An LSD-fulled nightmare of dances, violence, delusions, betrayal and desire by the one and only Gaspar Noé. The dance sequences are quite stunning to watch while the descent into chaos and madness makes the movie a bold, striking and nightmarish trip into hell that you cannot unsee.

It's called _Climax_ because it's a mind fuck, but I'm not sure you'll be glad you came. It begins with the end scene and closing credits of a fake thriller as a sign to the audience that the traditional movie is over and we're about to go beyond the boundaries of normal film structure. After a couple of dance sequences and party small talk centered on sex, drugs and a lot more sex (with passing references to children/parenting), the end credits appear in the middle of the film. Following them is the 2nd experience of the two-fer, where things get very dark very quickly. The 'Dancing with the Scars' half is like a drug trip I couldn't get on board with so there was no way for me to get off -- I ended up just staring at the ceiling and wondering if it was going to be finished soon.

Love it or hate it, this film is technically astonishing and whatever it's trying to do, it's doing it very well. It's almost like they've trapped the true essence of French Extremism, set it on fire, and followed it with a steady cam. The camera work in this is surreal and its movements, along with the actors' choreography, are surprisingly well coordinated for a "write-as-we-go" film. Climax will make you feel a lot of things and I don't think you're going to like how most of those things feel, but that's exactly what makes Climax a very well executed horrifying experience.

This was a total waste of time. A pretentious descent into nothing a viewer might care about. Requiem for a Director’s Career

The high they feel definitely doesnt translate to the viewer. I'm familiar with Noe's films, but this was less of a film and more of just an along for the hellish ride as some cope terribly with the drug while others were preparing for it. Sure it goes twisted and dark, but I've got no connection to any character or care what happens to any of them either. They're all just kind of equally awful people. Meh. One and done.