Irreversible

Original title: Irréversible

IMDb RATING

7.3/10

152K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

519

Play trailer1:33

4 Videos

99+ Photos

Psychological Drama Psychological Thriller Crime Drama Mystery Thriller

Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order.Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order.Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.3/10

152K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

519

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 3 wins & 13 nominations total

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
- Gaspar Noé
Writer
- Gaspar Noé
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Storyline

Edit

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
After the film's premiere in Cannes, the audience sat in almost complete silence until the next movie was scheduled to start.

Goofs
When 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.

Quotes
Philippe: Time destroys everything.

Crazy credits
As 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 versions
A 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.

Connections
Featured in Zomergasten: Episode #18.6 (2005)

Soundtracks
Symphony No. 7 in A Major op. 92
Written by Ludwig van Beethoven (as Beethoven)
Koka Media

User reviews818

Review

Featured review

8/10

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.