Film Screening 11th May, 2004

Poster for Repulsion

Repulsion 

8:00 PM, 11th May, 2004

  • R
  • 104 mins
  • 1965
  • Roman Polanski
  • Gerard Brach, Roman Polanski
  • Catherine Deneuve, Ian Hendry, John Fraser, Yvonne Furneaux

Sexually repressed and naive, Carole (a young Deneuve) lives with, and in the shadow of, her elder sister. Somewhat of an odd couple, Carole is repulsed by anything sexual, whereas her sister Helene is running around with a married man (which, unsurprisingly, doesn't please Carole). When she is left alone as her sister goes on holiday with her lover, Carole becomes depressed and slowly goes mad as her delusional fantasies of seduction and rape take over her mind. Told through the eyes of its protagonist, Repulsion is a surreal and ponderous experience that transcends many genre boundaries. If ever there was a rebuttal to the argument that it was the murder of his pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, by the Manson family, that really warped Roman Polanski, Repulsion is it. While not nearly as graphic as some of his later work, it is every bit as disturbing; greatly pushing the boundaries of acceptable content in films of its day.

This one is hard to find (I tried for long enough) on video and hasn't seen DVD release anywhere as of the time I write this. See it while you can!

Adam Gould