Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order as the beautiful Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a stranger in an underpass tunnel.Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order as the beautiful Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a stranger in an underpass tunnel.Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order as the beautiful Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a stranger in an underpass tunnel.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 13 nominations
Monica Bellucci
- Alex
- (as Bellucci)
Vincent Cassel
- Marcus
- (as Cassel)
Albert Dupontel
- Pierre
- (as Dupontel)
Philippe Nahon
- L'homme
- (as Nahon)
Jo Prestia
- Le Tenia
- (as Prestia)
Stéphane Drouot
- Stéphane
- (as Drouot)
Jean-Louis Costes
- Fistman
- (as Costes)
Mick Gondouin
- Mick
- (as Gondouin)
Mourad Khima
- Mourad
- (as Khima)
Layde Hellal
- Layde
- (as Hellal)
Dominique Nato
- Commissaire
- (as Nato)
Michel Fesche
- Chauffeur Taxi
- (as Fesche)
Victoria Jaramillo
- Concha
- (as Jaramillo)
Jean-Yves Le Quellec
- Inspecteur
- (as Le Quellec)
Isabelle Giami
- Copine d'Alex enceinte
- (as Giami)
Fatima Adoum
- Fatima
- (as Adoum)
Janice Foulaux
- Janice
- (as Foulaux)
Stéphane Derdérian
- Client du Rectum
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe first thirty minutes of the film has a background sound with a low frequency of 27 Hz which is almost infrasonic (this sounds like a rumble/vibration), similar types of noises are at times used by police to stop riots. According to Gaspar himself, this could only be heard in theaters (which usually have huge sound systems/subwoofers) and not from headphones or regular home theaters. In humans, this noise causes nausea, sickness, and vertigo. It was one of the reasons people walked out of screenings during the first part of the film. In fact, it was added by Thomas Bangalter (from the electronic music group Daft Punk) to get this reaction.
- GoofsWhen Alex is in the bed with her boyfriend and they get up to dance, the whole film crew is mirrored on the glass of the window.
- Crazy creditsAs would be expected of a film that runs backwards, the "end credits" appear at the beginning of the film and scroll in reverse. There are no credits or studio logos at the end of the film, only the title card "Le temps détruit tout" ("Time destroys everything").
- Alternate versionsA new version, called "Irréversible - Inversion Intégrale" ("Irréversible - Straight Cut" in English), was screened in 2019 at the 76th annual Venice International Film Festival. It has been recut to put the narration in chronological order.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Zomergasten: Episode #18.6 (2005)
Featured review
Provocative
While it might be tempting to criticize this film for its graphic content, the description of the film practically states what it's about. So the viewer knows what they're getting themselves into from the get go.
It was controversial for its time and to this day probably still is, given how much screen time is given to the "event" itself. As a result, this show won't be for everyone. Even the violence is quite high impact and hard to watch.
But despite the above and the nauseating camera work, the film did ultimately cause me to sympathize with the victim and tell a harrowing story. I recommend this film but it's not for everyone.
It was controversial for its time and to this day probably still is, given how much screen time is given to the "event" itself. As a result, this show won't be for everyone. Even the violence is quite high impact and hard to watch.
But despite the above and the nauseating camera work, the film did ultimately cause me to sympathize with the victim and tell a harrowing story. I recommend this film but it's not for everyone.
helpful•61
- gillmurphydogg
- Jan 1, 2023
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Irreversible
- Filming locations
- Buttes Chaumont, Paris 19, Paris, France(subway station)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $803,491
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $60,086
- Mar 9, 2003
- Gross worldwide
- $6,490,733
- Runtime1 hour 37 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
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