French mystery thriller Irreversible is a high octane flick, which uses a non-linear narrative as well as intense brutality to disorientate and horrify the audience. The movie won the Stockholm Film Festival's movie of the year award, as well as competing at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. Though ultra-violent, Irreversible is widely recognised as a decent movie. American film critic Roger Ebert labelled it, 'a film so violent and cruel that most people will find it unwatchable', while it has also been associated with the New French Extremity movement. The film's events take place over the course of one traumatic night in Paris, and unfold in reverse-chronological order. The beautiful and newly pregnant Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a pimp in an underpass. Her boyfriend and ex-lover take matters into their own hands by hiring two criminals to help them find the rapist so that they can exact revenge. Expect heads being smashed to bits with fire extinguishers, anal rape and a host of other atrocities. This one certainly isn't for the faint of heart (or weak of stomach).
