Loved 'Irreversible'? Watch Gaspar Noé's Ever More Provocative Movie You Probably Missed

Climax is a movie by the provocative Argentine director Gaspar Noé, creator of Irréversible and Enter the Void, that stands as one of the most provocative projects of his career.

The story centers on a group of dancers who lock themselves in a remote lodge to celebrate the start of a tour. Unbeknownst to them, someone has spiked the sangria with LSD, and they are about to embark on an unplanned journey that will change them all forever.

What Is 'Climax' About?

A group of about twenty dancers is rehearsing in a former school building ahead of a US tour. Among them are a choreographer, a lesbian couple, an overly confident young man, and a brother and sister with a strained relationship.

On the eve of their departure, the dancers decide to throw a farewell party and someone secretly spikes the sangria pitcher with acid. The characters soon find themselves on a trip that exposes their deeply buried fears and leaves them at the mercy of all-consuming paranoia.

'Climax' Is a Sheer Visual Nightmare and a Choreography of Madness

The DJ drops the needle, and the dancers begin to move with an almost unnatural fluidity to a repetitive electronic motif. The camera weaves between them, soaring upward one moment and tracking the dancers through their frenzied movements the next.

Like a demiurge, Noé knows that order is destined to collapse – he intersperses the film with title cards and projects his reflections on life and death onto the screen. Yet, neither this deliberate stylistic artifice nor the wild camera movements strip the movie of its terrifying authenticity.

While watching Climax, it's easy to believe that Noé dosed the troupe of dancers with acid and simply filmed the ensuing chaos – their paranoia and aggression are palpable, as are their wailing, sobbing, and piercing screams.

'Climax' Is More Than Just a Provocation

Climax isn't afraid to be unpleasant and shocking. Noé understands a simple truth: drugs don't give people anything new, they merely reveal what's already inside. Drugs don't beat up friends, cast them out into the freezing cold, or lock children in a room with an electrical panel – people do those things.

At times, the director veers close to exploitation, yet it is a talented kind of exploitation that genuinely works. Balanced by a streak of dark wit, it transforms the unpleasant into the truly terrifying.

Climax is undeniably a physically harrowing film – a psychotronic experience that spins for ninety minutes in a vogue dance style, fusing dance euphoria and horror into a singular whole.

What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Climax'?

• Climax has 69% from critics and 65% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.

• On IMDb, the movie has a score of 6.9/10.

• On Letterboxd, Climax scored 3.8/5.0.

Where to Watch 'Climax'?

Climax is available to buy or rent on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV.