is like confronting a reality that she never had before. The effect of such a collision, of course, unpredictable - and therefore interesting. Whether the main character consumes meat or the rules of existence in another community, it affects her in a certain way. It seems that with such an appetite you can relate to a new life, which she has not yet seen. . .
As a result, we get a very atmospheric and pleasant film (of course, there are a couple of moments...) about how a young girl changes - and how she reacts to it. In fact, in 'Cheese' there is not a single unnecessary detail: everything is neatly assembled into an ambiguous picture, beautifully coiled, checked to the minutes. And even if we are talking about ordinary students, there is a place for rejection, cruelty, and manipulation.
So, Happy Knowledge Day?
About the horrors of the film ' Raw' (aka 'Taste of flesh', in the original 'Grave' - ' Important, serious' with fr.) not only wrote lazy, and I just one of them, so I will not. I will only say that this is not the most disgusting of the existing films in terms of the image of all different things. Moreover, behind this 'decor' even seems to see the meaning.
Everyone saw in the picture the themes of growing up, maturation, sexuality, etc. In one of my eyes got all of the above, and in the other (the one with cinematic strabismus) something else.
Let us assume that the lust for flesh is growing up and the temptations that accompany it. Then vegetarianism (imposed by parents, aha) is an artificial restriction designed to protect children from the forbidden fetus 39. Which, well known, is sweet. So it turns out an opus about how mom-dad, instead of explaining to her sexually mature child where it is good and where it is not very, invent various kinds of bababaks and other evil things in the hope that she will not repeat the mistakes of her ancestors. The poor girl, on the other hand, has to figure out for herself what to do (raise your hands, those who were taught to swim by throwing into the middle of the river / lake). I have to pay tribute to the elder, she at least tries to help her sister.
The film is worth spending time on. I want to scold only for some unreasonably drawn-out scenes (His Majesty the Timekeeping, apparently, requires).
Moral: An apple doesn’t fall far from an apple tree unless you push it.
You know, if you compare festival movies and thrash, which is filmed by all sorts of marginals, you understand that there is no special difference. Why, for example, the Green Elephant Baskova many scold, called treshe, but then these same people admire the creations of Ozon, Noe, Trier or others, included in the list of nominees of the Cannes Film Festival? It's all about pitching. The same shit can be shot in different ways and from the result will be either shit on the floor or a metaphor to the existential crisis of the protagonist.
Raw Ducorno I boldly refer to the category of thrash, somewhere on the level of puking dolls, Salo, Born and further on the list. Only if these paintings used quite understandable ways of expressing the ideas of their creators, Raw repels with its arrogant attitude to the viewer and deliberate use of those techniques that, in fact, provided the picture with the Grand Prix. Inappropriate scenes of urination, vomiting, hair removal in the bikini zone; LGBT theme is also raised (actually not); tightly repulsed characters; a world detached from reality in which the devil knows what is happening. All, the program is at least completed, now it remains a matter of small: write a script.
As a result, the central theme of Raw is the future veterinarian’s obsession with human flesh. And, basically, that's it. There is no more plot, everything else - those who have managed to fill the edge of the abominations listed above, their functionality is simply filling the timekeeping. If Julia Ducornau worked for the cheap outrage of the public, who still can not get used to the fact that in Cannes all the time show nightmares (or no one goes there twice?), then OK, the goal is achieved. Only this Raw does not cease to be a second-rate treshak, albeit with a palm branch. The semantic load is zero, and even if some expert found meaning in the film, the message is devalued by a plot twist in the finale.
The newly released House that Jack Trier built has been discussed for months and made to all possible tops, because Trier, unlike Ducorno, does not speculate on topics that are actively pedaled by the jury of the Cannes Film Festival, but creates really “his” films. Yes, Trier’s latest films (except Melakhnolia) are purely sharpened art houses with meat, intestines, perversions and pseudophilosophical delirium, but there is an aesthetic in all this, you can find something of your own. In Nimformanka - a specific style of storytelling, in Jack - very cool scenes of cruelty and violence.
And Raw is a dummy film that faded into oblivion as soon as all sorts of passions subsided.
The theme of growing up is so popular in cinema that most viewers have lost any interest in watching another drama or romantic comedy about a young man or a girl who first learned the taste of adulthood. To achieve the desired effect, you need a rich imagination and a good pitch, which, with proper success, will leave the masses under a rich impression, as happened with the psychological horror "Raw".
Justine, a young girl from a family of convinced vegetarians, enters the first year of the prestigious veterinary academy. However, like all freshmen, she has to go through the rite of initiation and initialization by eating raw meat. Overpowered, Justine goes through the rite. But after only a small piece of Justine can not overcome the craving for raw meat, until one day he does not taste human flesh.
Game of actors Usually from horror movies you expect a classic set of images from typical heroes. But it is worth considering that Raw is a European cinema, and independent, and therefore more should be expected from the actors. Actually, Guerance Marillier perfectly coped with the role of Justine, especially with the transformation of her character from a quiet modest girl who prefers to stay away from the surrounding events, into a freedom-loving and uncontrollable girl who is ready to eat you (literally) only to get what she wants.
Directorship In fact, the French director Julia Ducorno shot a unique project, in which she immediately revealed the theme through the prism of the horror genre. At the beginning of the film, Justine is used to living under the close supervision of her parents, who monitor even her nutrition, until she inadvertently did not eat even a small piece of meat. However, this very piece of meat frees the heroine from her parental chains, giving her unlimited freedom. The tone of the film changes, and the cinema is filled with endless parties, alcohol, unrestrained fun with a break from study. But Raw is a horror movie. Therefore, Julia Ducorno begins to dilute the atmosphere with eerie bouts of obsession with raw meat, about which Justine dreams. Initial pranks are soon replaced by serious crimes, which means that relatives may suffer and tragedies will not pass. As a result, Julia Ducorno came out with a lively mix of psychological drama about freedom outside parental supervision and a bloody horror about family secrets, for which innocent people will have to pay.
Scenario What do you expect from a French horror movie, and cannibalism? However, the same Julia Ducorno shot not just a horror film, but a horror film with intrigue and an unexpected outcome. In the story, the main character Justine from a family of, at first glance, ordinary convinced vegetarians, enters the veterinary academy, where her older sister Alexia is already studying. During the initiation ceremony, Justine is forced to eat a piece of raw rabbit, after which she first has a rash on her body, and then there is an insatiable feeling of hunger. There is only one thing that can help her: meat, plenty of meat. But neither the steaks from the university canteen, nor the kebab from the roadside cafe, nor the raw chicken fillet give the magical feeling of satiety that she gets when she secretly eats ... (pam-pam) accidentally cut off her older sister’s finger. But the sister, who has the same problem, has long found a peculiar way to regularly satisfy her hunger "without unnecessary hassle." It is clear that in such a scenario, tragedy cannot be avoided. All that remains is her time. With all this, the success of the script lies in the fact that Julia Ducorno even here comes up with a “logical” outcome, explaining the reason for everything that is happening, but at the same time leaving many new questions.
Result Honestly, I didn’t have much hope, but I was pleasantly surprised that Raw would prove to be a very worthy dramatic horror film with deep undertones. It is hoped that the world will see more such films, though not necessarily with human meat in the spotlight.
8 out of 10
Frenchwoman Julia Ducorno in his debut feature-length picture Raw very skillfully and daringly plays the process of growing up.
A family of well-established vegetarians (this is important) sends the youngest daughter to study at a veterinary college, where her sister has been studying for many years. Together with Justine (Gerence Maril), we find ourselves in a student dormitory, where the plot of the film originates. A plot that develops so rapidly and at the same time harmoniously that we do not have time to notice how the metaphorical line between something acceptable and amenable to at least some explanation and something completely out of the ordinary is erased.
The avid vegetarian finally gets her cherished piece of meat. And the abundance of blood and corpses on the screen begins to increase in direct proportion to the time spent in front of this screen.
Here the hunger that the main character experiences in relation to human flesh is equivalent to that hunger, the cause of which lies in human nature itself. A person is inherently weak and able to fall into dependence on another person or feelings experienced in the process of communicating with him. One simply begins to "eat" the other, finally destroying it.
Raw is a great example of a genetic relationship where heredity is inevitable. This is quite true, only slightly stained with blood, which, by the way, does not deprive it of its deep meaning for a minute, the story of inner struggle and final acceptance of oneself. At the end of the day, it’s a very realistic picture, and when you look at it, it’s like someone is actually trying to bite your hand, or worse, grab a piece of your cheek.
The wolf still looks into the forest, but too fast.
In fact, many questions remain unsolved... What is this crazy allergy that wakes up the “appetite of a young lady”? Why does her sister let her down when no one expects it? And finally, where do vegetarian parents look when they send two daughters to such a temptation, because they know for sure what this will lead to. Their coldness of behavior suggests certain thoughts: they do not care about the way the result of which is known.
Perhaps the young director Julia Ducourneau decided to show these scenes for a more sophistication of the arthouse horror plot. Well, "not in vain" say critics. But for me, I was a little overdone. The scene, where the older sister clearly shows a bad example of the younger, confirms philosophical thoughts about “dependence on their elder loved ones.” This is far from KNOW-HOW!
But still, what if the path of the main character would not have stumbled upon such contradictory events in the veterinary school and the provocateur sister.
6 out of 10
I came across this picture quite by accident, I was looking for some absolutely typical horror movie, but in the end I found Raw. Yes, the works of the Venice Film Festival are mostly not designed for easy viewing with popcorn and in principle I was ready for this, but what I saw in the film did not give me peace for a very long time.
Did I like the movie? Probably, few people can answer this question immediately after viewing, so for a long time I could not understand whether I liked it or not. Now I know exactly what I liked. After all, this picture is not an easy typical horror film, which scares constant screamers, suspense, etc. This work has a very viscous atmosphere that sucks you and after 20 minutes you can not be taken off the screen. This one has a very pleasant and charming visual range, and no matter what anyone says for me personally, a very interesting story story behind the development of which is very interesting to watch.
Yes, among the shortcomings can be identified some bloody or very unpleasant scenes that cause disgust, but even they look very harmonious in the exposition of this picture.
If we talk about acting, then I can not single out anyone specifically, we can single out except that the main role performer Gerence Marillier and a wonderful scene of breaking in her performance, when watching which immediately pops up in my head the notorious film Danny Boyle.
Summing up the above, we can say that this picture is not for everyone and not for mass viewing, even avid fans of horror films it is unlikely to like. I don't even know who to recommend him to. Should I watch it? Definitely yes! Then decide for yourself whether you like it or not.
It is difficult to call a horror film. Rather - a heavy psychological thriller, great pressure on the psyche, besides - not always justified.
There is a fantastic thread of genetic predisposition to cannibalism. Actors do not have Lösch-Nichen syndrome (a genetic disease whose main symptom is self-cannibalism). The theme is thirst. The moments when it is opened and the conditions necessary for its manifestation. According to various theories and hypotheses, cannibalism contains schizophrenia at its base, unless it is a characteristic trait of a tribe or a way of survival. Here schizophrenia can have some genes that will be passed on to offspring, can cause predisposition, but this disease is not hereditary.
The idea of the film. There is a recollection of Armin Meiwes, who made cannibal announcements about his desire to be killed and eaten. He found a volunteer. Which became Bernd Brandes. In Raw, the author shows more “live eating”, and death is presented as a forced measure rather.
The film does not duplicate other sources that talk about cannibalism. And although the film does not reach in any way to the "Silence of the Lambs", "Hannibal", but has differences in the greater transmission of the psychological state from the "first and a half" person (not with the help of the stories of the heroine, but with the help of the transmission of her torments, doubts by integral images, shown more by physiological techniques than psychological) than in the above-mentioned films, in which the emphasis is placed on the contrast of man-society and the disclosure of roles, rather than experiences, than firmly entrenched on the positions of the film art-house. If you are looking for a film with a more clearly emerging storyline and idea that depicts cannibalism as a method of testing the weakness of different people under threat of death, then the film Hunger by Stephen Hentges (2009) is more suitable, although it seems somewhat simple to me, if you compare it with Raw.
Personally, I am going to read for comparison in the framework of the given topic with “Delicates” (1991), “Eater” (1991), the Danish “Green Butchers” (2003). From literature - "Dream of Mind", "Culinary Book of a Cannibal", "Feast" (interesting for consideration filing "Food, like eros, is pure in its nature"), "Innocent sacrifice", "Modest offer". I'm sure the list goes on.
Separately, I want to note the freshness of the presentation of young Ducorno causing their awkward situations, as well as images of the need for entertainment, ritualism for people. The film seemed raw in poorly worked out ramifications of the events of the plot: the promised claims to intrigue are not disclosed properly, not all characters and situations that are highlighted by individual frames are disclosed.
Personally, I did not feel delighted with the film. Maybe because the art house with a squeaky perception, maybe because the plot and the idea is weak, maybe because it does not cause a variety in response, or maybe because after watching it you do not feel that you have learned something new, or switching the waves of the psyche, or any questions over which you wanted to further reflect - usually such films are weak and narrow. I can appreciate the good work on it, especially for the novice Ducorno. I recommend watching for those for whom two conditions are necessarily met: the first is the absence of hemophobia (and homophobia too), the second is the desire to study specifically one of the products of the art house.
6 out of 10
The film, which received a prize at the Cannes Festival and many positive reviews from film critics.
This is the first feature-length film by French screenwriter and director Julia Ducornaud.
The plot tells about a young girl who entered a veterinary school. School has its own crazy rules: noisy parties, unconventional entertainment and forcing beginners to eat raw meat. Being a vegetarian, the student is forced to undergo an initiation rite, after which she can no longer control the growing desire to eat flesh.
Critics are delighted, viewers are nauseated while Guerence Marillier on screen eats sugar chicken. All the excitement surrounding the picture looks like an attempt to gulp fresh air in a smoky horror factory. However, it is difficult to call this horror as such. This is the same horror as “Extirpation” in 2012 or “Neon Demon” in 2016, which, by the way, also visited Cannes.
Raw is a veiled tale of how a girl becomes a woman, turning from a pure vegetarian into a carnivorous beast. “First Blood” distorts the heroine beyond recognition (if you follow the whole formation, you will see the difference in behavior at the beginning of the picture and at the end). The film is full of metaphors and that’s what I want to call “intelligent horror.” It makes you think, look for answers to questions, and you want to discuss it. Perhaps that’s why the film impressed critics.
Justine is a first-year student at the veterinary school, where her sister Alexia is studying at senior courses, and previously his parents graduated from the girls. Another important fact is that the girl is vegetarian. However, at the ceremony of initiation as a student, she is forced to eat a raw rabbit kidney. Everything would be fine, but soon Justine will give up vegetarianism, switching to meat, and then completely on human flesh.
==Discussion==
The French-Belgian film Raw by Julia Ducorneau, being an indie parable, skillfully masquerades as a “cannibal” horror. Despite the quite linear narrative, the film presents a metaphor for growing up and awakening sexuality. And in it you can also see the parallels between the individual “I” and the surrounding society, where each of the elements has its own system of values and coordinates. The eccentric-grotesque (and this is to say the least) narrative in an unsightly shell actually tells about the breakup of the personality - during the film, the viewer observes how not only the character and behavior of the heroine changes, but also her appearance, from the cloaked modest to the predator. And shocking episodes are designed only to focus on the characters draped in the plot. But even if you omit the allegory of the narrative, Ducorno, although not always neatly - some scenes are sewn with white threads among themselves - glues the application of the narrative, so that it comes out as a whole picture capable of tickling nerves, which is actually the main duty of horror as a genre. Saturating the film with naturalism, sadistic scenes of initiations of freshmen and even the express gay scene (in the plot, Justine’s roommate is openly gay), the director deliberately plunges the viewer into a state of discomfort, in which the main character plunges, gradually leading everything to a certain harmony, that even the finale does not seem such a shocking plot twist.
==Notes in the margins==
Gerence Marillier, who plays Justine, is very similar to Maisie Williams, who in turn portrays Arya Stark in Game of Thrones. This similarity added when watching involuntary piquancy.
The feature film Raw is about how a modest vegetarian girl Justine entered the veterinary faculty, where her older sister Alexia has been studying for many years. During the initiation, Justine had to try a raw rabbit kidney and then she realized that “meat is one love!”
But, as you may have guessed, this is not a happy ending. This is just the beginning of a defiantly naturalistic teenage drama about growing up, misunderstanding, self-assertion and dementia control. It would be worthwhile to take a closer look at this sector of French cinema – all this is so on the edge, you even wonder what kind of change the French are preparing for. I'm not even talking about the immediate central, the outside. Seeing the local initiation to the institute, Americans who sacredly honor such stupid traditions would probably raise an eyebrow themselves. Building with butchery, students splashed from head to toe with blood, sitting in this way in class, and in the evenings eating vodka glasses at parties and playing “bottle”, doused with buckets of paint (future patients-animals do not envy!). It is really not easy to surprise such people with something beyond normal, such as biting off the cheeks and dog dancing over a corpse. You know, they'll grin, they'll move on. Although this chaos, which is around, that in the epicenter of the plot, helps not to sit with a basin for alarming urges in the stomach (some, of course, will be useful), but just to observe the usual student life in a little surreal conditions. It seems that the heroine Beatrice Dahl from the notorious arthouse melodrama “Whatever day, then trouble” still did not strangle and she managed to curb her animal-passionate impulses of the mantis. And Justine and Alexia are her offspring, yet only comprehending the features of their appetite and cannibal diet, which the author Julia Ducorneau obviously compares with the more familiar temptations of students, such as alcoholism, sexaholism and drug addiction.
A very unusual movie with a very unusual presentation. What is it about? It's about animal instincts that we try to suppress. Honestly, I was surprised that the film became a nominee in 4 nominations at the Cannes Film Festival, in the end even receiving one statuette. No doubt, the film is strong, but in my opinion, not for the masses and such a high appreciation of the work of the young director-debutant Julia Ducoreau can not but please. Without a doubt, considering that this is Julia’s first painting, her work only calls for aviation.
Shortly for the script. Justin enters a veterinary school, where there is a rite of initiation of beginners, one of the conditions of which is the intake of raw meat. Everything would be fine, for the sake of realizing yourself in society, you can do anything, but there is a problem, Justin is a vegetarian and it is extremely difficult for her to fulfill this point of the ritual. After eating raw meat, she feels a change in her consciousness, she can no longer contain herself before the temptation of meat. The ending of the film is quite expected and explains the whole idea of this picture.
For Gerence Marillier ' Raw' - this is the first serious role in life and as for an 18-year-old girl looks good in the frame, given what a non-standard film she had to dream. The rest of the characters, including the heroine’s parents, sister and boyfriend in the frame look harmonious, but are not particularly memorable.
I would like to mention the work of the cameraman and the composer as they did a great job. Both the picture and the musical range are exactly what this picture needs.
As a result, an unusual film about strange gastronomic needs. I recommend you to watch
At some point I started to feel ashamed of watching some movies. And I realized that this was wrong and decided to correct it by watching movies on the edge, like this. So if you are looking for something new and expand your perception in cinema, then this film is for you. Well, what to say and really creation is not for a wide audience. The trailer is intriguing, but does not reveal all the madness of this picture.
Justine, a young student, enters the first year of university as a veterinarian. Her older sister Alexia is already studying there. On the first night, Justine is waiting for the beginning of the initiation, which continues for several days. Through this “inhuman” experience, Justine will discover her true nature.
Julia Ducorno is the director of this film, her filmography is not that small, it is almost not, the same can be said about the information about her. But judging by this job, she's not easy. The most difficult thing in this work is to throw away all the abomination and disgust from many moments and look for the main idea. I saw in this film a clear call to be myself. Whatever you do, you'll come to where it all started. Because these savage initiation assignments have forced the gentle and unfailing Justine to give up her principle, because her sister told her that if she refused to undergo the initiation, she would become a scum and a white sheep. Justine was played by young actress Guerence Marillier at the time of filming she was 17-18 years old (according to my calculations). For her, it shows the first full-length, a strong beginning. Görens perfectly conveyed the whole spectrum of Justina’s psychological change, thoughts did not arise about the improbability of what she saw, maybe of course this is a case of “shock therapy”, but it was in this case that she coped perfectly.
I want to add that the film is really shocking moments. Therefore, if you have sensitive nerves and digestive tract, it is better not to start watching it. Of course, I will not review it, much less recommend it. But again, the film is aimed at the viewer who can read between the lines.
The directorial debut in a big movie is very successful for Julia Ducorno. Her film at various film festivals amazed many and continues to amaze to this day. Personally, it seems to me that the definition of the horror genre for this project is not quite suitable, because the structure of the narrative is built on a completely different one, reflecting different feelings and impressions.
In the story, a young vegetarian girl enters a veterinary school, in which she had to undergo the process of initiation. She had to eat a small piece of raw meat, after which strange and frightening things began to happen to her. The girl began to feel an insatiable thirst for raw meat, which turned into an obsession and eventually everything turned into a real and terrifying cannibalism.
I immediately want to note that the film causes a contradictory perception, which is constantly tossed between emotional disgust, exciting interest and a certain sense of sexual arousal.
The film constantly emphasizes the innocent and supposedly accidental nudity of some parts of the body, emphasizing the constant presence of sex in the frame. But in addition, the picture reflects all the abomination and disgust for today’s realities. Immoral youth and the absence of any proper decency or cultural education. The complete degradation of modern society and the decay of moral values. All this is emphasized in the course of the plot, where blatant hazing in an educational institution is accepted by the school management. Strange customs and humiliating processes of initiation of beginners amaze with their lowness and idiocy. Of course, the European tolerance in the film is fully demonstrated in all its perversion. Teachers, in order not to offend the feelings of C students, deliberately underestimate the grades of excellent students and, in extreme cases, for disobedience, are ready to exclude them from school. Personally, it turned me inside out and struck me to the core! And the topic of equal treatment of gays finally killed. It turns out that gay people are not placed in a men’s dormitory, but in girls’ rooms, not paying attention to gender differences and the necessary intimacy. Therefore, the film absolutely naturally reflects the moments when the girl returns to herself, and there in all frolic doves and nothing can be done about it.
The school itself looks horrific. Constant dirt and scattered things, painted walls and soiled premises of the educational institution. And the worst thing is that for everyone it is natural and ordinary. Everyone lives like this and is educated like this. And about the constant parties with the use of alcohol and drugs, it is generally meaningless to say. If these are European values, burn them all with fire! Disgusting and terrible! Therefore, amid all this mess, the story of a young cannibal girl looks like a breath of fresh air in the midst of the disgusting stink of modernity.
The director's production is, of course, well done. Many plot details have been worked out with an emphasis on the necessary moments.
But of course, all the credit for the success of the picture belongs to the incredible talent of the young actress Guerence Marillier, who played the main role. Brilliant debut in a big movie! It reflected the whole spirit of the picture, emphasized its atmosphere and dissolved in history.
I won’t hide it, but in the film there are both spectacular vivid scenes, and disgusting in an emotional sense, during which some viewers can vomit. For me personally, this is not quite a horror, but rather a psychological thriller-dystopia, where all attempts to implement the moral revival of society will inevitably lead to catastrophic consequences.
But in general, from an artistic point of view, the film is made very well, assembled and spectacular. Of course, you can find fault with the script with the lack of originality in it in the final part, and in general the whole narrative, but for me personally, all the script blunders were made up for by the fascinating acting, directorial production, excellent editing and whipping music.
Welcome to all the movie lovers!
The film Raw, directed by a certain Julia Ducorno, received a couple of awards at the last (69th) Cannes festival.
At first, I feared the film was about vegans and/or raw eaters. I already have enough “comrades” in my life with gateways, an electric cigarette in my teeth, shouting to passers-by “I am a vegan!”. It's not stereotypes, I've really seen it, I don't want it on the screen. My fears were in vain. The topic on the surface was cannibalism. It is presented in the highest degree disgusting, but great. Fans of “hard” will get from the picture what they want. Moreover, eating raw is not the most disgusting feature of the film.
What can I say about the arthouse component? Good, but nothing great. The topic of growing up in a hostile society is considered. Another line tells about the relationship of the main character with her sister during this transformation. Yes, the creators chose a good theme, clearly expressed their position. I didn’t see anything new in the film.
The actors generally liked it. In some places they did not reach, but this is forgivable for young artists in serious cinema.
The film will be appreciated much higher than me. But for me, Raw is a strong art house that is worth seeing once.
7 out of 10
It has been 8 years since the moment when at the Cannes Festival the Antichrist shot, from which the unsophisticated tender bourgeois public fainted and ran out of the hall. But still scandalous shocking effect and fame psycho-thriller Trier do not give rest to both famous and novice directors. Who has not tried to combine drama and horror, “dismembered” and psychology: from the giants of the world art house (Kim Ki-Duk “Mobius”) to quite commercial producers (Azh “Maniac”). Pictures of this kind appeared a lot, although not all authors managed to draw the psychological line as deeply and vividly as thrash. Immediately I can name the following films: "Alice" (2011), "Satanized", "American Mary", "Nest of a shrew", "Favorite", "We are what we are".... All these are good, in my opinion, tapes. Of the newest, I would also single out "Suffocation" and "Hounds of Love". However, it should be noted that such a genre existed for a long time, and even before Trier, the great and terrible Zion Sono shot "Cold Fish" and "Strange Circus", the master of Asian horror films Takashi Miike "Cinema Probu", Simon Ramley "The Living and the Dead", and in France, similar indulged and Marion /b>.
It is fair to say that the genre, where drama and horror, thrash, psychology and art-house presentation are unexpectedly combined, is one of my favorites in cinema. And so I'm doubly disappointed with Julia Ducorneau's tape, which has been talked about so much and which I've been looking forward to.
Why am I so critical? Yes, because "Raw" is a film exclusively, from the beginning to the last frame, operational and nothing else. Yes, it is quite stylish, yes, it is full of art-house "chips" and "atmospheric" shots. But that's all. 80 out of 99 minutes of screen time will be devoted to various abominations and episodes that deliberately disgust the viewer. And it's not just cannibalism. Here you and operations with horses and cows (it was necessary to torture animals for a few frames?), and the corpses of animals; in addition, you will be pampered with scabies, the consequences of which will be peeled along with the skin, depilation of intimate places close-up, and, of course, urination! What did you think? Without urination in a modern art house, nothing! It's a brand, a mark of quality! And do you think that all these episodes have some meaning, some subtext, some intertext, they are necessary as pieces of a puzzle to understand the overall idea of the picture? Nothing like that! Scabies has nothing to do with the development of the plot. Simply put, if you play it, nothing will change in your perception of this picture. Like the pictures with animals and other things that I talked about. Abomination in this picture has a single function - the effect on the viewer. I want you to come out of the movie theater and say, Oh, that's awful. But it's also intellectual!
I would argue about intellectuality. Only a lazy critic did not write that allegedly "raw" is a cruel and bloody metaphor for female sexual maturation and adaptation to no less bloodthirsty society. Yes, it may be so, but if you remove cannibalism and all the rest of the “piquantity” from the picture, then you will see a banal third-rate film. All this maiden sexual transformation, shown in the picture, is not worth a penny and has only to do with film. The dialogues of the characters are stupid, primitive and illogical, about as in a cheap slasher, when a company of teenagers goes to the lake and all the time communicates, swears and boozes before the maniac comes. And just as in a cheap slasher we do not pity stupid maids, so here too none of the characters arouses sympathy, for they are puppet, one-dimensional and poorly spelled. And yes, their actions are illogical. Two girls eat each other in front of a crowd of similar scumbags, and the next day these same scumbags calmly communicate with the heroines, as if nothing had happened.
In addition, “Raw” is not “Flowers of Evil”; it is not Baudelaire or De Sade, where evil is attractive in itself and its image and ecstasy are an end in itself. No, and I'm passing by.
“Raw” is an attempt to make a commercially successful art-house film on the wave of the popularity of provocative “tresh-parables”. And, unfortunately, judging by the nominations and reviews of critics, the attempt is successful.
I do not recommend spending time on this “creation” for lovers to intellectually tickle their nerves.
3 out of 10
There was a fear that this is a film on the theme ' vegetarianism against meat-eating' as it is tried to promote, but in fact it is generally about something else, namely a classic film about transformation (and cannibalism).
At the beginning of the film, we are fluently introduced to the main character and her family, then show a gang of scumbags running a whole veterinary school and building their own / nutty orders there, while newcomers-patients calmly go through all this, taking it as given (and teachers are absolutely normal about this). In this regard, the film is very similar to Wasted on the Young (2010), where teenagers at the institute were also left to themselves and did what they wanted.
But then the focus still turns to the heroine, her sister and their relationship with each other and the environment against the background of the transformation of the heroine. Which in a conversation with the doctor describes itself as 'average', with which one cannot disagree.
Some scenes like licking a negro's eyeball are made as if purely for the sake of outrage and are meaningless at all, the scene with a horse is all the more optional, why was a real animal harnessed for such a thing?
Overall, it is an interesting and exciting film. In some places it can and should be boiled, but only a little, and after the end I wanted to go through some scenes again, which says something. You don’t have to see him like he does, just fine.
The film also recalled another French-Belgian art house about a transforming athlete (Linkeroever, in English called Left Bank) in fact Raw is such a mixture of that film with the aforementioned Wasted on the Young.
The ending is presented as a twist, although I almost understood it from the beginning of the film and waited for this aspect to be touched.
Raw is a brutal and cruel film, the director of which can only be proud of the fact that he stirred the audience with his directness and cynicism. There is something in this project, but not for the general public, and viewing it can cause extremely contradictory impressions.
A vegetarian family sends their second daughter to the cult school of veterinarians, where their parents met and now the whole “school” with its crazy traditions will have to pass their youngest daughter. And a little girl, not knowing herself, begins to discover terrible things.
Almost every ten minutes of screen time, the director puts the viewer in an awkward position, and believe me, the first on this list is far from eating flesh. The insides of animals, “analysis” through the passage of animals, scabies on the body – the abominations in this film are enough. But the biggest horror of this film is the psychological metamorphosis of a not quite formed child who did not really have the opportunity to kiss.
Roughly, unpleasantly, albeit tastefully, the film "Raw" will be included in the list of cults for a narrow circle of moviegoers, but for most of this kind of experience is absolutely optional. If you like hard movies about psychological disorders - then you will like, for the rest at least a waste of time.
5 out of 10