Review #137: 'Repulsion' (1965)

It's easy to forget that beneath all the controversy and hullabaloo that has surrounded the majority of Roman Polanski's post-The Tenant (1976) career, Polanski was once one of the most exciting and formidable film-makers in the world. He could once stand up amongst the true greats of World Cinema, and even directed one of the greatest American films ever made in Chinatown (1974). It could be argued that his career remained strong after he was charged for underage sexual abuse, and he did even win an Oscar for 2002's The Pianist, but to me, he was never quite the same. He was once truly exceptional, and 1965's Repulsion is one of the best examples of his work.

Carole Ledoux (Catherine Deneuve) is a Belgian manicurist living in London with her sister. Although she is beautiful, she is extremely timid and quiet, and seems to have an unhealthy fear of men. She is being wooed by Colin (John Fraser) but she repeatedly stands him up. When her sister Helen (Yvonne Furneaux) and her boyfriend Michael (Ian Hendry) leave for Italy, Carole is left alone in her apartment. She begins to hallucinate about cracks appearing in the wall, and that a faceless man waits in her bed to rape her every night. As her mental state declines, she is paid a visit by Colin who is worried about her reclusiveness.

I put on this film without knowing at all what it was about, and after the first 45 minutes, it was still unclear. It felt like I was being teased and slowly drawn in by the atmosphere and beautiful black-and-white photography, only to be suddenly yanked into to this nightmarish world. Polanski and his director of cinematography Gilbert Taylor make the most out of the ordinary looking apartment. They turn it into the mind of Carole - cracks shockingly appear in the walls, arms grope her from the walls, and a skinned rabbit lays rotting and rancid in her living room.

Deneuve is a revelation here. She barely utters a word in the whole two hours, and instead lets her face do the acting. But the real star here is Polanski, who manages to keep a tight grip of the proceedings for the entire two hours and never lets up, and doesn't make it easy for you. Is Carole's mind tortured by her fear of what men are capable of? Or is she driven mad by suppressing her psycho-sexual fantasties? Either way, Repulsion is beautiful, horrifying, gripping and thrilling.


Directed by: Roman Polanski
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Ian Hendry, John Fraser, Yvonne Furneaux
Country: UK

Rating: *****

Tom Gillespie