Trailer:

Holy Motors, Leos Carax’s tentatively categorized fantasy drama is one of those films. One of those films where no one is completely sure what on earth is going on. This is because the film explicitly rejects any sort of logical structure or definitive interpretation. However, my opinion on the issue of the films interpretation sides with that of Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph who says: “It is a film about the stuff of cinema itself”.

Throughout the film there are many illusions to the film industry and production process. The main character, Oscar is driven around in a white limousine to various “appointments” where he enacts various scenarios. Before each appointment he is shown to apply the appropriate makeup and costume in much the same way an actor would.

At about the 50 minute mark in the film, Oscar has a conversion with a Hollywood-exec- type character in which he voices his growing paranoia at how “small” the cameras are nowadays. From this we can assume that these ‘appointments’ were really various film sets, only with imperceptible production equipment. The theme of the tiny cameras, coupled with the over-the-top parody of CGI motion-capture technology in one of the appointments, may serve to criticize the direction the film industry is going. This direction is that of the increased role of technology which in turn reduces the role an actor plays. This theme also asks the philosophical question: if there is no one witnessing the act, is it acting?
The casting of Denis Lavant in the main role supports this. Renowned for his all-out, energy rich acting style, he is an actor one wouldn’t usually see in a film which supplements a performance with CGI.

Furthermore, the name ‘Oscar’ works with Holy Motors’ unusual avant garde content, to parody the ‘Oscar bait’ category of high cinema.
Finally in the films closing, the metaphor of the outdated limousines takes one last stab at the film industry. Inside the Holy Motors garage (the films namesake), Oscars limousine joins many others like it for storage. When the humans leave the scene, the vehicles begin to voice their concern about how they may soon be considered obsolete and unwanted by the Chauffeur industry. This draws parallels with the Hollywood system; using an actor during their ‘prime’ only to reject them when they reach the ‘too-old’ threshold.

So did I like it?

It was indeed an intriguing and at some points astounding work of cinema. I commend its creativity and especially applaud the performance of Denis Lavant. The seasoned French actor brings a great energy to this film, and his performance alone is reason enough to see it. Sadly though, I’m afraid that I do feel a sense of fatigue at this ‘type’ of film.
I use the word ‘type’ very loosely, as the category I am referring to is not genre, but something else. I am perhaps a little tired of films such as A Clockwork Orange, Gummo, Cube (1997), Holy Motors and the like. Call it Post-Post Modernism or something. Maybe it’s just me, but I get a sense that these films are just ‘over it’ and thus they are awarded the medal of extreme maturity. I mean they are curiosities filled with layers of subtext, metaphor and all those academic goodies, but in my humble and insignificant opinion, they are becoming a bit tiresome. And then you come to the realization that these exact films where made because the last generation of films seemed ‘tiresome’ to those directors. And so the cycle continues.
But hey, if you want to be surprised, intrigued and a little creeped out, Holy Motors is a must see. Even if you are not exuberant (as in my case) you’ll still get a lot out of it.

Cover image by Michael Firus