Rumpf, Rabah Nait Oufella. France/Belgium 2016, 99mins, Certificate 18.
Released on Blu-ray in a limited edition by Second Sight Films from 26th
April 2021.
Early on in writer/director Julia Ducournau’s 2016 debut feature, first-year
veterinary student Justine (Garance Marillier) is asked by the school’s doctor:
“How do you see yourself?” Justine replies: “Average”. There is however nothing
remotely average about this arthouse coming-of-age cannibal hybrid. Nor,
fittingly enough, is there anything average about Second Sight’s stunning
limited edition blu-ray release both in terms of disc content and in the
gorgeously designed slipcase, booklet and collectors’ art cards that accompany
it.
Having been brought up in a strictly vegetarian family, Justine follows in
the family’s footsteps by enrolling at the same veterinary school her parents
graduated from, and where her older sister Alexia (Ella Rumpf) is a senior.
Having barely had a chance to unpack and be introduced to her gay male roommate
Adrien (Rabah Nait Oufella), the hazing initiation rituals orchestrated by the
senior faculty begin their onslaught. These culminate with Justine having to
eat a rabbit kidney after her and her fellow newbies are drenched in animal
blood. After being pressured into consuming meat for the first time, Justine
suffers an allergic skin reaction before a craving for meat takes hold and
she’s pocketing burgers from the canteen and chowing down on raw chicken breast
from the fridge. However, Justine’s cravings for meat will transition from
animal to human flesh following an unfortunate accident, forcing her to
confront family secrets and wrestle with her newly acquired animalistic
instincts.
In what sounds like classic grindhouse exploitation hype, during a
screening at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2016, several audience
members allegedly fainted during the film’s graphic scenes and required medical
attention. (Clearly, they hadn’t been repeating to themselves: ‘It’s only a
movie…only a movie…’). Whilst hardened gorehounds would certainly sneer at this
over-reaction, the film does contain some genuinely raw (no pun intended) real
sequences involving animal dissection and veterinary practice which I can appreciate
could be deemed upsetting. Given the film’s subject matter, the actual on-screen
cannibalism is however relatively restrained (at least when compared to the
notorious Italian gut munching nasties of the 80’s). But its intimacy, coupled
with the searingly committed performances of Garance Marillier and Ella Rumpf,
sell the prosthetics (and light-touch CGI in one scene) and achieve far greater
impact as a result. If I am honest, after revisiting the film it made me
ravenous (not for human flesh you’ll be pleased to know). I actually feel the
most wince-inducing moment involves a close-up botched Brazilian wax job.
The brutalist architecture of the location lends the film visual
comparisons with David Cronenberg, as does aspects of the body horrors
presented. Overall, it has an arthouse sensibility which is somewhat jarring
with the gore and jet-black humour, (and may account for the Toronto audience’s
reaction). The clear early visual nod to De Palma’s CARRIE, whilst audacious,
seems to hint at an intention to position the film firmly in the horror genre,
but there are multi-faceted aspects at work which straddle genres, and takes
them confidently in its stride.
Ultimately, it is an exploration of humanity, or as director Ducournau
states in the interview feature on the disc entitled ‘In the Name of Raw’: “I
think it’s the story of a girl who becomes a human being”.
Speaking of the discs extras, there’s a rich bounty to get your teeth
into which provide plenty of food for thought (and that’s enough of the puns).
The extraordinary Garance Marillier is interviewed a fresh, providing her with
an opportunity to look back on her experiences and close collaboration with her
director. Producer Jean des Forets shares some of the practical considerations
in terms of the film’s budget, and its selling challenges. As well as a previous
audio commentary with Julia Ducournau and film critic Emma Westwood, there is
also a new commentary by film critic Alexandra West to lend a fresh critical
perspective. Alexandra Heller-Nicholas’ new video essay contributes a perfectly
succinct, and frankly perfect 12-minute summary of the film’s themes and
concepts. There’s tons more content including footage from the Australian
premiere, panel discussions, an alternative opening, deleted scenes and
trailers.
Recommended.
*****
Paul Worts
This review was originally published by FrightFest.
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