Revenge

Movie Name: Revenge
Year of Release: 2017
Director: Coralie Fargeat
Starring: Matilda Lutz, Kevin Janssens, Vincent Colombe, Guillaume Bouchede, Jean-Louis Tribes
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
Watch it on Tubi

Synopsis and Review

For those of us who were surprised by "The Substance", "Revenge" is the feature directorial debut from Coralie Fargeat. The film follows the story of Jen, a young woman whom we first encounter arriving at a luxury residence alongside her partner, a man by the name of Richard. We soon realize that he's married, and even though Jen doesn't know him that well, she believes he can help her with her dreams of moving to LA. After their first night in the house, two of Richard's friends arrive, Stan and Dimitri, so the three of them can go on a hunting trip in the desert. Richard is forced to introduce Jen, though he expected her to be gone by then, since his friends know his wife. That night they all party, and the following morning Richard is away. Stan tries to flirt with Jen, but she dismisses him. The situation continues to escalate, until he rapes her, while Dimitri just goes to another room dismissing what is happening. Upon Richard's arrival, he understands what has happened, and tries to salvage the situation, by telling Jen she can move to Canada at his expense. The exchange gets heated, and Jen runs off into the desert, with the three men on her chase. Richard pushes Jen off the cliff and she is impaled by a tree branch. While Stan is shocked, they all decide they have to get rid of the body. However Jen regains consciousness, and by the time the men return to check on her, they can't locate her anymore. Jen wanting to survive the ordeal, slowly but surely turns the tables on them.

It would be easy to dismiss "Revenge" as just another violent film in a genre that seems to have died down in the 1980s (the staple still being of course Abel Ferrara's "Ms. 45"). However what is so fresh and unique about this film, is the approach that Coralie Fargeat gives to these characters, their motivations, and how they all have an arc from the beginning all the way through the last moments. Jen, the lead character, who could at first glance be dismissed as the "beautiful woman without much depth", goes through a radical transformation and metamorphosis, eventually becoming not simply an avenging angel, but a resourceful and capable woman, ready to defend herself with everything she has at her means. The conspirators, who initially are portrayed as loving, clownish, and even clueless, demonstrate their darker side, and how viciously dismissive they can be. The situation and what it evolves into, forces them to confront their own fears, even if they don't question their line of reasoning and what they're attempting to do for one second. It's a film that Coralie Fargeat stages with an incredible precision, not only with a stylistic point of view, but also giving the characters just enough space that allows them to become more than simple cardboard illustrations of what a monstrous individual can be (though Dimitri sadly gets the less screen time which would allow us to understand a bit more of who he is). The cast is solid, with highlights going to Matilda Lutz, who goes through a radical transformation, with great support from Vincent Colombe, who while playing a truly morally bankrupt character, tries to demonstrate that while weak and spineless, he's not totally without sense of what he's doing. The production team is equally solid, in particular Robrecht Heyvaert's cinematography, Robin Coudert's score, and the makeup team of Pierre Emmanuel Kass, Ghislaine Nejjar, and Laetitia Quillery. A visceral yet indelible film worth watching.