Red Rooms: Zeugin des Bösen

I saw 23 films at CIFF & this was my top pick. So thoroughly detailed, from the beginning (seemingly) 1-shot take, to how the story and characters are developed, to the 2 lead actresses (Juliette Gariépy, Laurie Babin) and the entire cast being so believable in their roles. I loved that instead of showing horrific gruesome scenes, you already know and hear the scenes just by seeing the 2 actresses act with their eyes and faces. The depiction of the dark web & related online conversations seems incredibly real. I'm not on the dark web but have been actively engaged since the mid-90s with how people speak online especially using anonymous usernames. The ending did cause intense excited conversations between my friends & I, as to exactly the personality and motives of the main character. As a side note, my friends & I met the director Pascal Plante at CIFF & he was so friendly & humble. I've noticed that the films we enjoyed the most were by the directors who were incredibly humble about their work. Anyhow, this film kept us engaged with every single second.

An interesting amalgam of character study and courtroom drama, two distant filmmaking styles that synchronically procreate this unique blend, which attempts to elaborate on the concepts of corruptive transgression.

I love how the protagonist was put in a position that could be questioned from a moral point of view but cannot be labeled as good or bad, as her desultory conscience, rather the decisions she makes, places her in a sheath of ambiguity.

Once the film ends and the credits start to roll, all you will be thinking about whether Kelly Anne stood for the right or for the wrong; did she give in and surrender to her deviant infatuation? Or did she finally experienced feelings of guilt and overcome her unhealthy obsession?

I adore it when movies leave questions for the audience to ponder on and "Red Rooms" left aplenty to think about.

Les chambres rouges.

A model becomes obsessed with a high-profile murder trial.

Red rooms is a psychological horror and thriller that gets darker in twisted way, the story is interesting and I love courtdrama films but this one felt unique and different a little with an up-to-date case about the dark web, so it really was a very interesting experience.

This movie excelled to picture the dark story of Kelly-Anne especially the atmosphere, most of the scenes were at night and it really served the movie.

This one shouldn't fly under the radar, it's one of the year's best, unfortunately it was released late in the year and it just didn't get the amount of appreciation it deserves.

I don't know what exactly I was expecting from this movie, but it wasn't what I got (in a good way). This movie really caught me off guard. It starts off with a fascinating 20 minute opening scene (possibly done in one take - I can't be sure on this, but it seemed like it in hindsight) that sets up the whole film and had me hooked right the go. From there, the next 2 hours went by about as quickly as they ever do while watching a film for me.

I've never seen a film hold its cards so close to its chest before. Often when films do this it is more frustrating than anything else. Here, it was captivating. I really had no idea what direction the film was ultimately going to go in.

There is some haunting imagery in this film but it doesn't come in the way you'd expect. Considering the extremely dark subject matter the film actually shows very little, if anything, in the way of torture or graphic horror. Instead the film gets under your skin with the lead character doing some things that need to be seen to be appreciated.

I can't recommend a film like this highly enough. It will have you gripped for 2 hours and then stick with you long after that. 9.5/10.

Pascal Plante's Red Rooms may well be the definitive satire of the digital age -- with all its true crime podcasts, serial-killer streaming shows (people basing entire fandoms around the loss of others, basically), Dark-Web fascinations, and other things that have irrevocably desensitized us to suffering. That this film came out right when we started seeing as many corpses and eviscerated streets in our social media feeds as we did -- scrolling past them with little reaction -- makes it even more deeply haunting than it already was.

I can't really put it much better than the other critics here; this really is one of the most evil movies of the year -- possibly of all time. And that isn't to say that the director had ill intentions. That's not what they mean at all! Rather, the film captures something truly vile that is going on within mankind, and also includes one of the most cruel non-violent acts I have ever seen on film. When I tell you that the angles, edits, facial expressions, and especially the music from this scene live rent-free in my head, that is no exaggeration.

In general, the movie contains some of my favorite sequences of the year. The meticulously photographed courtroom scene that opens the film; the eerie moments where the protagonist (played by Juliette Gariépy in a powerfully subtle and downright disturbing performance) dives into the Dark Web and first makes contact with the eponymous Red Rooms; the finale that shows a singularly unsettling break-in. The more I think about it, the more I admire it. Absolutely phenomenal film.