Climax (2018)

French dancers gather in a remote, empty school building to rehearse on a wintry night. The all-night celebration morphs into a hallucinatory nightmare when they learn their sangria is laced with LSD.

Director:

Gaspar Noé

Writer:

Gaspar Noé

Stars:

Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic, Souheila Yacoub

5 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sofia Boutella	...	Selva
Romain Guillermic	...	David
Souheila Yacoub	...	Lou
Kiddy Smile	...	Daddy
Claude-Emmanuelle Gajan-Maull	...	Emmanuelle (as Claude Gajan Maull)
Giselle Palmer	...	Gazelle
Taylor Kastle	...	Taylor
Thea Carla Schott	...	Psyche
Sharleen Temple	...	Ivana
Lea Vlamos	...	Lea
Alaia Alsafir	...	Alaya
Kendall Mugler	...	Rocket
Lakdhar Dridi	...	Riley
Adrien Sissoko	...	Omar
Mamadou Bathily	...	Bats

Storyline

In the mid 1990's, 20 French urban dancers join together for a three-day rehearsal in a closed-down boarding school located at the heart of a forest to share one last dance. They then make one last party around a large sangria bowl. Quickly, the atmosphere becomes charged and a strange madness will seize them the whole night. If it seems obvious to them that they have been drugged, they neither know by who nor why. And it's soon impossible for them to resist to their neuroses and psychoses, numbed by the hypnotic and the increasing electric rhythm of the music. While some feel in paradise, most of them plunge into hell.

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Plot Keywords:

gay | long take | sangria | little boy | urination | 

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Music | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for disturbing content involving a combination of drug use, violent behavior and strong sexuality, and for language and some graphic nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

France Belgium

Language:

French English

Release Date:

19 September 2018 (France)

Also Known As:

Climax

Filming Locations:

France

Box Office

Budget:

EUR2,600,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$119,423, 3 March 2019

Gross USA:

$817,339

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,027,391

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rectangle Productions, Wild Bunch, Les Cinémas de la Zone

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gaspar Noé's inspiration for the film includes lots of 70's movies such as The Towering Inferno (1974), The Poseidon Adventure (1972) and Shivers (1975).

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Goofs

While the movie is supposed to be set in 1996, which is confirmed by the clothes, the music and the lack of smartphones, the French spoken in the film is very much 2010s, with many anglicisms or other recent verbal tics heard throughout the movie. This is due to the improvised dialogue from the cast working off of a five-page script.

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Quotes

Selva: Oh, you're so good! Thank you, thank...
Psyche: You liked it?
Selva: I'm so happy. I couldn't be happier.

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Crazy Credits

Like many of Gaspar Noé's films, the typical closing credits are played at the beginning of the film.

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Connections

References Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954)

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Soundtracks

Pump Up the Volume (USA Version)
Written by Steven Biggs, Martyn Young
Performed by Marrs (as M/A/R/R/S)
(c) Universal Music Publishing on behalf of Universal Music Publishing Ltd
(p) 1987 Beggars
Courtesy of 4AD Ltd. and Universal Music Publishing Film & TV
By arrangement with Beggars Group Media

User Reviews

Gaspard Noé : his best and worst

After an incredible 20 minutes opening, Gaspard Noé seems to be himself and put a movie that could be a masterpiece into a boring provocative piece of art. By the half of the movie, you won't discover anything you already seen in Gaspard Noé's movies. Still, the filming of dance and the idea that dance is art language is interesting.