Julia Ducournau's Raw
Julia Ducournau’s Raw is an intense tale of how suppression and being socially naïve can have powerful ramifications.
Summary
The movie focuses on the life of Justine (Garance Marillier) a teenager who lives in a very stringent household. Justine’s life is completely micromanaged by her parents down to the vegetarian meals that she’s allowed to consume. She’s sent off to veterinarian school which seems to be her first chance at being on her own but that’s quickly dispelled when we learn her sister, Alexia (Ella Rumpf) is already there. Alexia ends up being an asset to Justine as she needs guidance navigating the trials of being a new a freshman in school. They come to some understanding that even if they aren’t fans of the hazing that freshmen receive, it would be best to just go along with it. Justine is forced to during one of these incidents to eat a raw rabbit kidney which causes her to become very ill and to crave raw meat. She tries to suppress these desires by eating raw chicken breast and shawarma sandwiches but nothing helps. A chain of events begins to unfold that leads to a terrible accident but opens Justine’s eyes to the joys of devouring human flesh. It’s at this point that we realize that things will never be the same going forward.
Acting …show more content…
Marillier delivers a fantastic performance as Justine. If she had just gone for the human flesh as if it were not a huge deal, it would have completely Raw into some cheap horror film. Instead, she played Justine as being quite conflicted. Justin knows that was she craves is wrong but with every chomp of flesh, it appears to make her heart full. Maybe it was the excitement of discovering new desires? Perhaps it was indulging in what is widely considered to be aberrant behavior?
Writing/Direction
Ducournau certainly went all in on her first feature film.
The shots, musical selections, and even the color palate of the film were all meant to be extreme and to shake the audience's senses. For example in the instances this film was at it's most visceral, Ducournau held that shot just long enough for us to truly process what Justine had done to that boy's lip. The cheesy harpsichord music and pulse-pounding score created the right mood for this picture. She even made sure that the colors of the raw chicken, rabbit kidney, and the human blood was bright, bold, and even slightly alluring. Her use of handheld shots enhanced the visual imagery and of course, made the rest of the audience that much more
uncomfortable.
Ducournau constructed this narrative to show the psychology behind a woman trying to rationalize her unnatural desires. At various moments we witness Justine grappling with these urges and see a range of emotion wash over her face. A part of her understands that what she craves is considered by society to be vile but she can't deny the happiness that each chomp of human flesh brings her. It's these moments of confliction, turmoil, and striving for societal acceptance that take this film out of the category of just a horror film do more of an extraordinary film.
Overall
A lot of the hype behind this film has been completely misleading. It has been widely reported the people are either fainting or throwing up in the middle of the screenings. Some theaters have even issued barf bags to the audience as they walk in creating the perception that this film is nothing but a blood and guts fest. This couldn't be further from the truth. While Raw certainly has it's moments of gore, the film is a gripping tale of a woman who's every move has been micromanaged growing up that it's made her socially inept. The film is French and has subtitles so that may be a turnoff to some people. However, if this weekend you are willing to give a film a chance Raw should be your #1 choice.
Summary
The movie focuses on the life of Justine (Garance Marillier) a teenager who lives in a very stringent household. Justine’s life is completely micromanaged by her parents down to the vegetarian meals that she’s allowed to consume. She’s sent off to veterinarian school which seems to be her first chance at being on her own but that’s quickly dispelled when we learn her sister, Alexia (Ella Rumpf) is already there. Alexia ends up being an asset to Justine as she needs guidance navigating the trials of being a new a freshman in school. They come to some understanding that even if they aren’t fans of the hazing that freshmen receive, it would be best to just go along with it. Justine is forced to during one of these incidents to eat a raw rabbit kidney which causes her to become very ill and to crave raw meat. She tries to suppress these desires by eating raw chicken breast and shawarma sandwiches but nothing helps. A chain of events begins to unfold that leads to a terrible accident but opens Justine’s eyes to the joys of devouring human flesh. It’s at this point that we realize that things will never be the same going forward.
Acting …show more content…
Marillier delivers a fantastic performance as Justine. If she had just gone for the human flesh as if it were not a huge deal, it would have completely Raw into some cheap horror film. Instead, she played Justine as being quite conflicted. Justin knows that was she craves is wrong but with every chomp of flesh, it appears to make her heart full. Maybe it was the excitement of discovering new desires? Perhaps it was indulging in what is widely considered to be aberrant behavior?
Writing/Direction
Ducournau certainly went all in on her first feature film.
The shots, musical selections, and even the color palate of the film were all meant to be extreme and to shake the audience's senses. For example in the instances this film was at it's most visceral, Ducournau held that shot just long enough for us to truly process what Justine had done to that boy's lip. The cheesy harpsichord music and pulse-pounding score created the right mood for this picture. She even made sure that the colors of the raw chicken, rabbit kidney, and the human blood was bright, bold, and even slightly alluring. Her use of handheld shots enhanced the visual imagery and of course, made the rest of the audience that much more
uncomfortable.
Ducournau constructed this narrative to show the psychology behind a woman trying to rationalize her unnatural desires. At various moments we witness Justine grappling with these urges and see a range of emotion wash over her face. A part of her understands that what she craves is considered by society to be vile but she can't deny the happiness that each chomp of human flesh brings her. It's these moments of confliction, turmoil, and striving for societal acceptance that take this film out of the category of just a horror film do more of an extraordinary film.
Overall
A lot of the hype behind this film has been completely misleading. It has been widely reported the people are either fainting or throwing up in the middle of the screenings. Some theaters have even issued barf bags to the audience as they walk in creating the perception that this film is nothing but a blood and guts fest. This couldn't be further from the truth. While Raw certainly has it's moments of gore, the film is a gripping tale of a woman who's every move has been micromanaged growing up that it's made her socially inept. The film is French and has subtitles so that may be a turnoff to some people. However, if this weekend you are willing to give a film a chance Raw should be your #1 choice.