I know that Breillat has a lot of big fans - personally I've only seen FAT GIRL, which I thought to be promising, but ultimately failed by what I felt to be a "tacked-on" ending that felt out of place with the rest of the film, and only seemed included to add an extra bit of shock-value to an otherwise solid film. ANATOMY OF HELL is another film that is somewhat interesting, but seems to lose itself in it's own "contemplative-ness".
A woman (Amira Casar), who obviously has severe feelings of self-loathing, meets a gay man (porn "legend" Rocco Siffredi), when Rocco enters a bathroom where the woman has just cut her wrist with a razor-blade. Rocco takes the woman to a doctor to get fixed-up, and she decides to blow Rocco on the walk home. She is apparently intrigued by his ability to bust a nut with her in this fashion, being that he's gay and all - so she pays him to come over to her place for a few nights to "display" herself for him and to have lengthy discourses about the disgust and/or awe that men feel for female genitalia. Rocco's input in said conversations comes from a somewhat unique point-of-view, as initially, he is repulsed by vaginas in general, and therefore can speak freely and honestly about the topic. But invariably, his curiosity of the organ gets the better of him, and the two begin some strange "explorations", including rock-dildo insertion, used-tampon water drinking, and vaginal rake insertion - all culminating in feelings of near-obsession on Rocco's part, and his realization of what all straight guys the world over have always known: as great as pussy is - it really is the root of all of our problems.
I applaud Breillat's willingness to tackle "touchy" subjects, and to do so on film with graphic, voyeuristic views into her character's lives - but just as with FAT GIRL - I felt that the film was a relatively interesting concept that just didn't have enough "substance" to sustain it as a full-length film. The performances were solid, and I felt that Rocco especially did a good job as the conflicted gay man who has become enthralled with the hoo-ha. But again, I don't really see what the real point of the film is, other than to state the obvious - men and women will never understand each other, and most of this is due to our conflicting views on sex and sexuality...6/10
A woman (Amira Casar), who obviously has severe feelings of self-loathing, meets a gay man (porn "legend" Rocco Siffredi), when Rocco enters a bathroom where the woman has just cut her wrist with a razor-blade. Rocco takes the woman to a doctor to get fixed-up, and she decides to blow Rocco on the walk home. She is apparently intrigued by his ability to bust a nut with her in this fashion, being that he's gay and all - so she pays him to come over to her place for a few nights to "display" herself for him and to have lengthy discourses about the disgust and/or awe that men feel for female genitalia. Rocco's input in said conversations comes from a somewhat unique point-of-view, as initially, he is repulsed by vaginas in general, and therefore can speak freely and honestly about the topic. But invariably, his curiosity of the organ gets the better of him, and the two begin some strange "explorations", including rock-dildo insertion, used-tampon water drinking, and vaginal rake insertion - all culminating in feelings of near-obsession on Rocco's part, and his realization of what all straight guys the world over have always known: as great as pussy is - it really is the root of all of our problems.
I applaud Breillat's willingness to tackle "touchy" subjects, and to do so on film with graphic, voyeuristic views into her character's lives - but just as with FAT GIRL - I felt that the film was a relatively interesting concept that just didn't have enough "substance" to sustain it as a full-length film. The performances were solid, and I felt that Rocco especially did a good job as the conflicted gay man who has become enthralled with the hoo-ha. But again, I don't really see what the real point of the film is, other than to state the obvious - men and women will never understand each other, and most of this is due to our conflicting views on sex and sexuality...6/10