cgibson14 Review of Battle in Heaven

Battle in Heaven (2005)

the most beautiful and resonant pre-title sequence in the past decade

[10/10 · 25 August 2005]

Much has been made of the gratuitous opening sequence in Reygadas latest picture. Allow me to dispel any fears, this is the most beautiful and resonant pre-title sequence in the past decade. We see the nude Carlos' head and chest and sense it's the prurient cliché of the study of a man's naked soul. Reygadas lulls us into this feeling and then slowly pans down to dissolve our preconceptions. The beautiful music beats giving a real sense of emotional turmoil and we pans down to see the almost child-like (in terms of size beside Marcos) Ana administering fellatio. What could have simply been dismissed as shock tactics is undermined by the unsexiness of the sequence and the music which reaches crescendo as the bored Marcos attains orgasm. The black screened title sequence comes at the peak of the music, we are hooked entirely and excited by the emotional resonance produced by the two protagonists about whom we know nothing about. The film is littered with moments wherein the music reaches such a pitch that we cannot but feel for these ostensibly detached and remote characters, and therein lies Reygadas skill. The film works on a number of levels, parallels are drawn between the rife kidnapping problems in Mexico City and Jesus experiences spent in Hell in the 3 days following his Crucifixion. In Edinburgh Reygadas and his actress Anapola Mushkadiz talked and it was interesting to find how autobiographical his film is. The characters retain their own names and the lead Carlos actually was Reygadas father's chauffeur for many years (and an untrained actor). Anapola Mushkadiz, who is a quiet little phenomenon, has never previously acted and showed little ambition to do so again, attributed her performance entirely to Reygadas. Clearly one of the best current directors with influences of Antonioni and Tarkovsky, he curiously reflected that his next film would be happier, curious his sure touch for the darker reaches in everyday life. Rarely does so subtle and out-right thought-provoking a film get made.