Don't Look Back

I believe this might be the first collaboration between S. Marceau and M. Belucci. Though I'm not sure about that, I am sure about the fact, that both are not only astonishingly good looking, but can act! Which is something that is needed here. The story has to have solid acting to hold itself above water (so to speak). There is quite a bit of CG going on here, which might distract some people, but it is necessary and helps the story move along. Unfortunately the very strong beginning almost gets lost completely toward the ending. "It's just another one of those", might be one of the reactions this movie gets (that's me assuming). On other news, Sophie stays completely clothed, but Monica as ever is not afraid to show a little "flesh". But don't expect anything too arousing, with the things that are going on ... I hope to see both of them in another movie ... and maybe it will be possible to top that (it actually is very possible).

All the reviews seems to concentrate on who is the director... the writer... the actor... Come on... Sure, its very important, but after seeing a movie what really matters is whether you liked it or not... The most important thing is (I think) if it is worth seeing, if it is worth your time... From the very beginning it seems it is... The story is intriguing... It's hard not to wonder what is going on... The main character seems to have some really serious problems with either a split of personality or some serious disease...And sure do not forget it is Sophie Marceau and Monica Belucci who are in the role of the main character, and they, as all could expect, are really superb! The story seems quite complicated, at times one might think it takes too long to really realize what in fact is going on and who is who... However, it is really intriguing, mysterious and moving... Is it really possible? How can it be possible? Is it better than death? Could I survive that? Those are the questions I have been asking myself... Do you wonder what would you ask? Watch it... it is really worth it...

The beautiful Jeanne is a successful biography writer, who is intent on writing an autobiographical novel based on her childhood. A childhood she does not remember due to a car accident in Sicily. Her book is however rejected by her publisher, as a story too focused on countless descriptions, but void of any emotion. Coincidentally Jeanne starts to have troubles with perception - photographs, cameras and mirrors begin to show things that Jeanne remembered totally differently. She stops recognising her house, her husband, her two kids and in the end she no longer knows the person she sees in the mirror... Unaware of Marina de Van's previous work I picked this movie up due to it's Cannes credentials. Told with some very competent and tight storytelling (although not devoid of slight plot holes or unnecessary scenes added just for eeriness) this French movie never cops out on it's promised delivery. Also instead of your typical American shock twist you are treated with a much more subtle, intelligent and down-to-earth ending, which logically evolves from the beginning to an at least satisfying finale. Although horror fans may be disappointed by the relatively unshocking solution - at times the movie promises to frighten keeping the viewer on the verge of something horrific, but concludes without a single frightening moment. All in all de Van had a story to tell and she did that expertly - emotionally dragging you in and also keeping the tension sharp as a razor throughout the movie. Both Sophie Marceau and Monica Belucci do an expert job conveying the story and it is self-explanatory why they are widely held as two of the best actresses of their generation in Europe. Both actresses give award-worthy performances, but it'ld be hard to decide which of them should win the prize, as they basically play the same character and you would be forgiven if you forgot that two actresses played the same role. There is almost no way to tell at what exact moment Marceau is exchanged for Belucci. In this case it is quite evident that they were hired for much more than their looks. Nonetheless both are ravishing in this movie, albeit age looks to be creeping up on Belucci much faster than on Marceau. Fortunately for them their class acting should keep them busy until they are both over 80. Supporting cast is also spot on, although this movie focuses so heavily on Jeanne, that you hardly notice their presence and input. In the end you may however feel slightly underwhelmed by the movie, which although nicely told does not always feel deserving of a full length feature. Also some of the cinematography seemed detached from the story and the viewer was unable to really notice the changes that occurred in Jeanne's surroundings. Were it not for Jeanne's weird behaviour you would be forgiven for not noticing anything wrong. That said they were some beautifully done sequences where faces of people change around her, but that has more to do with the make-up and special effects crew, than the DOP.

And to not give things away, you're not sure whether there's a psychological thriller or some odd crime-horror thing going on until near the end. Fortunately, it does stay consistent with the story it tells, so the ending isn't illogical or a surprise simply for the sake of surprise. As is becoming more common recently, you're dropped into the story from the character's point of view with no setup and only minimal context, seeing the world almost completely through her eyes. It also brings in some interesting facial/body visual FX morphing to help tell the story, so fans of the main actresses get their wish in seeing what they might look like if combined. There are a few annoying plot inconsistencies and story development limitations, but if you ever wondered what a chick-flick thriller might be like, you now have an answer.

This film started off grabbing my interest right away and kept it for most of the running time. There were a few spots where I felt it began to drag and get slightly tedious but the incredibly interesting and intricate plot created in me a genuine need to know what was going on and kept me watching. I was not aware these two actresses were so well known across the pond although I am sure I have seen them in other films. They did a wonderful job. All the actors were spot on. By the end of the movie all is made clear and we are not left in the dark wonder what happened. I did not walk away feeling I was dropped without the ability to make sense of it all but it is deep and deals with heavy issues. SPOILER FOR THOSE WHO ARE HONESTLY CONFUSED: The main character is having an identity crisis that is manifesting its self in transformations of everything in her life. She realizes that after a traumatic incident in her young life, she has been living her life as if she were another person who died in a tragic accident when she was a little girl. The woman we see in the beginning of the movie is that woman...the woman we see at the end of the movie is her true self. This is a woman working through a life shattering trauma as the truth begins to surface after looking into her past. She is becoming her true self. The problems with the movie are few and forgivable. I highly recommend it.

Sophie Marceau is one of my favourite actresses and is probably the only reason I gave this film a rating of 3. As far as the plot is concerned, I found it far too confusing and complicated to follow. It starts out promising enough when Jeanne starts seeing things that seem odd, and one is left wondering how the story will develop. But when she herself transforms into a completely different woman, that's when I, quite frankly, "lost the plot". I quite simply don't get it. I do like films where things don't always seem what they are (and French directors are in my view especially good at this), and where the story can be interpreted in different ways ("Anthony Zimmer", also featuring Sophie Marceau, is a prime example and in my eyes actually a masterpiece in the psychological thriller genre). But here, the story seems flawed and over-complicated, with no satisfactory resolution.

"Don't Look Back" is decidedly not for all tastes: impatient non-thinkers who want everything handed to them on a silver platter need not apply. Writer-director Marina de Van certainly does not make it easy on the audience: she never shows the heroine's hallucinations from an "objective" point-of-view, so that we can easily tell what's real and what's not. Instead, she films them in a matter-of-fact way - we see what she sees, we hear what she hears. My personal "reading" of the film (and there can certainly be more than one), and also a reminder for when things get too strange, is that nothing supernatural occurs in the film; it's all psychological. Sophie Marceau and Monica Bellucci (both of them still highly desirable at 40+, I might add) appear to be playing the same character (and they do it excellently), but only one of them is "really real"; her perception of people (including herself) and things around her occasionally changes based on what she feels, what she learns, what she remembers. "Don't Look Back" is also a great example of creative (and non-redundant) use of computer effects, helping with some remarkable face transformations. The film is not perfect: it's quite slow and a few things are never explained. But it invites you to think and theorize - and such films are becoming more and more rare these days. *** out of 4.

This movie was painful to watch. It started out with a solid premise (sort of) but then it lost clarity of the plot and muddled and morphed into pure atmospherics before a revelatory (sort of) twist at the end that did not really explain much at the time. The general feeling of suspense was quite effective, but the storyline poor and terribly inconsistent, and at some point the perception settled in that there is no rhyme or logic to this, and it's just inner workings of an insane mind that there is no reason that I should care about. In retrospect, when many incoherences have faded in my memory, the story makes more sense, yet the movie itself failed to effectively deliver its meaning during watching, and the only interest that kept me going was to see if this mess would have any kind of a logical conclusion. I think a mystery of this kind works well if viewers are periodically given cues that allow them to at least entertain some hypotheses in the expectation of the finale. On the contrary, Ne te retourne pas just kept piling incomprehensible visuals betting on the excitement of all puzzle pieces fitting together in the last 10 min. A lost bet with me indeed. What a waste of Monica Belucci and Sofie Marceau!

i don't review much but i felt the need to align my voice with others on here who think this flick a steaming pile of pig dung. did it suffer from too-many-cooks syndrome where it abounded with too much talent (Marceau, Bellucci, De Van - i mean, it should have been a NO BRAINER) that it all canceled each other out? a lot of its failings would have been eliminated if De Van decided on one definite perspective with respect to all the face changing jazz (I've got similar gripes about black swan but that's another day another post). possibility one: her face isn't changing at all but she thinks she is and that's why we're seeing the changes. this means she's insane or from another planet where faces change. she's treated for her illness or she finally realizes she's an alien and modifies her behavior accordingly (i won't freak out about the kitchen table moving anymore because my family is but poor lowly humans). possibility two: everyone in her life is conspiring against her. in this case, as opposed to possibility one, she will try to get help by telling everyone she runs into something to this effect: help me my face is changing (or whatever), to which they would (and in fact did in the picture) respond by saying something like: oh dear, you must be unwell, everything is just as it's always been. the end of possibility two could have been something like that great movie seconds. the lazy film trope of protagonists coming to grips with the memory they've been suppressing has officially reached "oh lord god make it stop" annoying level, as if it's some kind of artful thing to be vague, confusing and indecisive as filmmakers. i much MUCH preferred Devan's earlier effort Dans Ma Peau where the "fantasy" elements of the protagonist mutilating herself came to a head with her locking herself in a hotel room and slicing dicing and eating herself. the audience knew exactly what was happening and that these weren't figurative images anymore but existed in the reality of the picture. this kind of turd pile makes me hate life.