- The voices. (2014. Dir. Marjane Satrapi). Optimistic Jerry is making the most out of his factory job. He still has to see a court-appointed psychiatrist; still, things are good. He has a cushy apartment on top of a bowling alley, has two loving pets who regularly talk with him and he’s just met a co-worker he’s sweet on. Maybe he should be taking his medications; but, what for? They only make the world less lovely, not to mention bring back bad memories. Now, if only he hadn’t accidentally hit that deer, and if only it hadn’t begged “Kill me!” to Jerry…
A dark (very dark) comedy / horror / tragedy that successfully accomplishes a very difficult feat: That of crafting an horror tale centered on a mentally ill character, but that instead of feeling exploitative (“Split”, anyone?) is genuinely thought-provoking. Director Satrapi (incidentally the author of the infamous “Persepolis”, as well as other notable comics) displays a very clever use of colors and compositions to draw us into Jerry’s world —his charming hallucinations being less a scare tactic than a character trait. The candy-colored fantasies are Jerry’s attempts at copping with the very real horror in his past and present. And the titular voices are not the perhaps-supernatural entities so many movies would be tempted to make them (again, “Split”) —it soon becomes evident that they are further attempts from Jerry himself to make sense of what is going on. All of which makes the inevitable story turns more than a little impacting.
Very recommended, for genre fans and those looking for an off-beat tale.
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