Rent Pola X (1999)

Too Much Pola, Not Enough X - Pola X review by griggs

Frustrating doesn’t quite cover it. There’s a bold, unnerving film buried in Pola X—and in the final twenty minutes, it claws its way to the surface. Those closing scenes are haunting, austere, and genuinely arresting. The mood, at times, is magnetic: shadowy forests, industrial decay, the ache of bodies unsure what to do with themselves. The cinematography captures it all with cold elegance, and Scott Walker’s score thrums beneath it like an open wound. Even the in-film band has presence.

But then there’s the rest. A sprawl of scenes that wander in, say nothing, and sit awkwardly at the edge of the narrative. It’s as if the editor went on strike—or perhaps refused to cut a single shot on aesthetic grounds.

There’s much to admire here. But admiration fades when you keep checking your watch. By the time the film reveals its sharpest edges, it’s already dulled your patience.

Too intensely melodramatic - Pola X review by CP Customer

Phew! Something of an overheated mess. Over-indulged rich kid goes crazy after meeting a wronged half-sister in the woods.

Catherine Deneuve disappears from the script early on and all the main characters are driven by a fatalistic sense of tragedy.

There is a sad irony in seeing Guillaume Depardieu limping (literally) through the last third of the film, given what happened to him in real life. His character here has the same determination to burn out that apparently characterised his real life.

Dull much ado about nothing - Pola X review by EA

Laughably pretentious and dull film with very poor acting. Catherine Deneuve is underused and dies in a laughably absurd manner, but unfortunately there all good acting ends. The scene in the warehouse with the pop musicians is another piece of nonsense.Terrible.

Cinematography is good.