I saw this some years ago, and it didn't really grab me. I dusted it off recently, and it seems so much better when you watch it again... and again.
This is actually a very cerebral film which gives you a lot of information to digest. Gorehounds looking for ultra-violence will be disappointed in this one - it's really a profound meditation on the human condition.
Polanski made an inspired decision to cast sex-goddess Catherine Deneuve in such a difficult role; although she's generally wasted as eye-candy, her acting skills are superb. Here she's absolutely convincing in a performance that must have been very hard to pull off. I have known people like Carol, and she gets everything perfect, she must have done a lot of study.
Viewers have grumbled that this re-hashes Meshes of th Afternoon, but that was an experimental short that was just crying out to be expanded into a feature film - Carnival of Souls also seems to have been inspired by it. You may as well complain that Meshes of the Afternoon is derived from The Yellow Wallpaper - all artists are inspired by others.
Polanski certainly brings a new measure of visual inventiveness to Repulsion, as well as keeping the musical score so minimal. Get yourself into an open mind, and enjoy.
This is actually a very cerebral film which gives you a lot of information to digest. Gorehounds looking for ultra-violence will be disappointed in this one - it's really a profound meditation on the human condition.
Polanski made an inspired decision to cast sex-goddess Catherine Deneuve in such a difficult role; although she's generally wasted as eye-candy, her acting skills are superb. Here she's absolutely convincing in a performance that must have been very hard to pull off. I have known people like Carol, and she gets everything perfect, she must have done a lot of study.
Viewers have grumbled that this re-hashes Meshes of th Afternoon, but that was an experimental short that was just crying out to be expanded into a feature film - Carnival of Souls also seems to have been inspired by it. You may as well complain that Meshes of the Afternoon is derived from The Yellow Wallpaper - all artists are inspired by others.
Polanski certainly brings a new measure of visual inventiveness to Repulsion, as well as keeping the musical score so minimal. Get yourself into an open mind, and enjoy.