Review of Holy Motors (2012) by Andrei D — 17 Dec 2012

Amazing, surreal vignettes are strung together in an arcing narrative of lives-acted-out in this very French and complex film.

Oscar (Denis Levant) flits in and out of scenes with hardly any explanation about why he must play the roles of characters in these living moments. The mystery and complexity compound with each scene. But these miniature tales of life and death are fascinating and beautiful to watch. There is so much going on that is inexplicable, yet so much we can connect to, that the disconnected vignettes he performs are all part of some greater story about the life of Oscar and, on the greater scale, the human condition itself.

Beautiful, violent, evocative, funny, sad, and touched with a special form of humor, this movie is highly entertaining, even when it never quite demonstrates a point to it all.

And I love the questions we are left with. Are the limos angels, carrying messengers to the world of man? Are Oscar and others like him spirits and entities? Are they real? Are they experiencing lives of their own, even as they present moments of other lives?

Perhaps a little too challenging for some, otherwise I would have rated it higher, because it is a feast of ideas, humor, perversity and visuals that most will adore.