Raw (2017)
Directed by Julia Ducournau
Written by Julia Ducournau
Starring Garance Marillier, Ella Rumpf, Laurent Lucas
Release Date March 15th, 2017
I hate the movie Raw. I hate every second of the movie Raw. This challenging cannibalistic French horror movie put me through the ringer for 99 challenging minutes and I hated it. And yet, I can’t say it isn’t a damn brilliant film. Director Julia Ducornau directs this movie with such surety, such confidence and with such undeniable wit that I have to admit my appreciation of the film as a work of art, even as I will never watch Raw ever again.
Raw stars Garance Marillier as Justine, an innocent young girl headed off to veterinary school. There, she is immediately subjected to hazing as the students are pulled from their beds by the upper classmen and are dragged through the halls before being taken to an all-night rave. There, Justine finally finds her older sister Alexia (Ella Rumpf) who was supposed to meet her earlier but left her to be found by the upper classmen, per the annual school ritual.
We are told that every freshman goes through a Hell Week like this where they are forced into all-night parties, must follow bizarre dress codes, and are covered in a substance that looks like blood. One of the hazing rituals requires the previously vegetarian Justine to eat the raw kidney of a rabbit. She refuses, but her sister steps in with force and she eats it. This sets off a series of shocking events that rise as the narrative rises and begins to turn your stomach.
I haven’t had an experience like Raw since I first saw Eli Roth’s Hostel. That film, however, lacks this movie’s precise tone and remarkable artistry. Where Hostel was shock for the sake of shock with the intent of making audiences vomit, Raw has a serious point on its mind, with allusions to women’s sexual awakening and freedom to the ways in which our society grinds up those who can’t compete to be consumed by those more prepared for a cutthroat world.
Find my full length review in the Geeks Community on Vocal
