Battle in Heaven

A film made by a man who for all his arthouse stylings and Christian imagery was just a child with an immature sense of humour (seriously, pissing jokes?), a lack of understanding of his characters and a need to provoke by using sex and violence rather than captivate with beauty and cinematic magic.

arzu nesnesine giden bütün yollar sınıfsal/kültürel olarak tıkalı olan marcos, ona yaklaşmak için bir hayal sahnesine sığınır (butik) ama bu hayal sahnesinde, nesnesine en yakın olduğu anda dahi ona dokunabileceği değerler sistemine/kavramsal araçlara sahip olmayı başaramaz. böyle bir dokunuşun/temasın gerçeklikte yaşanma koşulu ise dokunulanın yok edilmesidir. bkz. Max Scheler ve Nietzsche'de hınç. bkz. çileciliğin dinamikleri ve patriyotizmin.

marcos huzuru ne milliyetcilikte ne de dinsel arinmada buluyor

Strange and captivating, especially the first 30-45 minutes are very good. May be a great one, have to let it sink in a little more.

This is fantasy, said the main protagonist. The story mixed a lot the reality and fantasy. That sort of Mexican life is unfamiliar for me. The director was in the familiar waters with Swedish director Roy Andersson, but cannot reach the spheres of him. At least I was not intrigued with the story. Bland story with lazy camerawork and acting was a bad combination despite the story's got some extra ecliptic material.

Ne gunlerdi be, bunun Turkce cevirisini ben yapmistim :)

Maybe i just didn't get this movie, but staring at nothing for 90 seconds does not a good scene make.

Reminiscent of Ferrara's BAD LIEUTENANT, with interesting choices about what to include or exclude from the frame, but too many scenes feature characters moving about in an inexplicably robotic way and having almost no dialogue. As it approaches its melodramatic climax it becomes less and less possible to buy into the film, or to believe that the director's motivations are genuine, so that by the end the viewer's feeling is somewhat that of having been conned. Some good use of music.

wonderful cinematography, outside of that the story and the acting is a bit awkward.. Carlos himself says he has trouble working with actors and plot.. despite the films many flaws, it can be decent at times, and it seems to have a distinct look into Reygadas mind/view of contemporary Mexico. Also something about the religious imagery mixed with explicit sex seemed beautiful to me. Ana likewise was beautiful, the spitting image of an angel.. Overall, pretty but confused.

Maintains a curiously detached disposition towards its lurid subject matter, demystifying sex, death, violence and religion. (Its nationalist criticisms are less coherent, but nonetheless pointed.) This is simultaneously its most compelling virtue and its biggest narrative weakness; I can appreciate what Reygadas accomplishes on an intellectual level, but it (perhaps deliberately) eschews emotional resonance. However, it's certainly admirable in its uncompromising technique and subject matter.

Another Reygadas film about a man in crisis, and the same themes of self-negation and absolution carry over from his debut film. However in the shift from the barren landscapes of "Japón" to the noisy streets of Mexico City, the door is open for more provocation/interruption. The plot line reads as high drama but there is a maintained feeling of detachment, absence in every scene outside of the ones with Marcos and his wife. Not as soulful or clear as my favourites of his.

"9 Songs was sexy but meant nothing. Battle in Heaven is unattractive but meaningful." - Ed Gonzalez

2024'de #IzlediğimFilmler ; 93. Batalla en el cielo (2005) #İstanbulFilmFestivali Heyula köşesinden sıra dışı bir Meksika öyküsü. Tüm çıplaklığı ile. 6/10

Something I saw and forgot to rate. I think I found the audiovisual style impressive but it failed to cohere overall.