Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani‘s stunning 60s Eurospy homage is 00 Dalí on Quaaludes—a delirious disco ball of vintage glamour, violence, and uncut catnip for cinephiles.
John D may or may not be an ageing secret agent living out retirement in a luxury villa where he reminisces about when he might or might not have been a deadly operative and movie star. When his enigmatic neighbour goes missing, he becomes convinced old nemeses have resurfaced and stares into a giddy kaleidoscope of loss, paranoia, and obsession.
Cult movie partnership Cattet and Forzani are no strangers to cinematic excess, but with their latest opus, they have pushed the boundaries of narrative subterfuge and style over substance schematics. It’s an astonishingly beautiful film that scampers across the screen, mainlining pure imagination while showering us in sequins and blood.
Utterly captivating in every frame, it’s James Bond Bingo played in a surrealist Euro-thriller funhouse where reality is just one poisoned fingernail scratch away from disintegration. The ubiquitous ultra-stylised title sequence is superb, the soundtrack glorious, the gadgets Austin Powers wet dreams, and even Jaws’ metallic chompers are given a refresh for the ages. Substituting Reflections In A Dead Diamond for the traditional Christmas bond flick one year would be an act of joyous, subversive hilarity.
Although the plot is so multi-layered as to be almost impenetrable, that is really not the point. We never know for sure how much is fantasy or delusion. We spend so long living in flashback city that it’s hard to claw a path to clarity as majestic set pieces ravage the senses. This mimics the mindset of the spy going to seed on the French Riviera with nothing but fragmented memories for company.
Some might argue that this rhinestone rollercoaster ride is derivative showboating to the point of self-indulgence; however, the genre it lovingly molests is intrinsically narcissistic and decadently debonair at its core, so the experience becomes relatable, nostalgic, and timeless in the same cinematic breath.
Furthermore, the film is no lazy hodgepodge of spyworld cliches; its structure is meticulous and measured, transitioning between camp chic, spicy humour, and gory carnage with effortless flair. Indeed, the mega-violent bar fight is hands down one of the most grin-inducing scenes of the year, as the filmmakers unleash every weapon from their bedazzling armoury of editing and cinematography.
Fans of the pair’s previous movies will find them in devastating, domineering form, leaving nothing behind in the locker room of flamboyant tricks and teases. The steep inclines of stylistic acid-laced overload may exhaust some viewers, but the sheer levels of WTF madness should keep them climbing, if only to see what temptation and enchantment lie beyond the next ridge.
Charismatic and resourceful, Reflections In A Dead Diamond is as composed, liberated and magnetic as peak-era Bond. Avant-garde and adventurous, with a playful approach to the absolutisms of cult movies, it’s a near-fetishistic celebration of the evocative language of cinema.
★★★★★
Out on Shudder on December 5th / Fabio Testi, Yannick Renier, Koen De Bouw, Maria de Medeiros, Thi Mai Nguyen/ Dirs: Hélène Cattet, Bruno Forzani/ Shudder /18
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